The Who - Greatest Hits & More

This review writes itself. No, it really does. With The Who still absolutely dominating with a Super Bowl half-time show with only half of the original line-up, it seems like no better time to cash in on their continued abilities. For once, the chi-ching of the tills doesn’t seem too worthy of cynicism. Unless you remember their other greatest hits albums, or own them.

Simply put: if there’s no song by The Who that you like, then you must have one hell of a job getting the crankshaft to start your iron heart in the morning. I don’t think there’s many people who would disagree with that statement, unless it was taken very literally.

You have lead singer Roger Daltrey, who is one of the most charismatic and flexible lead singers still alive today. His vocal range can go from petulant and cheeky (‘My Generation’) to powerful screaming climaxes (‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’) to soulful and anthemic (‘Love Reign O’er Me).

What about Pete Townshend? Let’s sweep the obvious comments aside and judge him on Hall of Fame standards, taking into account his music and not the research projects. Despite going a bit deaf, the man was capable of some of the greatest guitar solos going, creating riff after amazing riff. Listing his influential performances would be a task at best.

The under-recognised John “Thunderfingers” Entwhistle, despite all his critical acclaim, is still often overlooked. His dynamic range of playing styles changes from song to song, picking, slapping and tapping the strings of his bass in one of the most relaxed and stationary manners possible, despite the absolute chaos going on around him. Sadly passing away in 2002, he did it in one of the most rock-n-roll ways possible: with a prostitute, and cocaine in his bloodstream. He was 57.

Last but not least is Keith Moon, the insane drummer with a penchant for blowing up toilets, his drums and on one occasion, himself. A pyromaniac at heart, his alcoholic tendencies finally got the better of him as withdrawal tablets ended up being swallowed by the dozen. Dying in ’78 aged 32, his best work was only limited to a short spell. If he was still alive today, he’d still be faster, more original and creative than pretty much anyone around now. Just listen to the drum solo on ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ and you’ll get the picture.

Okay, so that was a history lesson. But if you’re reading a review wondering whether to buy Greatest Hits & More, it’s probable that you’re an entry-level fan, unless you want the live performances. Either way, the aforementioned foursome have created some of the best music of all time.

The truth is, this has all the classics. Well, most of them. You have the CSI intro trio, for example, which are a triple threat of hits worth buying the album for alone. ‘Who Are You’ is angry, happy and aggressive all at the same time, building up with effortless key changes and kicking off with a porn groove of epic proportions as well as a filthy synth which melts into the tune when Keith gets involved properly on percussion.

‘Baba O’Riley’, still infuriatingly referred to as ‘Teenage Wasteland’, is just wonderful, mixing piano with another great build-up on drums to give one of the most strange endings to a song – where a sea shanty, stereotypical 1950s Irish bar and Numan-esque noise machine bond with a drumming climax. In the context of the song, it’s far from the actual tune yet simply wonderful to hear every time. You’ll never skip it.

My love for CSI: Miami is only for the s**t-yet-beautifully-realised one-liners from Horatio Caine and their juxtaposition with the epic scream of ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ – the full length version, no less, is on here, giving people access to a version regularly brushed under the carpet by a shocking radio edit which has replaced it in the last few years; one which removes any element of excitement, at that.

Add to that other hits such as ‘Pinball Wizard’ – which has the best lyrics of any tune on here – as well as ‘The Kids Are Alright’, and you’re onto a winner.

Of course, there’s ‘My Generation’. “Great!” you say. I tend to skip it. Yeah, I know. Greatest Who riff ever, etc etc. Whatever. When you start to get a bit wound up by the stuttering of Daltrey, you never get away from it and it only gets worse. That song was ruined for me about ten years ago and I’ve never looked back, despite my desperate pleas to crane my neck in that direction. It interrupts the great guitar work on an otherwise excellent song. I just think it’s overrated. Don’t hurt me.

Still, there’s some songs that are completely overlooked, missed or evidently relegated down the order. I mean, where’s ‘The Seeker’? I was searching low and high for it but to no avail. For some reason I even expected ‘Boris the Spider’ on there too. Don’t ask me why. ‘I’m A Boy’ is a cracking tune too, but why is its sense of humour not on here?

Either way, there’s plenty to discover on here. I mean, you have lesser-listened songs such as ‘Pictures of Lily’, ‘I Can See For Miles’ and ‘Magic Bus’ which, while big favourites of die-hard Who fans, will have passed others by. Not on here, though.

And then there’s the live stuff. The best of the lot includes the Charlton Athletic FC medley, Largo’s ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ and ‘Substitute’ in San Francisco. You’ve also got luxury locations elsewhere, such as Leeds University, Hull and Swansea. Rock on.

With The Who’s Greatest Hits & More, it’s not quite as conclusive and easy as having to evaluate the greatest hits of The Beatles, which would likely boil down to simple finicky debating the order the tracks should be listed in, but this Nearly-As-Fab Four are excellent enough for this to be a true greatest hits.

If anything, compilations like this define the term and puts the likes of Sugababes, Hilary Duff and Blue to shame for having the bloody nerve or assumption that they made that much of an impact on the world with their shoddy offerings by releasing something with the same moniker. Even Sly and the Family Stone (who are excellent, might I add) released a greatest hits album after three years. This should never be allowed.

If anything, it’s tempting to go as far as to say that this is absolutely essential; if you don’t own any of their albums, at least. If you want the true experience and scope of The Who, the only criticism is with this compilation is that it doesn’t give you everything you want, but you’d need an extra CD for that. Maybe two.

One final point: get hold of The Who Sell Out. Then you’ll realise just how strange, diverse and wonderful they are. This is still the best for newbies, though. Unless you’ve already got another one of their greatest hits albums, of course.

Greatest Hits & More is out now on Universal.

By Matt Gardner