diff --git a/swift/common/swob.py b/swift/common/swob.py
index 22af356612..9013541e89 100755
--- a/swift/common/swob.py
+++ b/swift/common/swob.py
@@ -1008,6 +1008,8 @@ class Response(object):
         return self.host_url + self.location
 
     def __call__(self, env, start_response):
+        if not self.request:
+            self.request = Request(env)
         self.environ = env
         app_iter = self._response_iter(self.app_iter, self._body)
         if 'location' in self.headers:
diff --git a/test/unit/common/test_swob.py b/test/unit/common/test_swob.py
index e5c3ab6136..06852504bf 100755
--- a/test/unit/common/test_swob.py
+++ b/test/unit/common/test_swob.py
@@ -462,6 +462,24 @@ class TestResponse(unittest.TestCase):
         resp.body = u'\N{SNOWMAN}'
         self.assertEquals(resp.body, u'\N{SNOWMAN}'.encode('utf-8'))
 
+    def test_call_reifies_request_if_necessary(self):
+        """
+        The actual bug was a HEAD response coming out with a body because the
+        Request object wasn't passed into the Response object's constructor.
+        The Response object's __call__ method should be able to reify a
+        Request object from the env it gets passed.
+        """
+        def test_app(environ, start_response):
+            start_response('200 OK', [])
+            return ['hi']
+        req = swift.common.swob.Request.blank('/')
+        req.method = 'HEAD'
+        status, headers, app_iter = req.call_application(test_app)
+        resp = swift.common.swob.Response(status=status, headers=dict(headers),
+                                          app_iter=app_iter)
+        output_iter = resp(req.environ, lambda *_: None)
+        self.assertEquals(list(output_iter), [''])
+
     def test_location_rewrite(self):
         def start_response(env, headers):
             pass