Outside of The Who, Pete Townshend’s biggest musical success is the 1980 single “Let My Love Open The Door,” which was his sole top-10 single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. (That actually matches The Who’s career total of top-ten songs with one, as 1967’s “I Can See For Miles” was the band’s high point with its No. 9 peak.)
Now, Mitski has brought the song to present day: The soundtrack of the movie A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is out today (September 19) and it features Mitski’s cover of the song. In contrast to the upbeat original, Mitski’s recording is just her voice and piano, stripping the song back and slowing it down.
Shortly after the song’s release, Townshend told Rolling Stone it was “just a ditty” but later said in 1996, “It’s supposed to be about the power of God’s love. That when you’re in difficulty, whether it’s major or minor, God’s love is always there for you.” That was the year Townshend released the slower “E. Cola Mix” version of the song, which was used in many movies.
As for A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, the logline reads, “Some doors bring you to your past. Some doors lead you to your future. And some doors change everything. Sarah (Margot Robbie) and David (Colin Farrell) are single strangers who meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and soon, through a surprising twist of fate, find themselves on A Big Bold Beautiful Journey — a funny, fantastical, sweeping adventure together where they get to re-live important moments from their respective pasts, illuminating how they got to where they are in the present…and possibly getting a chance to alter their futures.”
Listen to Mitski’s cover of “Let My Love Open The Door” above.
