Few bands have shaped the landscape of rock music quite like The Who. With a legacy spanning nearly six decades, their sound, spirit, and spectacle have resonated across generations, cementing their place as pioneers of classic rock. From their role in the mod movement to groundbreaking albums such as My Generation (1965), Tommy (1969), and Who’s Next (1971), The Who helped define the genre while pushing its boundaries. Their music was instrumental in the development of hard and heavy rock, they famously entered the Guinness Book of Records as the loudest live act, and their sensational stage shows—complete with the ritual smashing of instruments—remain iconic. Often hailed as forefathers of punk rock, their influence…
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Keith Moon’s death three weeks after its release added a tragic coda to The Who’s eighth album. In truth, Pete Townshend had threatened to sack Moon during the protracted sessions for Who Are You, his booze-addled antics by then eclipsing his ability to actually do the job.
Contemporary reviews bemoaned the guitarist’s infatuation with synthesizers, but on a record frequently concerned with slipping into irrelevance – ‘New Song’, the still barnstorming title track – it’s one of the most interesting elements, elevating what might otherwise have been stodgier rockers.
Extras on the new multi-format reissue include Glyn Johns’ rejected mix (not enough Ox); 1979 live tracks with replacement Kenney Jones (not enough Moon); demos and rehearsals,…
September 1971 wasn’t a happy time in Who world, even by their remarkably narky standards. Pete Townshend had lost the battle to turn his abandoned Lifehouse concept album into a movie, and a filmed band meeting to discuss where The Who should go next ended testily. Mercifully, relief suddenly arrived in the form of an invitation to headline a British version of the Concert For Bangladesh, George Harrison’s all-star fundraiser staged at Madison Square Garden the previous month. So the group stopped bickering, moved their new £20,000 PA system into a Wandsworth cinema, and began rehearsing for a September 18 show at the Oval cricket ground, also set to feature the Faces, Atomic Rooster, Mott The Hoople, Lindisfarne and more.