1980 Pete Townshend – Let My Love Open The Door (UK:#46)
“Let My Love Open the Door” is a song written and performed by Pete Townshend from his 1980 album Empty Glass. It reached the top ten in the United States in that same year, reaching number nine. It reached number five in Canada.
Although Townshend is a devotee to the religious guru Meher Baba, he claimed in the liner notes of his Anthology CD that “Jesus sings” on the track.
“Let My Love Open the Door” was released as the second single from Empty Glass in Britain, where it was backed with the non-album tracks “Classified” and “Greyhound Girl.” The song was a minor British hit, reaching #46. The song saw more success when it was released as the debut single from Empty Glass in America, where the song reached #9. It was Pete Townshend’s only solo top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, but The Who’s song “I Can See For Miles,” which was written by Townshend, reached the same position on the chart 13 years earlier.
Initially, Townshend’s manager despised the track due to it “not sounding like Townshend,” and wanted it to be removed from Empty Glass. However, upon the song’s chart success, his manager called to apologize.
Despite the song’s critical and commercial success, Pete Townshend did not consider it one of his best songs. He told Rolling Stone in an interview that “Let My Love Open the Door” was “just a ditty,” also claiming that he preferred his minor US hit “A Little Is Enough” from the same album.
In 1996, Townshend released a new version of the song, called “the E. Cola mix”, turning the song into a ballad. This version appeared in different television shows and film soundtracks.
Album
Empty Glass is the first solo album of original material, and third album overall, by Pete Townshend, first released in 1980. The album deals with a plethora of issues that Townshend was struggling with, including alcoholism, drug abuse, marital problems and deceased friends. Empty Glass also contained the devotional love song, “Let My Love Open […]
Musicians
| Bass | Tony Butler |
| Drums | Simon Phillips |
| Guitar | Pete Townshend |
| Keyboards | John Bundrick |
| Synthesizer | Pete Townshend |
| Vocals | Pete Townshend |
Produced By
Chris Thomas
Songwriters
Pete Townshend
Charts
US:# –
UK:#46