THE WHO
WHO’S NEXT
1971
The Who had already produced four albums prior to 1971, and
had achieved significant acclaim as an up and coming young English band with a
penchant for ambitious projects. Their previous album, “Tommy”, released in
1969, was a stunning achievement of high-concept ambition. The primary creative
force of all this was legendary guitarist Pete Townshend - although he had
three other band members full of energy, spunk, and character in the likes of
drummer Keith Moon, singer Roger Daltry, and bassist John Entwistle.
The album had its roots in “The Lifehouse Project”, in which
Townshend intended to be a futuristic rock opera. This project caused
significant stress within the band and record label, and eventually created a
falling out with their then producer Kit Lambert. In early 1971, recording
sessions were started for the Lifehouse project, but eventually abandoned due
to the inability of Townshend to translate his conceptual ideas to his band
mates and those around him. This eventually led a severely frustrated Townshend
to have a nervous breakdown, and the project was described as a ‘disaster”.
In May of 1971, the band did decide to regroup with new
producer Glyn Johns at Olympic Studios in London to move forward with a new
album, still utilizing much of the musical material they had accumulated from
the Lifehouse period. What the band found out was that by abandoning the
overall “concept theme”, they gained a new freedom to focus on maximizing the
strength of each track. What they produced has gone down as one of the greatest
rock albums in history.
The creation of the album also coincided with new recording
techniques and musical technologies. Present throughout much of “Who’s Next” is
the introduction of synthesizers, which were just becoming available. The album opens to the syncopated synth
refrain of “Baba O’Riley”, and the unique sound has become an iconic symbol of
“The Who” ever since. Keith Moon
suggested that they have a violin solo in the song, and yet another influence
was melded into the band’s brand of rock.
The album became known for it’s “dynamic and unique sound”. Several
songs from “Who’s Next” have become rock classics, including Baba O’Riley, Bargain, Behind Blue Eyes,
and the epic closing song on the LP, Won’t
Get Fooled Again.
The album was released in August of 1971, and it soon went
to #1 in the UK, and #4 in the US. The
cover art for the album shows the four band members having appeared to have
just urinated on a concrete monolith, with a striking cloudy sky. The cover was
named by VHI as one of the top album covers of all time. Accolades for the
album have grown over the years, however.
It was named the best album of the year in the Village Voice critic’s
poll. Guitar World ranked it the #3 rock album of all time, and has been named
one of the best albums of all time by VHI (#13), and Rolling Stone (#28). In
2007, the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Interestingly, none of the singles from the album ever rose
very high in the charts at the time. The
highest charting single was “Won’t Get Fooled Again”, which had a peak position
of #9 in the UK, and #8 in the Netherlands. The fact that the songs continued
to endure, and actually become more popular over the years, is a testament to
the strength of the material. Albums and songs that stand the “test of time”
are the ones that become “Classics”. This is definitely the case with “Who’s
Next”.
Eric Winger
The Winger Bros.