Posted on 11/14/2018 6:29:49 PM PST by Rummyfan
Roger Daltrey’s new autobiography, Thanks a Lot Mr. Kibblewhite (we’ll explain the title in a moment), is a fun read, but if you’re as diehard a fan of The Who as I am, you can’t help but notice it contains a few missed opportunities. Daltrey is the lead singer for one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s through the early 1980s, yet fails to comment on some of his group’s most important moments.
But he does discuss some of the many squabbles that involved him, his band mates, and his managers. As Dave Marsh wrote in Before I Get Old, his excellent 1983 history of the band, completed immediately after their “first” farewell tour:
If the music world [of the 1960s] could be compared to a neighborhood, then the Who were the one family in every block who simply cannot keep their squabbles private, who make a mess that dangles out of the windows and into the yard and who unashamedly tangle with one another publicly in ways that mortify the neighbors. The Beatles might have argued among themselves as much as the Who, but they were discreet. The Stones were scruffier by far, but their very essence was never losing their cool. The Who battled it out right in public.
Daltrey punctuated a few of those arguments with his fists – most notoriously, an October 1973 argument with The Who’s songwriter, guitarist, and resident genius Pete Townshend, while shooting a promotional film clip during a rehearsal for the British leg of the world tour to promote their then-new album Quadrophenia:
(Excerpt) Read more at pjmedia.com ...
Saw them live at the Cotton Bowl 1982 on one of their “farewell” tours.
They rocked the stadium. Best concert I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen many.
I think there is a lot of truth in that, though I've heard others point to Blue Cheer or the Sonics as other punk godfathers. I've also heard people say that LAL is the first heavy metal album.
One writer said that had The Who made subsequent studio albums with the power and volume like that on Leeds, they'd have had more financial success, akin to Zeppelin. Instead, they made Who's Next (or, more properly, tried to make Lifehouse and produced Who's Next from the wreckage) which was definitely NOT like Leeds.
I concur in part. Who's Next gave us arguably two of The Who's most popular tunes (Baba and WGFA) and (I believe) it is their best-selling album. But if we'd never heard The Song is Over, Love Ain't for Keeping, and Getting in Tune I don't think we'd have missed much. (Personally, I can't stand Behind Blue Eyes and to make me an even bigger minority, on some level I prefer The Who By Numbers to Who's Next.)
I also suspect that had The Who continued in the Leeds manner, we'd have never gotten Quadrophenia which is my Desert Island Disk. Thus, I'm ok with Leeds launching a genre but The Who going in a different direction.
It has been said that Moonie and John were The Who's lead guitar. I agree, with no offense to Pete as he is easily the best rhythm guitarist ever.
Nice username for this thread!
Vinnie Martell is still playing. He's a born again Christian but he does not recoil from his past. I saw him play an absolutely bitchin' version of Hear My Train a Commin' at a Church. The man is still awesome.
I'd also encourage you to check out Rockin' The Wall from our own LS. I got a lot out of it.
But on Leeds there was a screw-up on Magic Bus, where they had to put in a section where it sounds like it’s being played backwards.
IMHO one of the best songs from "Lifehouse" that didn't make it onto "Who's Next" is "I Don't Even Know Myself", just a great song. And the Isle of Wight version is fantastic.
So did Hendrix, your point being?
That wasn't my post. (Though I agree with it.)
I've seen Yes many times over many versions of keyboardists, but Chris Squire and Steve Howe were fantastic artists.
C'mon man! Lyrics like these:
i went back to my mother
I said I'm crazy Ma help me
She said I know how it feels son
'Cause it runs in the family
Fantastic!
I saw Robert Plant in concert two years ago. I think he’s in his seventies now but he still put on a damn good show. Good mix of old and new.
And don’t forget Live at Leeds. Yeah live albums usually don’t count, but especially once we got the extended CD version, or even better the more recent super extended version with all of Tommy, that is a “just damn” live album.
Now that is a helluva show!
And the ticket didn’t cost you a house payment.
I recently discovered Lou Reed's "Rock 'n' Roll Animal" which I think belongs up there. Hunter and Wagner were the best 1-2 punch in rock and roll history. Even if you're not a Velvet Underground/Lou Reed fan, it's still a great listen.
I sometimes wonder if Robert got his soul back on the condition that he never reunite, but that's a WHOLE separate thread....
One of the edits was to take out the “Spoonful” section of “Shakin’ All Over.” The story I heard was that the record company didn’t want to have to pay royalties to Willie Dixon, who wrote the song.
I got the amazing Lifehouse Chronicles box set that Pete put out in 2000. Only listened to the orchestral works and radio play once, but the other three discs are pure gold. For those who always get the name of Baba O’Riley wrong, there is an actual song called Teenage Wasteland. It may not be everyone’s cup o’ tea, but the Who Are You (Gateway Remix) is astounding.
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