The Who
"Who's Next"
Released: 1971
Ah, The Who...One of my favourite groups, and still I've only picked one
album from their output. Shame on me. "Who's Next" is one of those albums
that really should have been something else (cf Dylan's "Blood On The Tracks").
This is what came out of the rather bombastic "Lifehouse"-project. So in a
way it's a failed project, but a glorious record. I'm one of those sad geezers
who dislike synthesizers, prefering "real" instruments, but here they are used
in an imaginative way. They're not trying to be anything else but synths.
Pete Townshend was experimenting with loops and rhythms based on heartbeats
and such and it's clearest audible on "Baba O'Riley" and "Won't Get Fooled
Again" (later, and most radically, on the title track of the album "Who Are You"
from 1978). Muscular rock with really nice tunes. And terrific production too.
Best moment? Roger Daltrey's controlled scream on "Won't Get Fooled Again".
"Quadrophenia" and "Tommy" are two other Who classics. Definitely worth
checking out.
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