My love for The Who began through a high school friend who saw them play Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas and came away a devotee. I initially fell in love with Tommy, the band's 1969 rock opera album that was hailed by critics and was the foundation for The Who's 1970 set at Woodstock. (The band, scheduled to appear prior to Jefferson Airplane at the festival on Saturday night, August 16, 1970, did not play until 5:00 a.m. on Sunday morning given the disorganization and chaos of the event. To this day, surviving band members Pete Townsend and Roger Daltrey have only negative things to say about Woodstock and their performance there.)
The following year, Who's Next was released and became an immediate hit. The songs on the album were part of an aborted Townsend project called Lifehouse, which was another Townsend rock opera that was to be a follow-up to Tommy.
The bombast of The Who is on full display on Who's Next. A better band live than in studio, this album captured drummer Keith Moon's flailing attack on his drum kit, Daltrey's voice at the peak of its range, bassist John Entwistle's steady complement to Moon's tempest, and the genius of Townsend displayed through both song and guitar. Every song on this album stands the test of time. And, to the dismay of some fans, that's been proven out in how many songs from Who's Next have shown up as music tracks for television shows or commercials.
I finally got to see The Who perform in December 1975 at Kemper Arena as part of The Who By Numbers tour. The band was in its original format and did not disappoint given that they played a 23-song set that included Baba O'Riley, My Wife, Behind Blue Eyes and Won't Get Fooled Again.
Who's Next--album number two on the list of my 10 most influential albums.
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