Who Are You grumblings

["James Sigel" <jsigel@winston.com>]

Oh my brothers and sisters in Who.  What dark times are among us when
Keith's swan song album "Who Are You" gets ripped by some of his most
devoted followers?  Somebody get me some brandy.  Brandy dear boy...
brandy!!!

New Song:  "weak"?  Arrrggghhhh!  "Daltrey's voice shaky"?!? 
Sacrilidge!  WAY in general, "weak"?  Elizebeth, I'm comin' to join
you (clutching heart).

I don't know what sinister forces have gotten to you, but all I can
say is, "come back to the light!  The light is gooooooood."  

No.  Who Are You is not the best Who record, I'll give you that.  But
recently it's been getting written off by this list as a subpar effort
at best.  I must disagree here.  I don't know if there's any Lifehouse
connection; I've never heard of any connection until reading here on
this list, but I can see a possible connection if I look hard enough. 
My problems with the recent criticism is this:

At this time in the band, The Who were at a lull.  We all know that. 
Punk music was challenging the reign of the "supergroups" and Rock
music was hitting a very stale period.  WAY is of that period.  But
compare the simplicity of texture in WBN with that of WAY.  By Numbers
is IMHO the subpar of the two, even though I love it equally.  WBN is
"back to basics" rock; drums, guitars and vocals.  WAY is fully
layered and MUSICALLY, much more inspired.  So much so that Glynn
Johns and Daltrey did nearly come to blows over the heavy
orchestration.  But still, some folks criticize the "weak" moments of
the record.  For a change, let's celebrate the high moments of WAY...

1.  New Song:  Pete's disillusionment carried over from WBN.  "You
need a new song..."  This is an angry Pete and an angry Pete is Pete
at his best.  "My head is spinning as I scrawl with my fingers; I've
been pouring vodka in my soul."  Works for me.  And he's right too. 
He's harping on "recycling trash" again.  I got no problem with it.

2.  Had Enough:  Several great Moon rolls, and Daltrey's voice make
the song.  Great lyrics too, if you've had a bad day.

3. 905:  Great sci-fi stuff here.  Despair and hope.  "...at each end
of my life is an open door."

4.  Sister Disco:  Any Who fan having a problem with this one should
be shot.  Even if I still don't know what it means!

5.  Music Must Change:  Most complaints are about not having drums on
this one, not with the content.  Really, try to envision drums on this
song.  Hard, isn't it?  I know I can't.  I think the sound effects do
the job nicely.  Great content and Daltrey again, saves the day.

6.  Trick of the Light:  Another great Entwistle tune here.  My only
objection is the "guest" guitarist.  Other than that, if you don't
think this song rocks, you're dead and just 
don't know it.

7.  Guitar and Pen:  Some of Pete's finest guitar work, ever.  The
solos are crisp, clean and lightning fast.  Sometimes, during the high
points, I have to check and see if my feet are on the ground because
of Keith's drumming.  Also, if you've ever tried to write a song, this
song should be inspiring.

8.  Love is Coming Down:  Probably the weakest song of the lot only
because of it's simple context.  Pete never really wrote "love songs"
in a prolific sense, so we'll excuse him for writing one here.  If
you've ever had a rough time in your love life (like I have) then take
solace in this song (I have).  Besides, again, Daltrey's voice makes
me want to cry and I still get chills during the "...going down"
part.

9.  Who Are You:  Another of Pete's finest solos (acoustic brigde)
with magnificent looping synthesizers.  One of the quintessential Who
songs.  Arguably Keith's greatest song.

So with some of the high points noted, what's the problem with Who
Are You?  It seems that if an artist ever makes a huge achievment
(Tommy, Quad), everything else is a "disappointment" to fans.  To that
I say, tough shit.  Isn't it enough to just make fabulous music?  Why
is simply making great music not enough?  You can't expect
groundbreaking genius every time.  That's ludicrous.  Take it for what
it is, and either love it or not.  I mean, after all, "who the fuck
are you?"

Jim in Chicago (who will go back into hibernation for another couple
of weeks - but be careful!  I'm still reading...)

"We drink the same old wine from a brand new jar.  We get hung over
but we always survive it."  PT