SOUNDTRACK FOR TEENAGE AIR GUITAR

A couple days ago I read a thing about a recently released expanded version of Who's Next, the Who album from '71. It's the usual routine: different versions of formats varying in price depending on the shit that's included. I've got my own routine. Wait until after Christmas when the unwanted gifts end up in the used bins. All the boxed sets are out of my rational price range when they're first released and I don't really need to hear every burp and fart recorded during sessions, landmark album or not.


Who's Next is a great album, no doubt about it. After I saw the thing about the expanded version(s), I listed to the original and, I gotta say, it still sounds fresh even after listening to it for years. Here's a handful from it and the reasons vary for each selection. "Baba O'Riley", for the intro. Imagine being a teenager back in the day, before the use of synthesizers was widespread. Having heard a lot of guitar based music, I was unprepared for the introduction of "Baba O'Riley". My first thought was "What the fuck is this?". A glance at the liner notes provided the answer and another question. "Oh, that was something called , uh, an ARP2600? What the fuck is an ARP2600 ?". A year later the liner notes for the Edgar Winter Group's "They Only Come Out at Night" also credited the ARP2600 (on "Frankenstein").

Another song down there, "My Wife" is of interest, to me anyway, because of the vocals and the horns. John Entwistle's vocals on it are double tracked or something, I'm not sure what the technical term is but if you listen closely, it's the same voice and same lyrics coming out of the speakers, but the timing is off by a split second making it reminiscent of Jeff Lynne's  vocals with Electric Light Orchestra (or the lead vocals on a lot of Offspring's stuff). The horns, while not dominant, punctuate the song a lot like some Stax stuff. "Going Mobile" is down there because it's possibly the most rocking song I've heard that doesn't feature an electric guitar until halfway through. I'd heard the song for years before I realized that the only electrified instrument that runs all the way through the song is Entwistle's bass. Mid-song it starts, crazy licks and a lotta shit going on. Still, the driving force of the song is Entwistle and Keith Moon. Very effective. The last song down there is "Won't Get Fooled Again" because, uh, the scream. If you know the song, you know.

One thing I gotta add after just watching a performance of "Baba O'Riley" from 2019. After a really long intro, it kicks in and it's really pretty good. Obviously Daltry and Townshend are the only OGs, it's still much better than I expected and they're backed by an orchestra. So I'm cruising along digging it, then it 3:04, right after Daltry sings "Let's get together, before we get much older" he fucking looks at his watch. In the middle of a song, in the middle of "Baba O'Riley". At Wembley Stadium, with an orchestra backing him. Dude, where ya gotta be?

~ NOTE: ALL MEDIA IS HOSTED BY THE BLOGS & SITES NAMED BELOW ~

Listen:
The Who - Baba O'Riley mp3 at Internet Archive
The Who - My Wife mp3 at Internet Archive
The Who - Going Mobile mp3 at Internet Archive
The Who - Won't Get Fooled Again mp3 at Internet Archive
Video:
The Who, Isobel Griffiths Orchestra - Baba O’Riley (Live At Wembley, UK / 2019)