The Who - Success Story

I've always been a big fan of The Who By Numbers, which came out in 1975. I think the record features some of Pete Townshend's most ingenious writing and while many consider Keith Moon's drumming on Quadrophenia (1973) to be his best, I don't think his work on By Numbers takes a back seat at all.

The lone song John Entwistle penned on the album was "Success Story." The top video is some scenes of John at his home, which is from the The Kids Are Alright (1979) movie. The second video is the audio of the song with a picture of the album cover done by Entwistle.

The Who By Numbers Artwork

Speaking of The Who By Numbers in my previous post, it was John Entwistle who did the cartoon work on the album's cover. The Who Live in Boston 2002 DVD features a segment on some drawings John did of Elton John, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards and other notable rock stars. I'm a few days late, but John would have turned 66 on Saturday. John Entwistle is sorely missed.

Jimmy Page Discusses Led Zeppelin III

The Who did an album called The Who By Numbers in 1975 that often gets overlooked by some of their fans. Rolling Stone said at the time it "may have been their greatest album in the face of their personal problems." Some referred to it as Townshend's "suicide note." But songs like "Squeeze Box" and "Blue, Red and Grey" are not maudlin in any sense.

Led Zeppelin also had an album that many people overlook and that is Led Zeppelin III. Jimmy Page discusses the band's third album here. Zeppelin II featured "Whole Lotta Love" and Led Zeppelin IV featured "Rock and Roll" and a little song called "Stairway to Heaven," so I could see how some people skip over their third installment, plus many people describe III as Zep going acoustic. But III features some really great songs such as the bluesy "Since I've Been Loving You" and if you really want to rock out, "Out on the Tiles."