Quadrophenia Boxset Coming

TheWho.com has announced November 14 as the day that the Quadrophenia boxset will be released. The announcement is below:

“Quadrophenia is the Who album I am most proud of” – Pete Townshend

A stunning ‘Director’s Cut’ of the landmark 1973 album produced, authorised and overseen by Pete Townshend.

After the 1971 album ‘Who’s Next’, Pete Townshend returned to the ‘rock-opera’ concept, so dramatically realised through ‘Tommy’, with another ambitious double-album masterpiece. Based around the story of Jimmy – Quadrophenia tells the tale of a young mod and his struggle to come of age in the mid-1960s.The story also takes its influence from the band’s early fans from the original mod era, and its themes of teenage angst and disaffection still resonate strongly today.

The project was intended to reflect the four characters of The Who and features some of Townshend’s most inspired, personal song-writing - way ahead of its time in scope and purpose.

This is one of the most widely recognised albums of The Who’s career because of its classic depiction of mod culture, its renowned imagery and the magnificent music and powerful performances.

The album is hugely significant in popular culture, influencing many other artists, musicians and film-makers – inspiring the classic 1979 British film by Franc Roddam and the UK ‘mod revival’ of the 1970s.

“This 2011 revisit to The Who’s 1973 Quadrophenia recording is inspired by current and continuing interest in the project,” explains Townshend. “The Who performed a concert version of the piece at the Royal Albert Hall in 2010 for the Teenage Cancer Trust with excellent reviews, and the success of that event led to the prospect of a Who tour in 2012 based on the album. The last such tour was between 1996-1997.”

The album is scheduled for release via Universal Music Catalogue on November 14th, 2011. The box set gives a unique insight into the creation of this landmark album and will feature a re-master of the original double album, Pete Townshend’s previously unheard demos including songs that didn’t make it onto the original album, an exclusive eight track 5.1 sound DVD, a deluxe hard-back book, previously unseen personal notes, photographs, memorabilia and other exclusive material that will be announced over the coming months.

‘Quadrophenia: The Director’s Cut’ will be the definitive version of the album and a must for any self-respecting fan of The Who and beyond.

To accompany the box set, double vinyl, 2-disc digi-pak and digital versions will also be released. Pre order now by clicking here.

Pete is Stone Deaf.....or Maybe Not?

Roger Daltrey told the Daily Mail that Pete Townshend is "almost stone deaf" in an interview published on July 15. Townshend responded on TheWho.com a couple of days later and wrote that he isn't stone deaf and is planning on joining Roger next year for a tour of Quadrophenia. The entire post is below:

Pete is Stone Deaf...... or maybe not?

My hearing is actually better than ever because after a feedback scare at the O2 Indigo in December 2008 I am taking good care of it. I have computer systems in my studio that have helped me do my engineering work on the forthcoming Quadrophenia release. I have had assistance from younger forensic engineers and mastering engineers to help me clean up the high frequencies that are out of my range. The same computer systems work wonderfully well on stage, proving to be perfect for me when The Who performed at the Super Bowl and doing Quadrophenia for TCT at the Royal Albert Hall in 2010. I'm 66, I don't have perfect hearing, and if I listen to loud music or go to gigs I do tend to get tinnitus. DON'T WE ALL????

The reason I am not on the road with Roger is that this is entirely Roger's adventure, one that is bringing him great joy. I don't belong on this Tommy tour. I wish him well, sincerely, and I look forward to playing with Roger again doing Quadrophenia next year.

The Who - "5:15" (Royal Albert Hall 2010)

On March 30, 2010 The Who played Quadrophenia at the Royal Albert Hall as part of the week-long Teenage Cancer Trust benefit shows. The above video is "5.15."

Roger Daltrey: I Only Hit Pete Once

The latest issue of Uncut Magazine features Roger Daltrey. It's out in the U.K. and should be on newsstands in the U.S. pretty soon. I've read that Roger Daltrey punched Pete Townshend during a rehearsal around the time the band was taking Quadrophenia on the road in 1974. I'm assuming that this is the incident the magazine is referring to. I'm looking forward to reading the article.

Quadrophenia Demos

After Pete Townshend's announcement yesterday that he is working on an expanded Quadrophenia, I did a little digging and came across some of Townshend's home demos from 1973. The pictures in the video are from the Quadrophenia movie.

Pete's New Blog Post

Pete Townshend has a new blog posted on TheWho.com. He discusses some very interesting plans regarding Quadrophenia. The full text is below:

Pete's Blog

1st June, 2011

WHAT I'M DOING EVERYDAY

I am shut away in my home studio at the moment working to restore the demos of Quadrophenia. Bob Pridden is doing surround-sound mixes of selected tracks. Jon Astley is remastering the original vinyl mix, and evaluating his own 1996 remix (the one where you can properly hear Roger's astonishing vocals). I am sitting in a pile of notes, desk diaries, photos (I took a lot of my own between 1971-1973 when Quadrophenia emerged), original lyrics and writing liner notes.

I am really enjoying this work. Bob's mixes are mind-blowing. My demos are among the best I've ever done, and include some real quirky tracks that didn't make it onto the final album. I still find studio work strange – I have to have the speakers very low in volume, not what I'm used to. This package, due in October if all goes well, is another Live at Leeds and Hull – or even another Lifehouse Chronicles – in the making. You are going to love it. I hope so, because I am missing this summer sunshine to get it completed on time.

In my recent interview with my friend Simon Garfield for INTELLIGENT LIFE, I professed some difficulty in my interaction with fans as I grow older. What is so wonderful about working on Quadrophenia is that back in 1970, all the way through to the recording in 1973, the primary challenge for me was to tell the story of the Who's fans and at the same time address the wayward creative needs of the band as individuals and artists. The Who, and Jimmy as a kind of model for one or all of our fans, really had developed a powerful symbiosis that deserved a project like Quadrophenia both to honour the mechanism and address why it started to fail almost a soon as it had begun

So I am enjoying working with the music, but I'm enjoying writing about it too.

The Who - The Real Me (1979)

This is a really good concert at the Hammersmith Odeon in London on December 28, 1979. Thanks to the YouTuber that posted it. Here The Who perform "The Real Me" which is off of their 1973 album, Quadrophenia.

The Who - Drowned (Toronto 1982)

Great version of "Drowned" off of the Quadrophenia album performed by the band at Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens. Pete Townshend's leaps in the closing moments of the video are priceless.

The Who - Bell Boy

One other note that was mentioned in Won't Get Fooled Again: From Lifehouse to Quadrophenia is how great of a song "Bell Boy" is and for some reason it never finds itself onto greatest hits collections or onto classic rock stations, which is a real shame. The book's author, Richie Unterberger, labeled this song from Quadrophenia as one of Pete Townshend's finest compositions. I can't disagree with him. I reviewed the book in my previous post which you can find by clicking this.

Won't Get Fooled Again: The Who From Lifehouse to Quadrophenia

Last night I finished reading Won't Get Fooled Again: The Who From Lifehouse to Quadrophenia and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed the book. In fact, I may at some point read it again.

What I particularly liked was the second half which was dedicated to the making of the 1973 album Quadrophenia. The author, Richie Unterberger, goes into great detail about the production of the record; Pete Townshend's explanation of the story of Jimmy and the mods; and the recording process.

He also explains how some of the sound effects were recorded. For example, the train whistle was obtained by giving a driver of a train five pounds to blow the train's whistle as he pulled out of a railroad station. Also, an actual newscaster was convinced to read on-air the part about the mods and rockers rioting, in Orson Welles fashion of course.

The first half discusses Lifehouse, which never materialized as a concept album, but rather many of the songs formed the 1971 album Who's Next.

Won't Get Fooled Again: The Who From Lifehouse to Quadrophenia goes into great detail about Pete Townshend's difficulty in explaining Lifehouse to the other band members and the group's management. At that time Pete was trying to follow up the hugely successful 1969 Tommy album and the futuristic Lifehouse ended up driving a huge wedge between Pete and manager Kit Lambert who had been so key in the consummation of Tommy. During this time period the band would drop Lambert and co-manager Chris Stamp and go with Bill Curbishley (who they still use to this day) because apparently money was missing, not because Lambert and Stamp were thieves, but because the two had gotten so deeply involved in drugs.

By the way, the book's cover (pictured above) is of Pete in his home studio where he recorded the demos for Lifehouse.

Unterberger also explains the thinking behind using Glyn Johns as the producer for Who's Next, but not using him for Quadrophenia.

As I wrote earlier in this post, I can definitely see myself reading this book again and at the very least I absolutely will refer back to it from time to time.

Favorite Bridges

I'm temporarily off of my "Sparks/Underture" fascination for the moment and am now onto great bridges (the contrasting piece of the song) that Pete Townshend included in his music; primarily with The Who but he did have some good ones in his solo work, as well.

There are a few that stand out for me. The first is from "The Song is Over" off of Who's Next. The bridge part begins at the 2:35 mark.

"When I walked in through the door,
Thought it was me I was looking for,
She was the first song I ever sang,
But it stopped as soon as it began."

Overall, this song has mostly a triumphant, rejoiceful feel, however, it tails off at the end and gets a bit more somber. There is a segment in Amazing Journey: The Story of The Who where the closing part of the song is played - "this song is over, I'm left with only tears, I must remember, even if it takes a million years" - while showing clips of the dearly departed John Entwistle. One clip shows the band on stage and John's image fading while Pete and Roger make some comments about how much John is missed. It goes without saying that this part definitely tugs at your heartstrings.

The next bridge comes from "The Punk Meets The Godfather" off of the Quadrophenia album.

"I have to be careful not to preach
I can’t pretend that I can teach,
And yet I’ve lived your future out
By pounding stages like a clown.
And on the dance floor broken glass,
The bloody faces slowly pass,
The broken seats in empty rows,
It all belongs to me you know."

I remember very well this part being sung by Pete Townshend when I first saw the band at Madison Square Garden in the summer of 1996 and I was absolutely mesmerized. By the way, the "I have to be careful not to preach" line should be a mantra for some people in our government and our media.

The last bridge comes from"However Much I Booze" which if off of The Who By Numbers.

"Then the night comes down like a cell door closing
Suddenly I realize that I'm right now, I'm on the scene,
While sitting here all alone with a bottle and my head a-floating,
Far away from the form and the conscience going on with me,
And on with me, and I don't care what you say,
There ain't no way out,
There ain't no way out."

Personally, Numbers could be my favorite album by The Who, if I were to declare a favorite, which I can't/won't. Most songs from the album contain lyrics that are as heartfelt and genuine as you are going to get, which doesn't necessarily mean they are sad. Although the aforementioned song was too personal for Roger Daltrey to sing and thus Pete handled the honors. I would probably describe By Numbers as the band's most "poetic" album. I don't think anyone could find anything somber or melancholic about the song "Squeezebox."

The Who at The Royal Albert Hall

The Who last night wrapped up this year's series of Teenage Cancer Trust charity shows at London's Royal Albert Hall with a performance of the album, Quadrophenia. Here is a link to all of the songs which were posted on YouTube. Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder was a surprise guest at the show, as was Kasabian singer Tom Meighan. Additionally, there was a brass and string section.

This is the 1oth anniversary of the benefit, which is headed up by Roger Daltrey, and so there were 10 shows. The Who did the final show, but the other concerts featured some good performers as well, such as Noel Gallagher and Them Crooked Vultures, among others.

So far the Quadrophenia concert has received favorable reviews. The U.K.'s Times Online had this to say:

"Daltrey sang with his emphatic touch, while Townshend played acoustic and electric guitar with a combination of finesse and aggression."

Meanwhile, Rolling Stone raved about Townshend in their review:

"His playing was virtuosic, moving, on “5:15″ between bluesy licks, shredding solos and savage power chords, but also, more crucially, fueled by an enduring rage. The climactic one-two punch of “The Rock” and “Love Reign O’er Me” was drama worthy of this storied, 19th century venue."

Going into last night there was talk of the band touring Quadrophenia this fall. We'll see. The main issue is Pete's hearing. As you can see from the photo below, drummer Zak Starkey's set is enclosed by plexiglass, however, that was done during Roger's solo tour, as well. Incidentally, Starkey isn't using the cool bullseye cymbals he used at the Super Bowl, perhaps the N.F.L. trademarked them? Anyway, Pete was reportedly going to test out a new device last night for his hearing. Hopefully, things worked out fine. But I think Townshend had an idea ahead of time that it was not going to be an issue. I suspect the band will be announcing a tour similar to what they did in 2002; 20-25 dates in the U.S. in late summer and early fall. I don't think Pete wants to do a long tour like they did in 2006-2007.

The Genius of Pete Townshend

This is “Unused Piano,” which is a Pete Townshend demo that was never used for the Quadrophenia album, but ended up on Scoop – a CD collection of Townshend demos that are really remarkable...as is the musician.