B.O., Baked Beans, Buns and The Who
The Who may run into legal problems upon the release of their forthcoming album, The Who Sell Out. The album is like an extended commercial: all the songs are about people who solve their problems by using brand-name products.
The legal hassle came with Odorono, the deodorant company. Says Chris Stamp, who co-produced the album with Kit Lambert, “We have a song about a girl who’s worried about B.O. For some reason Odorono didn’t like being referred to in connection with sweat.” Stamp didn’t exactly handle the company tactfully.
“What I did was ring them up and tell them that as we were doing a very pro thing for their deodorant, maybe they should pay us something. They didn’t take the suggestion at all kindly.” In fact Odorono’s lawyers are trying to decide what action to take.
“There’s another sweet little song about baked beans,” said Stamp. “Heinz didn’t mind a bit. When we told them that the album sleeve showed Roger Daltrey sitting in a hip-bath full of their product, they sent us another crate for free.”
“There’s one song about a caracter named Henry Pond who has a face like a currant bun. He cleans up his spots by using a germicidal cream named Medac and ends up with a complexion like a baby’s bum.”
This story is from the December 14th, 1967 issue of Rolling Stone.