Go To The Mirror!

"Go to the Mirror!" is a song written by Pete Townshend of The Who. It appears as the fifteenth track on the group's first rock opera, Tommy (1969). "Go to the Mirror!" is included on the list of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

It is sung by a doctor who tells Tommy's parents that, after numerous tests, there is nothing medically wrong with him, and his problems, while very real ("He seems to be completely unreceptive / The tests I gave him show no sense at all"), are psychosomatic ("All hope lies with him, and none with me"). However, as they are trying to reach him, Tommy's subconscious is also trying to reach out to them ("See me, feel me / Touch me, heal me").

In the movie version of Tommy, the doctor is played by Jack Nicholson.

The song invokes two recurring themes of the album, "See Me, Feel Me", and "Listening to You", which first appear (in lyric form) as the "Christmas" interlude, and is also the song cycle's finale (as part of the track "We're Not Gonna Take It"). This version in "Go to the Mirror!" is sung by Pete Townshend rather than Roger Daltrey. Though Daltrey sings the majority of Tommy's parts, here he has been singing as the Doctor, so Townshend singing as Tommy provides effective contrast.

The original demo Townshend recorded for the song includes one extra verse not used in the final recording, "I've kicked him, licked him, rubbed him, hit him, loved him / Everything in vain to let him know / I'm here my son, your dad, I wait for your sign / And in my heart frustration overflows." The song was also to be followed by the 10-second track titled "Success," but it was ultimately dropped.

The repeating chords in this song are E, B, and A. After two lines with those chords, the third line goes from a G#m into a C#m (then two hits on a B chord to end the line.) The fourth and final line of the chorus is almost all an A chords and ends on a B7.

The Who singles discography
UK singles 1960s
1964
"Zoot Suit" / "I'm the Face"
1965
"I Can't Explain" / "Bald Headed Woman"
"Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" / "Daddy Rolling Stone"
"My Generation" / "Shout and Shimmy"
1966
"Substitute" / "Circles"
"A Legal Matter" / "Instant Party"
"The Kids Are Alright" / "The Ox"
"I'm a Boy" / "In the City"
"La-La-La-Lies" / "The Good's Gone"
"Happy Jack" / "I've Been Away"
1967
"Pictures of Lily" / "Doctor, Doctor"
"The Last Time" / "Under My Thumb"
"I Can See for Miles" / "Someone's Coming"
1968
"Dogs" / "Call Me Lightning"
"Magic Bus" / "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"
1969
"Pinball Wizard" / "Dogs Part Two"
"Go to the Mirror!" / "Sally Simpson"
"I'm Free" / "Tommy, Can You Hear Me?"
US singles 1960s
1965
"I Can't Explain" / "Bald Headed Woman"
"Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" / "Anytime You Want Me"
"My Generation" / "Out in the Street"
1966
"Substitute" / "Waltz For a Pig"
"The Kids Are Alright" / "A Legal Matter"
"I'm a Boy" / "In the City"
1967
"Happy Jack" / "Whiskey Man"
"Pictures of Lily" / "Doctor, Doctor"
"I Can See for Miles" / "Mary Anne with the Shaky Hand"
1968
"Call Me Lightning" / "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"
"Magic Bus" / "Someone's Coming"
1969
"Pinball Wizard" / "Dogs Part Two"
"I'm Free" / "We're Not Gonna Take It"
UK singles 1970s
1970
"The Seeker" / "Here For More"
"Summertime Blues" / "Heaven and Hell"
"See Me, Feel Me" / "Overture from Tommy"
1971
"Won't Get Fooled Again" / "I Don't Even Know Myself"
"Behind Blue Eyes" / "Going Mobile"
"Baba O'Riley" / "My Wife"
1972
"Join Together" / "Baby Don't You Do It"
"Relay / Wasp Man"
1973
"5.15" / "Water"
"Love, Reign o'er Me" / "Water"
1974
"The Real Me" / "Doctor Jimmy"
1975
"Squeeze Box" / "Success Story"
1978
"Who Are You" / "Had Enough"
1979
"Long Live Rock" / "I'm the Face"/"My Wife (Live)"
"I'm One" / "5:15 (Soundtrack Version)"
US singles 1970s
1970
"The Seeker" / "Here For More"
"Summertime Blues" / "Heaven and Hell"
"See Me, Feel Me" / "Overture from Tommy"
1971
"Won't Get Fooled Again" / "I Don't Even Know Myself"
"Behind Blue Eyes" / "Going Mobile"
"Baba O'Riley" / "My Wife"
1972
"Join Together" / "Baby Don't You Do It"
"The Relay" / "Wasp Man"
1973
"5.15" / "Water"
"Love Reign O'er Me" / "Water"
1974
"The Real Me" / "I'm One"
1975
"Squeeze Box" / "Success Story"
1976
"Slip Kid" / "Dreaming from the Waist"
"Substitute (Reissue)" / "I'm a Boy (Alternate Version)"
1978
"Who Are You" / "Had Enough"
1979
"Long Live Rock" / "My Wife (Live)"
UK singles 1980s
1981
"You Better You Bet" / "The Quiet One"
"Don't Let Go the Coat" / "You"
1982
"Athena" / "A Man Is a Man"
1984
"Twist and Shout (live)" / "I Can't Explain (live)"
1988
"Won't Get Fooled Again (EP)" ( "Won't Get Fooled Again (live)" / "Bony Moronie (live)" / "Dancing in the Street (live)" / "Dance it Away (live)" )
US singles 1980s
1981
"You Better You Bet" / "The Quiet One"
"Don't Let Go the Coat" / "You"
1982
"Athena" / "It's Your Turn"
"Eminence Front" / "One At A Time"
1983
"It's Hard" / "Dangerous"
Singles 2000s
2004
"Real Good Looking Boy" / "Old Red Wine"
2006
"It's Not Enough"
Tommy by The Who (1969)
Adaptations
  • Tommy (1975 film)
  • The Who's Tommy (1992 musical)
Songs
  • "Overture"
  • "Amazing Journey"
  • "Eyesight to the Blind (The Hawker)"
  • "The Acid Queen"
  • "Fiddle About"
  • "Pinball Wizard"
  • "Go to the Mirror!"
  • "Tommy Can You Hear Me?"
  • "I'm Free"
  • "See Me, Feel Me"
Live albums w/
majority of Tommy
  • Tommy and Quadrophenia Live
  • Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970
  • Live at Leeds
Tours supporting Tommy
  • The Who Tour 1969
  • The Who Tour 1970
    • 1989 reunion tour
Other
  • The Who's Tommy Pinball Wizard
  • Two's Missing
  • Tommy (1975 soundtrack)
  • Tommy
  • The Smithereens Play Tommy
  • The Roots of Tommy