The Who (MCA)
Album of the week
It's hard to imagine what the stodgy, bowler-hat-and-brolly set made of the thunderous racket coming out of the BBC's London sound studios in the mid-'60s. But you can bet that Keith Moon's furious drumming got the teacups rattling like they hadn't done since the Blitz. Although a deejay elicits a promise from windmill guitarist Pete Townshend not to smash his instrument (as he was wont to do during a typical feedback frenzy), The Who's radio performances are no less explosive than their riotous live concerts. On these 25 tracks recorded for broadcast between 1965 and 1973, the mod rockers reprise many of the hits that launched the second wave of the Beatles-led British invasion. Opening with "My Generation (Radio 1 Jingle)," Roger Daltrey recasts The Who's anthem as a promo American deejays of the era would have killed for: "Talkin' 'bout my favorite radio station." Along with ear-searing gems like "Substitute" and "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere," the lads display their stateside roots on covers of "Dancing in the Street," "Shakin' All Over" and the Young Rascals' "Good Lovin'."
Bottom Line: Hear Who's best
Your Reaction
