Album: The Who Sell Out
Artist: The Who
Born: Acton, London
Released: December 1967
Genre: Psychedelia
Influenced: The Stooges, The Jam, Flaming Lips, Pearl Jam, Blur
1967 was a breakthrough year for The Who. After several UK hits, they finally announced themselves in the US with a thundering performance at the Monterey Pop Festival and a Top 10 US single, I Can See For Miles. Tapping into the trend for psychedelia, The Who finished '67 by releasing this album, a huge leap forward for a band mostly famous until that point for the hard-rocking, proto-punk single My Generation. I have to confess a soft spot for The Who; as a young teenager going through a short-lived Mod phase, the two bands I loved most were the Small Faces and The Who, with Quadrophenia (film & album) the touchstone for my musical outlook. Though nowadays I'm aware that favouring bands from my own patch is parochial, the fact that The Who were Londoners who performed the loudest rock concert in history at the Valley, also added to their appeal. As years have passed, I've found I listen to Quadrophenia and Tommy (their most ambitious concept album) less and less, and that The Who Sell Out is one of the few Who albums that stands the test of time. Partly because of the humour and lack of pretentiousness, but also because the songs work well as a whole and celebrate one of Britain's real cultural losses in '67, pirate commercial radio.
After opener Armenia City In The Sky, with its swirling guitars and high-pitched vocals from Daltrey (who sounds like he's been inhaling helium), there's one of the best radio jingles on the album, Heinz Baked Beans. This is John Entwistle and Keith Moon (who thought up most of the jingles in the pub next door to the studio) just having a lark, and it's genuinely funny. I've listened to some of the original broadcasts from Wonderful Radio London, and The Who really capture the sound of the pirate radio stations perfectly. Side 1 of the LP has many of the best songs, especially the back-to-back pair of Odorono and Tattoo, and closer I Can See For Miles. In all cases, the jingles mix seamlessly with the songs, though on side 2 they fizzle out before closer, Real, a mini rock opera (that dreaded pop phrase) that points forward to Tommy. I bought the extended CD version in the mid-90s and some songs that didn't make the cut, like Melancholia, are better than those that did. Though the sun was setting on west coast psychedelia, in the UK it would find a new lease of life, funnier and less pretentious, and The Who Sell Out is one of the best examples of this.
Artist: The Who
Born: Acton, London
Released: December 1967
Genre: Psychedelia
Influenced: The Stooges, The Jam, Flaming Lips, Pearl Jam, Blur
1967 was a breakthrough year for The Who. After several UK hits, they finally announced themselves in the US with a thundering performance at the Monterey Pop Festival and a Top 10 US single, I Can See For Miles. Tapping into the trend for psychedelia, The Who finished '67 by releasing this album, a huge leap forward for a band mostly famous until that point for the hard-rocking, proto-punk single My Generation. I have to confess a soft spot for The Who; as a young teenager going through a short-lived Mod phase, the two bands I loved most were the Small Faces and The Who, with Quadrophenia (film & album) the touchstone for my musical outlook. Though nowadays I'm aware that favouring bands from my own patch is parochial, the fact that The Who were Londoners who performed the loudest rock concert in history at the Valley, also added to their appeal. As years have passed, I've found I listen to Quadrophenia and Tommy (their most ambitious concept album) less and less, and that The Who Sell Out is one of the few Who albums that stands the test of time. Partly because of the humour and lack of pretentiousness, but also because the songs work well as a whole and celebrate one of Britain's real cultural losses in '67, pirate commercial radio.
After opener Armenia City In The Sky, with its swirling guitars and high-pitched vocals from Daltrey (who sounds like he's been inhaling helium), there's one of the best radio jingles on the album, Heinz Baked Beans. This is John Entwistle and Keith Moon (who thought up most of the jingles in the pub next door to the studio) just having a lark, and it's genuinely funny. I've listened to some of the original broadcasts from Wonderful Radio London, and The Who really capture the sound of the pirate radio stations perfectly. Side 1 of the LP has many of the best songs, especially the back-to-back pair of Odorono and Tattoo, and closer I Can See For Miles. In all cases, the jingles mix seamlessly with the songs, though on side 2 they fizzle out before closer, Real, a mini rock opera (that dreaded pop phrase) that points forward to Tommy. I bought the extended CD version in the mid-90s and some songs that didn't make the cut, like Melancholia, are better than those that did. Though the sun was setting on west coast psychedelia, in the UK it would find a new lease of life, funnier and less pretentious, and The Who Sell Out is one of the best examples of this.
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