Petra Haden II — 'The Who Sell Out' Never Sounded Better

This past Monday I wrote about Petra Haden (above and below) and her bold solo a cappella recreation of The Who's iconic 1967 album, "The Who Sell Out."

It arrived Tuesday and I've been listening to it almost nonstop ever since.

I also ordered The Who's original album so I could refresh my memory of what Petra worked off of.

I am here to say that Petra's version is magnificent and wonderful and surprising and inventive and, well, buy it for yourself.

Her versions of "Armenia City In The Sky," "Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand," "I Can See For Miles," "I Can't Reach You" and "Sunrise" are breathtakingly beautiful.

For one thing, Petra's voice is gorgeous in and of itself.

Another treat is that for the very first time I can actually understand the words, which on the original were buried under multi-tracked and layered fuzz and buzz.

The lyrics are wonderful.

And her versions of the commercials and ads and Radio London spots are priceless.

At amazon you can listen to clips from each song.

An amazing achievement and a work of art is "Petra Haden Sings: The Who Sell Out."