A Little Disappointed by The Who

I feel that an element of disappointment with the Who stems from their music being used as the theme music for the three CSI variants - LA, Miami,NY. On the box it sounds great - and I will say that the sound quality from Live8 was excellent. What I have found is that when I compare the TV sound track to the same track on the album, the TV mix sounds better, and the vinyl a little anaemic. Then again the last time I played a Who album, the cart was on its last legs.

Maybe I need to get better copies of the albums - I have to admit that the "mint" albums I bought on ebay contain an awful lot of crackle an pop. Having said that, I bought a Who live CD recently for the car, and I am a tad disappointed with the sound quality - though I am willing to concede that may be down to the poor system in my car.

I guess we all have a music memory of the tracks we heard in our youth - I sometimes think that that memory can garnish the reality, and when you hear the actual track years later, it doesn't have the same appeal.

Like you I want to be impressed and enthralled, but oftentimes I end up just a bit disappointed when the reality doesn't meet up to the expectations.

KR

Brad

Quadraphenia by The Who is one of my all time favorites when I need a good blast and the neighbours and family are out maybe you should give it a try. it's a challenge you to stay in your chair when 'Dr Jimmy' is playing

I always think the unique style of Keith Moon's drumming was one of the things to keep The Who music interesting - his demise was a great loss to the band musically (IMHO)

I hear what you are saying about the dubious sound quality and I think that is a problem on several of the recordings (including Quadr.). Some of them sound a little compressed in their dynamic range - I have always put that down to their age - but someone here will tell me that is not true.


Ian

I agree that Live at Leeds is a bit samey. Who's Next is quite a bit better.

It's all subjective, of course, but I think that Tommy is far and away The Who's best album. I picked up a superbly remastered single CD set a few years ago when it came out (531 043-2). I don't know whether that's still available or replaced with some dual layer crap.

G

Thanks for these, might give Quadraphenia and Tommy a go. As I said, I did rather like Who's Next. My problem was more with live at leeds.


regards,

Tam

A few months ago I got a double CD compilation of The Who, called - I think - "The Who Collection". I got it after hearing "My Generation" on the car radio.

Sadly, there isn't much on the compilation that lives up to that track (but "Won't Get Fooled Again" is v good indeed). I was amazed how poppy their early stuff is, not in a good way, but tinny and lightweight.

Mark S

Sorry to disagree, but I think "Who's Next" is one of the all-time best rock albums ever. There is a relatively-new remastered version of the cd out there that has been sound quality than the original. Live at Leeds is a good live album; other Who albums may be more to your liking. While I (perhaps) can understand not being blown away by Live at Leeds, Who's Next is an absolute stunner (IMO, of course).

Mike

Mike,

As I said above, I did enjoy Who's Next (it is pretty good and I wouldn't want to part with the disc, though I don't think it would make, say, my desert island discs). My problem was more with live at leeds.


regards,

Tam

Live at Leeds is a fantastic raw and powerful album the timing might be out at times,but the that just adds to the performance!

Live at Leeds is generally regarded as one of the best live albums (if not the very best) of all time. It's not a grower and if you weren't completely knocked out by it the first time you heard it then the Who are just not for you as it's over 2 hours of blistering hard rock which shows them doing what they were best at i.e. blowing every other band of the time off the stage (assuming you got the fully extended version).
Who's Next saw them maturing and experimenting and I think is by far their best studio work although it takes a bit of getting into it. To be honest the extended versions add nothing and I'd suggest you stick to the basic, original album at least initially.

You definitely picked a couple of their best albums to start with but it sounds like the Who are just not for you.

Who aren't you, you might say!

Then And Now is a pretty economical place to start, to find out if Who •are• you, after all.

I think the Live at Leeds album (particularly the extended deluxe version with the whole of Tommy) is stunning but I am almost certainly living on the memory of seeing The Who in small venues twice between 1971 and 74 (roughly). Seeing, hearing and feeling the gut wrenching power of the band from less than 10 metres away is the finest musical memory I have. Four superb performing artists (in their own way). Listening to the album without that kind of memory may well not be such a magical experience.

None of the studio albums managed to come close to recreating that energy - although 'Who's Next' is often felt to come the closest. I also agree with Quadrophenia - never heard it on cd but very good on original vinyl.

Regards

Andy

Tam

I agree with you and prefer Who's Next to Live at Leeds.

My favourite Who album is The Who Sell Out. It features the well known single "I Can See for Miles" and contains the track I like best "Armenia City in the Sky" (written by Speedy Keen - later of Thunderclap Newman), there are strange tales like "Odorono" and "Tattoo" and a mini-opus "Rael". It is put together like it was a pirate radio show.

Rotf

To: "A little Dissappointed"

You need to get a grip laddie.

Who's Next is one of the best albums of all time. One of the very earliest use of synth in rock music and more talent and invention than I have heard displayed by brit-bands in the last 15 yrs (Radiohead excepted).

Live at Leeds - FFS it's a live album by a young band, a 3 piece with a vocalist. Of course it's samey.. there's only so much you can do with drums, bass and guitar. Check out the Zepp live albums and its the same.

What you have in abundance is raw energy, talent and commitment.
The deluxe versions of Who's Next, L@L, are truly excellent. Quadrophenia, in any form, is a masterpiece.

If you don't get these albums then just give up now and listen to Dido and Coldplay.

Seeesshh!!

Colin (and, indeed, on or two others),

It would be nice if people actually read my posts!

For the last time, I did like Who's Next, it's a very good album (I'm not sure it's up there with the very best, but certainly very good).

If Live at Leeds is by a young band then surely the exact same criticism applies to who's next (given it dates from just one year later).

The Zepp live albums are all the same? I only have the Beeb sessions but I don't find that repetitive in nearly the same way.

So, if I don't like Live at Leeds I can therefore only listen Dido and Coldplay (truly hell itself!)? Sorry, but Live at Leeds just isn't that great and it is repetitive. You may love it, good for you, but the idea that if you don't then your not eligible to listen to other than depressing, grey and seriously repetitive rubbish is, frankly, stupid.

My point was also, that after listen to both albums fairly close together (though not back to back), I felt that they ran out of things to say pretty quickly (unlike, say if you listened to a number of, say, pink floyd or zeppelin albums fairly close together). Of course, that's not to say I wouldn't have felt differently if I'd had Quadrophenia or the Who Sell Out, I may very well still give them a try.


regards,

Tam

Always thought "Live At Leeds" was rather overrated myself. "Who's Next" is a masterpiece though. If you want a more varied Who album; why not try "Who Are You", good sound as well. Always wished I'd taken the trouble to seek out the deleted MoFi Gold CD version of this one.

Maybe you just don't like the The Who much...

Would forum members please refrain from suggesting other forum members should be forced to listen to Coldplay, Phil Collins or Dire Straits - surely nobody deseves that.

I may be ugly but I sure ain't weird, as the good Captain said.

Steady on, nothing too wrong with Dire Straits (or does that lose me any credibility?)

Tam - I tend to agree with your thoughts about Live at Leeds , it's OK but after a time the novelty wears off (this coming from an admirer of The Who since the 70's) , I do however think this of many 'live' albums I hear or have heared - some better than others but in the main they often just capture a moment and sadly all too often that 'moment' they've tried to capture is nothing like witness to the actual moment of being there yourself ! - particularly true of The Who I feel as to seem them live is an experience but to listen to their work on recording , well - doesn't always come across as it should to me

that said I heartily (like others) suggest you take a listen of Quadrophenia - make sure it's the original 1973 version though and not the re-packaged effort (with Phil Daniels on the cover) they did for the film

As a long time Who fan, over the years i have collected a fair amount of vinyl and cds. I have to agree with several of the posters, somehow the albums dont connect with me in the way that albums from other bands do,worst of all i cant really put my finger on why this should be.
Yet having said that when i am driving, if Baba o reilly or Wont get fooled again comes on the radio ,it connects in a way that can completely change my mood (for the better).I have noticed that the BBC have totally different versions of these numbers, and am left wondering if the disappointing sound from vinyl/cd is down to the recording engineers?

Regards Mike.

p.s.Also noticed that Beeb versions of the Faces output is superior to anything in my collection.

Someone bought me the DVD of a charity concert the Who recorded fairly recently at The Albert Hall. It took me a while to get round to watching it, but I think it's pretty good, with a not bad DTS soundtrack.

They have various guests up playing with them on different numbers, and Nigel Kennedy gives a superb performance on Baba O'Reiley.

I was very impressed with the drummer who, although not quite a Keith Moon, nevertheless certainly gave an energetic performance. He wasn't mentioned at all during the concert or the backslapping at the end, but when I read the credits I noticed he was Zak Starkey. Ringo's son!

I've wathed it several times since, and I think it's amazing how The Who, despite being old and decrepid (like myself) manage to give such an excellent performance after all these years.

Recommended!

Besides Ringo guess who used to teach Zak Starkey how to play the drums?

As nobody wants to hazard a guess i,ll tell you who it was!

Sorry I thought that was a rhetorical question. Keith Moon was a close family friend and apparently gave young Zak his first drum kit. When Ringo and his wife were in the process of separating, Zak spent a lot of the time hanging around with Moon.

Keith did help,but Cliff Richard spent a lot of time at Keiths home and he Ringo regularly socialised there with Keith and during his more sober moments Cliff being a devil of a drum player taught Zac how to play the drums.

There you go I bet you never knew that!

Sorry but I'll need to see some evidence before swallowing that. The common wisdom is that it was Keith Moon. So well known is it that I didn't reply to your original post. Can't find a single link between Zak Starkey and Cliff Richard. Nor any evidence that Cliff was ever a drummer. He was a guitarist in his first band, but no sign of him ever being a drummer.

I am willing to be convinced however as it's an undoubted bet winner if true!