Tracks
Disk #1
Disk #2
Disk #3
Disk #4
Also by The Who
People who bought this release also bought
If you are a fan of The Who, this set is a great place to start. Drummer Keith Moon, bassist John Entwhistle, guitarist Letter Townshend and singer Roger Daltry are all well represented here, and everyone will have their moment to shine. This will give you plenty of listening material, but despite it's length, it doesn't give you the whole story.
Part of the problem is that you don't get any of the companion material that the physical boxed set comes with. Without it, you might have no idea what the "Abbie Hoffman Incident" is all about (famed activist Hoffman took the stage during the Who's performance at Woodstock in an LSD-fueled haze and made a political statement to the crowd; Pete Townshend reacted poorly to someone taking his stage unannounced, shore an obscenity at him and charged at him). You might want to know what the heck Bag O'Nails was about, or the Radio One commercials. Fortunately, we have the internet to use as a reference, but there still is something lacking in the package without this material.
Having said that, there is a lot here to love. The first disc is an excellent chronicle of their early years, as they used a pop song in "I Can't Explain" to grab an audience, then let their hair down and rocked hard. All of their big songs are included, it's a bit easier to look at what's missing. There are a smattering of love tracks, but for a band that did so much to make love albums a big thing with "Live At Leeds", it seems to be lacking. Also, there are many highlights of their seminal rock opera "Tommy", but it's a shame it couldn't be included in its entirety. "Quadrophenia" fares even worse, broken down to just the five big tracks.
This is all basically nitpicking; the band has a vast library, and this is not intended to be a full discography, rather a starting point. If anything strikes a particular chord with the listener, there is plenty more to be found. All of their his are here, and enough rarities to make it a worthy investment for old fans and new. Things like "Life With The Moons" and "Poetry Cornered" defy explanation, but give a unique look into the band. I've had this collection since it first came out, and return to it frequently. If you are any kind of Who fan, you will too.
Part of the problem is that you don't get any of the companion material that the physical boxed set comes with. Without it, you might have no idea what the "Abbie Hoffman Incident" is all about (famed activist Hoffman took the stage during the Who's performance at Woodstock in an LSD-fueled haze and made a political statement to the crowd; Pete Townshend reacted poorly to someone taking his stage unannounced, shore an obscenity at him and charged at him). You might want to know what the heck Bag O'Nails was about, or the Radio One commercials. Fortunately, we have the internet to use as a reference, but there still is something lacking in the package without this material.
Having said that, there is a lot here to love. The first disc is an excellent chronicle of their early years, as they used a pop song in "I Can't Explain" to grab an audience, then let their hair down and rocked hard. All of their big songs are included, it's a bit easier to look at what's missing. There are a smattering of love tracks, but for a band that did so much to make love albums a big thing with "Live At Leeds", it seems to be lacking. Also, there are many highlights of their seminal rock opera "Tommy", but it's a shame it couldn't be included in its entirety. "Quadrophenia" fares even worse, broken down to just the five big tracks.
This is all basically nitpicking; the band has a vast library, and this is not intended to be a full discography, rather a starting point. If anything strikes a particular chord with the listener, there is plenty more to be found. All of their his are here, and enough rarities to make it a worthy investment for old fans and new. Things like "Life With The Moons" and "Poetry Cornered" defy explanation, but give a unique look into the band. I've had this collection since it first came out, and return to it frequently. If you are any kind of Who fan, you will too.