"Tattoo" is a song written by Pete Townshend that was first released by the British rock band The Who on their 1967 album The Who Sell Out.
[4] Townshend has said that the inspiration for the song came from memories from the time he was about eleven or twelve years old of seeing men with tattoos all up and down their arms, and being concerned that that would happen to him eventually.
[4] Author Chris Charlesworth describes the melody as being "particularly attractive and mature" and also comments on the "unusually complex rhymes" used.
[2] Authors Steve Grantley and Alan Parker praise Daltrey's vocal performance, noting that it "intrigues and seduces" and finds him projecting an uncharacteristically "passive, pensive mood".
"[8] AllMusic critic Richie Unterberger states that "Tattoo" "shows introspective, vulnerable sides to the singer/songwriter that had previously been hidden.
[2] Grantley and Parker note that "Tattoo" is "full of pathos" and "an excellent example of Townshend finding in the humdrum something of universal resonance and appeal.