The arrangement for "Magic Bus" uses a Latin percussion instrument known as claves, which are pairs of small wooden sticks that make a distinctive high pitched clicking noise when struck together.

"[10] The song is usually performed as a duet, where the "Rider", usually singer Roger Daltrey when live, is riding on the bus every day to see his girl.

[11] Backing vocals were provided by The Who's sound engineer Bob Pridden and Jess Roden from The Alan Bown Set, whom Townshend credits with "that Steve Winwood-type voice".

[12] The original LP and cassette of the Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy compilation album featured a 4:28 longer alternate vocal take of "Magic Bus" in fake stereo which was not included on the original compact disc version because the true stereo or mono source could not be found for the long version of the song.

When played live, the song typically featured a lengthy instrumental jam, with some performances lasting over 15 minutes.

The rhythm and beat of the song was significantly altered to a slower groove, and Townshend and Daltrey ad libbed a few verses.

Another notable performance (recorded on 27 November 2000) appears on Live at the Royal Albert Hall, which morphs into a cover of "Country Line Special."

Conversely, on the same release, Pete Townshend cited "Magic Bus" as his favorite song to play, "because of the rhythm."

"[citation needed] In 1985, Alvin and the Chipmunks covered the song for their TV series episode "The Prize Isn't Right".