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The Who
Mar 18, 2021 15:02:21 GMT
jk likes this
Post by kds on Mar 18, 2021 15:02:21 GMT
I thought I'd seen that However Much I Booze was done live, and now I remember. It was on a Who DVD from a 1975 show in Texas. IF I remember correctly, the DVD is just the video feed from the screen at the venue, but any documentation of the original Who is well worth it. It's interesting that they did a mini Tommy suite on that tour. The amount of times The Who and Roger have done Tommy has to revival Pet Sounds. www.amazon.com/Who-Live-Texas-75/dp/B008NR92SI
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Post by jk on Mar 18, 2021 22:28:01 GMT
I thought I'd seen that However Much I Booze was done live, and now I remember. It was on a Who DVD from a 1975 show in Texas. IF I remember correctly, the DVD is just the video feed from the screen at the venue, but any documentation of the original Who is well worth it. It's interesting that they did a mini Tommy suite on that tour. The amount of times The Who and Roger have done Tommy has to revival Pet Sounds. www.amazon.com/Who-Live-Texas-75/dp/B008NR92SILots of live versions on YouTube but the only one with live footage is the one you mention, from 20 November 1975 at The Summit, Houston (TX):
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Post by kds on Mar 19, 2021 12:13:11 GMT
Speaking of that song, The Who By Numbers seems to be the dark horse album in the band's catalog. Squeeze Box is easily the most popular song off the album, and is the only track that regularly appears on the many many many Who compilations out there, but even that one rarely gets played live.
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Post by kds on Mar 19, 2021 14:30:32 GMT
Well, it's definitely the worst album from the classic lineup (1965 - 1978). Such a vertiginous drop in quality from Quadrophenia to this... I personally can't listen to Who By Numbers in full, it feels like nobody was invested in making it a good album. Even Squeeze Box sucks I will agree with the drop in quality from Quadrophenia to By Numbers, but I'll take By Numbers over Who Are You. I think Slip Kid, However Much I Booze, Dreaming from Waist, They Are All in Love, and Blue Red and Grey are all really solid songs. Even before it was killed by classic rock radio, I was never really that big into the title track for Who Are You. Maybe if it were about two minutes shorter, I might appreciate it more.
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Post by kds on Mar 19, 2021 14:44:11 GMT
I'm not a big fan of Who Are You as well, but I think it was a much better way for Moon to say goodbye than Who By Numbers. WAY has a more defined sound and a couple of very good/great songs, and I don't see that on WBN. kds , do you mind if I ask you what's your favorite Who album? That's fair. I'll just respectfully disagree, as The Who By Numbers has really grown on me while Who Are You really hasn't. I actually prefer the two 21st Century Who albums to Who Are You. My favorite is Quadrophenia. I think that album is the absolute peak of Townshend as a songwriter, and perhaps also as a guitarist. My only gripe about the album, and it's a very minor one, was that there were no John songs. I believe John's Postcard, which eventually surfaced on the expanded Odds and Sods, was intended for Quadrophenia, but I don't really think it would've been a good fit.
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Post by kds on Mar 19, 2021 15:48:03 GMT
Good pick! Even though I personally prefer his early playing style, I consider this Pete's peak as a lead guitarist as well. The title track is a great example of this. And it's probably my 2nd favourite concept album written by Pete. My only reservation with Quadrophenia is it's lenght, as I'm bot a big fan of double albums. Unfortunately though, the story is too rich to fit in a single LP. In general, I much prefer single albums to doubles, but I think Quadrophenia is the except to that rule (along with The Wall). The other thing I like about Quadrophenia is that, unlike many concept albums, Tommy included, just about every song can stand up on its own. With the lone exception of the intro piece I Am the Sea, there are no little transitional pieces or one minute ditties to link one song to the next.
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Post by kds on Mar 19, 2021 16:02:40 GMT
Classic Who Lineup
1. Quadrophenia 2. Who's Next 3. Tommy 4. The Who Sell Out 5. A Quick One 6. My Generation 7. By Numbers 8. Who Are You
The Who All Time
1. Quadrophenia 2. Who's Next 3. Tommy 4. The Who Sell Out 5. A Quick One 6. My Generation 7. By Numbers 8. WHO 9. Endless Wire 10. Who Are You 11. Face Dances 12. It's Hard
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Post by B.E. on Mar 19, 2021 21:57:28 GMT
I decided to rank my favorite The Who albums from 1965 - 1978 and I invite anybody who's interested to do the same. I'd be glad to. Just give me a week or two (or three) to listen to them all!
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Post by B.E. on Mar 20, 2021 21:18:10 GMT
A gave a quick listen to their 1966 EP, Ready Steady Who, which went to #1 in the UK, and I wasn't too impressed. I'll give it a generous '6' for the fun of "Bucket T", "Batman", and "Barbara Ann", and the song "Disguises". But, this EP sounds both tossed off and overdone at the same time. I guess we can thank psychedelia for the latter. "Disguises" is a terrible production, IMO. Very harsh. The harsh guitar sounds found their way onto "Batman" as well. I'm assuming the Who were going for a tougher/harsher sound than what came before them, but sometimes it's too much for me. Still, like I said, there's things to enjoy. At least 3 of the tracks are fun.
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Post by B.E. on Mar 20, 2021 21:41:52 GMT
I'll give the nod to A Quick One over My Generation but it's very close. I like that their sound is more refined. Better production, better backing vocals. You hear it right away with "Run Run Run", but, unfortunately, the next 3 songs are my least favorite. Then "Heat Wave" jolts the album back to life! I appreciate that the Who spice up their quasi-drum instrumentals - like they do here with "Cobwebs and Strange". That one is a lot of fun and provides some musical variety. "So Sad About Us" is the highlight of the album. Very Byrds-y - I mean, with that intro it's hard not to start singing "the reason why..." from "I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better". Actually, I was reminded of quite a few other songs throughout. You've got "California Girls" meets "Rio Grande" in "I Need You" and "A Quick One". And, also in "A Quick One" I hear McCartney's "Old Siam Sir" and "Single Pigeon". Paul must have listened to, and enjoyed, this album!
B+ So Sad About Us Heat Wave B Don't Look Away Run Run Run A Quick One, While He's Away B- Cobwebs and Strange See My Way C I Need You Whiskey Man D Boris The Spider
Oh, and not to be negative, but the mix of "A Quick One" is pretty poor. That had been another strength of the album, but after the in-your-face a cappella intro (which I wasn't expecting!) the lead vocal of the next section is buried and rendered indecipherable. What gives?
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The Who
Mar 22, 2021 0:48:01 GMT
via mobile
Post by kds on Mar 22, 2021 0:48:01 GMT
I rate A Quick One higher than My Generation also. One of those cases where the highs on MG are better, but I think AQO is a bit more consistent.
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Post by kds on Mar 26, 2021 12:59:33 GMT
I know everyone loves The Who's golden period, but what about 21st Century Who?
The Who had long periods of inactively after their 1982 "Farewell Tour" up until about 1999. They were one of several one off reunions for Live Aid. They got back together for the 20th Anniversary of Tommy in 1989 (which also promoted Pete's Iron Man album, which featured Roger and John on two tracks). They did a song on the Elton John tribute album in 1991. Then, toured Quadrophenia in 1996-97.
But, since re-re-re-forming in 1999 (Pete and Roger have said that they would tour to help John out of financial trouble), they've been a very active group. They toured extensively to great acclaim from 1999-2002 with a stripped down five piece band, and gained a lot of attention playing the Concert for New York in October 2001 just after 9/11.
But, then John died. Roger and Pete took a couple days to mourn, strapped a bass on Pino Palladino, and went right back on tour.
In 2004, The Who released two new tracks - Real Good Looking Boy (could they have possibly picked a worse title right after Pete's internet scandal?) and Old Red Wine. I thought both tracks were quite good, the former in particular. They landed on the Then & Now comp.
In 2006, The Who released Endless Wire, their first studio album since 1982, which featured the Wire & Glass mini opera. I think it's a solid album overall, with some great tracks like Black Widow's Eyes, Mike Post Theme, Fragments, and It's Not Enough. The opera section's a little clumsy at times, but decent.
In 2007, they released the documentary Amazing Journey. Good doc, but I'd have liked something a little longer, but this was before the recent trend of marathon docs being released to streaming services.
The Who continued to tour in the 2010s, even taking Quadrophenia and Tommy on the road. They released another comp - The Who Hit 50 - with a new track called Be Lucky.
The Who wrapped up the decade with the release of WHO in December 2019, which I think is an improvement over Endless Wire with songs like Hero Ground Zero, All This Music Must Fade (including the flippant intro "I don't care, I know you're not gonna play this song"), Ball and Chain, and Detour among others.
The Who have hinted that they might have another album in them to be released in the near future.
So, new tracks, two solid albums, a new documentary, about 784 new compilations and live albums / DVDs, The Who found themselves busier in the new Century than they've been since the 1970s. Personally, I think the music world is better for it.
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 26, 2021 13:19:34 GMT
I have never listened to a post-Moon album by the Who. I just decided to change that, and so I've got Face Dances from 1981 on right now.
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Post by kds on Mar 26, 2021 13:30:13 GMT
Face Dances has really grown on me in recent years (despite my ranking it near the bottom of Who albums).
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Post by Kapitan on Mar 26, 2021 14:33:06 GMT
Neither quite impressed or unhappy with it so far, other than to say the songs could be edited a bit. But "Daily Records" verse: "Sloop John B"!
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