Rip Roaring Who (The Who By Numbers - The Who)

Member Name: salgirl

Product:	The Who By Numbers - The Who
Date:	07/02/01 (67 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It shows you have fantastic taste

Disadvantages: None except everyone might get sick of you listening to it for hours on end

Fantastic album. Fantastic tracks. Fantastic Group. Fantastic collective age as well come to think of it. Anyhow, this is The Who at their rocking best, when Pete was drink addled and Moonie was alive (well sort of).

This album has the Who at their rip-roaring best. Good rockin' numbers with the occasional softer track, but the original style of RnB shines through. Moonie is spectacular on drums, Townshend forgoes he usual way out style of guitaring in favour of some exceptionally tuneful and soulful spanking of the plank. John Entwistle (surely the MOST UNDER-RATED bass players of all time) keeps the band tight together and Roger the Dodger's voice rarely sounds better.

"Slip Kid" is a great track to kick off with, and it's Magic Bus style rhythm makes this a distinctive and rocky number. As usual Pete Townshend's lyrics are excellent, even in this frustrated depression of a song.

"However much I booze" is a very raw, autobiographical account of his drinking problems. My favourite lines are "And now the walls are clawed and scratched, just like some soul insane. In the morning I'll hungoverly detach myself, I'll take no blame." As with most of his lyrics, his vulnerability angers him and he's letting you know that he KNOWS he's got a problem, but he's scared. Thank the lord he appears to have slithered out of his Brandy bottle, and the trashed rooms are consigned to the many pages of Rock history. But no one draws attention to their heart more plainly on their sleeve than Pete Townshend. More power to the bloke.

The next is a very familiar track to those over a certain age. "Squeeze Box" is a reasonably disguised smutty song, and it must have fooled the censors because it made the charts. Catchy little number with an effective use of an accordion.

"Dreaming from the waist." Again the lyrics make this for me, and the content is agai
n humourously smutty. Although this time the subject matter isn't hidden. So to speak.

It slows right down for "Imagine A Man" where Pete's writing skills veer off in their invariably dramatic way. No rock tune here, this is more of his almost theatrical music, with the light being shone on Roger's wonderous vocal talents which wraps itself round some more revealing Townshend lyrics.

Back on the up beat for "Success Story", and again the humour is prevalent on this song about the lives of people who achieve their goals in life. The video that accompanies this track on "Kids are Alright" has John Entwistle's stunning guitar collection as part of the scenery. It's worth buying the video to see these all together before he sold them for an ungodly sum.

Sway along in a beer-keller kind of way to "They're all in love". Again the lyrics are fantastic - "Goodbye all you punks, stay young and stay high, just hand me my chequebook and I'll crawl off to die." This is a man who feels he has someone to pass the mantle on to and retire. I saw them just last November, so he's still not taking his own advice, for which I'm mighty glad, I hasten to mention.

How often have you heard a ukelele outside of a George Formby convention? Well. Pete's playing one on "Blue Red & Gray". It actually works quite well with this sweetly simple love song, and it tends to stick in your mind even though you don't think it will.

"How many friends have I really got?" A personal favourite, this is more of Pete pointing to the large heart beating on his windmilling arm. A sad little journey down his dwindling confidence, this becomes a very powerful belter, with Roger's vocal chords sustaining some probable damage in the climax. I could wipe away a tear after listening to this..

"In a hand or a face" is the final rock
out, with Moonie's wonderful drumming and Entwistle's relentless bass playing as prevalent at the end as they were from the start. No one backs off from the music on this album. This is the Who giving it their all.

This one is right up there with Quadrophenia, Who's next and Who are you and is simply a must for the collection.

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