So here is the fourth and last of my Who compilations. As I said before, I have never listened to any of the bands records after they originally split up in the mid 80s so this compilation covers the period of the last albums with Keith Moon. All of the songs on Disc 1 come from ‘The Who By Numbers’ and ‘Who Are You’, except one. That song is ‘Love Is Coming Down’ which is Pete Townshend’s demo, which as far as I know has yet to be officially released.
Disc 2 takes in the two albums recorded with Kenny Jones as the drummer and the sound of the band changes dramatically at this point. Kenny Jones is a great drummer, but he does not play in the same way as Keith Moon (who does really) and the material that was being written at this time was very different from the hard rock, progressive sound that they had for the majority of the 70s. There are a lot more electronics in there, as well as the odd drum machine.
This was not a happy period for the band either, with tensions in the air. Jones’ drumming style had drawn criticism from some in the band. Townshend had released a solo album in 1980 and it was felt, but Daltrey most specifically, that the songs on that were stronger than the material that was presented for the ‘Face Dances’ album. Townshend had fallen into a depression and was taking drugs as well as drinking heavily. He also felt that he was not writing material that was suitable for the band so decided to leave, essentially ending the group.
There have been numerous reunions (one of which I saw in Hyde Park in 1996) and two new albums, but they just didn’t appeal. Sometimes bands just need to know when to stop before they become just a parody of themselves.
Disc 1
- Who Are You (Lost Verse Version)
- New Song
- Success Story
- However Much I Booze
- Squeeze Box
- In A Hand or A Face
- Slip Kid
- Trick of The Light
- 905
- Had Enough
- Dreaming From the Waist
- How Many Friends
- Love Is Coming Down (Pete Townshend Demo)
- Guitar & Pen
- No Road Romance
- Imagine A Man
- They Are All In Love
- Blue Red & Grey
Disc 2
- Daily Records
- Athena
- It’s In You
- Did You Steal My Money?
- Another Tricky Day
- Cache Cache
- The Quiet One
- It’s Your Turn
- Cooks County
- It’s Hard
- You Better You Bet
- One Life’s Enough
- Somebody Saved Me
- Eminence Front
- I’ve Known No War
- Cry If You Want
The cover is adapted from the US version of the bands 2002 compilation, ‘The Ultimate Collection’.