10 Amazing Songs That Don't Have A Chorus
9. Pinball Wizard - The Who
By the end of 1969, everything was in place for Pete Townshend to unveil his masterpiece. As soon as the rock world listened to Tommy, they were treated to something much more interesting than a collection of songs, telling a story of a deaf dumb and blind kid who eventually becomes a god among men, only to be shunned by his followers in the process. That's not necessarily the most radio friendly scenario though, so Pete offered up the closest thing to a single that could come from this record.
Which is strange considering that Pinball Wizard is not a conventional pop song by any stretch of the imagination. Going through every single section of the song, no words are repeated throughout any section, with everything just coming back to Tommy's reputation as a pinball champion. You don't really need the chorus when the song is full of hooks like this though, from Pete playing his chords almost like how you would strum a banjo to Keith Moon flying off the handle whenever the time calls for it behind the drum kit.
Just when you think you have a handle on where everything's going though, the whole thing jumps up in key as well, leading to the end section picking up in energy before going into an instrumental interlude to lead into the next track. There are still a lot of hooks to be found here if you look for them, but Tommy is more about the complete experience than some collection of hits.