SELL OUT

["Schrade, Scott" <sschrade@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

SELL OUT.  Yes.  One of my favorite Who albums.  Why?  Because even
though technically it's a "concept" album, the individual songs are
what demand my respect & admiration - not the album concept as a 
whole.  

Many reviewers see it as a half-baked attempt at a concept piece.  That 
may be true, but, really, how much "concept" could they have strained 
out of an idea to make a record which sounded like a pirate radio broad-
cast?  You toss in a few silly commercials & poof!  That's it.  Done.

I remember buying SELL OUT early on in my Who love-affair.  I dug it
because of it's lightness.  I dug it because of, as I said, the strong,
intelligent, comedic, well-written songs.  I dug it because of the
gorgeous vocal harmonies.  The outstanding playing.  The quaint, under-
produced, yet still effective recording sound.  In hindsight, it seems 
such a natural step towards TOMMY.

Unlike Kevin's half-assed attempt, I feel I must comment on each song.
Partly because I'm a blowhard, partly because I love the album so much,
partly because I don't give a fuck.  So fuck you, just read. (Happy
Holidays.)  BTW, I'll be commenting on the remastered reissue because
we live in a remastered reissued age.  And I may skip an "ad" or two.

"Armenia" - Love it, love it, love it.  Listen to that chugging rhythm
section!  Who psychedelia.  Brilliant.  I've heard people question as
to whether or not that's Daltrey singing the lead.  Some think it's Moon.
I think it's Daltrey.  Wonderful Entwistle horns mimicking Pete's 
toggle-switch Morse Code feedback.

"Mary-Anne" - A definite step up from Speedy Keene's lyrics!  This is
pure genius.  Deep, literary rock music.  A soft & lilting sound con-
trasted against bizarre subject matter.  The Beatles weren't the only
ones who could reach such musical heights, ya' know.  Why isn't Pete
given more credit for his genius?

"Odorono" -  Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant!  What lyrics!  What satire!
Listen to Moon's drum accents on the "Triumphant!" parts.  Bloody sym-
phonic!  And the quiet subtlety he uses in other parts of the song.
That's a drummer with *ideas,* folks.  With a sense of mood & tone. How
archaic & one-dimensional lug-heads like John Bonham sound compared to 
this.

"Tattoo" - Well we could stop right here & the album would be a master-
piece.  The richness of the subject matter.  Again, the intelligence &
craft of the writing.  My God, people!  Why don't others see?!  Here we
have Daltrey coming into his own as a singer.  Notice how easily he slips
into the character created by Pete.  Listen to Moon's gentle cymbal
work!  Listen!  Moon the Loon, known for his "wild" drumming - here we
get a taste of his often ignored subtlety & tender approach.  An over-
playing buffoon?  Hardly.  Genius, rather.  A man who knows how to play
with the *song.*  A man who knows how to benefit the *song.*  A man
who knows his part in the *song.*  Unselfish correctness in approach.

"Our Love Was" - I love this one, too.  More Pete lead vocals.  A lot of
Pete shines through on this album, doesn't it?  This song has that early
Who quality that's hard to put your finger on.  That untraditional bal-
ance of quaintness & edginess.  Gentleness & hopelessness.  Realness.
Nice musical pauses for effect.  Nice Entwistle horns for effect.  Nice
backing vocal by Daltrey for effect.  A difficult time signature handled
effortlessly by Moon.  Has there ever been a better band?

"I Can See For Miles" - I must admit I've never been floored by this
song.  Don't get me wrong; I do like it.  But, IMO, it's not the quint-
essential Who song many (including Daltrey) make it out to be.  High-
lights here are Daltrey's vocals & of course Moon's approach to the 
drumming.  Who else would've thought to play it like that?!  And Pete's
guitar solo is cold & slicing.

"I Can't Reach You" - A tad sub par but I still dig it.  More Pete lead
vocals.  Daltrey could've raised a big fuss, you know, about not getting
to sing lead on all the songs.  What a man.  Again, the group, the songs,
come first.  Entwistle's bass lines stand out.  Good subject matter
again.  I think we've all known people whom we couldn't "reach."

"Medac" - A bit lumbering but hard to resist.  Short & charming.  Upbeat.
Henry succeeds in the end!  Watch out, girls!

"Relax" - My God.  The great songs on this album.  Again that indescrib-
able early Who-ness.  A self-help mind-trip of a song.  Great guitar
work by Pete.  Notice the little hammer-on guitar riffs after each line.
The organ is somewhat distracting but it'd be nearly impossible to ruin
such a great song.  Hold my hand.

"Silas Stingy" - Beautiful character study by The OX.  Let's face it:
The Who were right on par with the Beatles in these types of songs.  Great
melodies paired with great lyrics.  That undeniable Who charm:  humor &
top-notch music, all intelligently written.

"Sunrise" - I know I'm in the minority on this, but I feel this song is 
the weak point of the album.  The melody is awkward to me.  Pete's vocals
go from weak falsetto to drudging baritone.  Pretty lyrics & all, but I'm
sorry....I usually skip this song.  I didn't grab me twenty years ago &
it doesn't grab me now.

"Rael" - Love it!  What's it mean?  Who knows?  Who cares?!  Just enjoy
the lyrical imagery.  Let it paint a picture in your mind.  Listen to
Moon's marching beat!  Fuck me, he's the greatest!  Great Daltrey vocals.
And ah, yes.  The precursor to "Sparks."  I still remember the chills I
got, hearing it for the first time, & knowing only of "Sparks."  Absolute
brilliance.  The ethereal harmonies!  Wonderful!  He's crazy,....anyway.

"Rael II" - For hardcore fans only, yes?  Get up there, Pete!  You can
hit that note!  

"Glittering Girl" - I like this one.  I'm not wild about it, but I like
it.  The lyrics are OK & the melody is passable.  Moon's drumming stands
out.  Can't think of anything else to say....  It's an OK Who song.

"Melancholia" - Ah, now here we have more brilliance.  One of my favorite
Daltrey vocals.  Listen to his despair!  His hopelessness!  And what 
guitar work by Pete!  And the drumming!  And the depressing harmonies!
An absolute gem of an unknown Who song.  Listen to Daltrey's phrasing on
the last verse!  Listen how it builds to a culmination matched by Ent-
wistle bubbling chuggness (?) on the bass. (Notice how he, too, saves 
this part for the culminating build up at the end.  Genius, my friends.
A complete understanding of tone & mood.)  And finally the wild explosion
at the end.  The melancholia has developed into anger & a lashing out!
Top-notch Who!

"Someone's Coming" - One of my favorite OX tunes!  Kevin doesn't like it!
Can you believe it?!  An outstanding song about young romance!  Intell-
igently written & intelligently structured.  Love the horn!  Daltrey
shines!  And listen to Moon's beat!!  Jesus Christ, help me!!  It's fuck-
ing fabulous!!  Kevin's gonna get a 'iding!  Bend over, Kevin!  You de-
serve it!

"Jaguar" - Love it, love it, love it.  Listen to that guitar work!  The
strumming.  The "Sparks"-like power chords.  Duhn duhn.  Duh-duh-duh-duh-
duh.  Like "Melancholia" I first heard this song on boots ("Grace Space
Race"(!)).  I think it's cool as hell.  I love the psychedelia.  I love
the harmonies in the trippy middle part.  Short & sweet.  What a gor-
geous sell out!  I love it.

"Early Morning Cold Taxi" - My God.  Will the brilliance never end?!
Zeppelin?  The Stones?  Excuse me?  I'm supposed to get into *those* 
groups when there's this kind of genius lying around?  I think not!  What 
a beautiful painting of a love song.  No gushing.  Just facts.  A cold
taxi & a warm girlfriend.  Reservation about the future but a keenness
to tackle it with a loved one.  Lord Christ, I've gone to Heaven.  And
this is a partial Daltrey song!!  Was there no limit to the talent in
that band?!  (Rhetorical question.)

"Hall of the Mountain King" - Funny, but a bit too long.  Nice guitar
work, though.

"Girl's Eyes" - Somewhat sub par but I still enjoy it.  A nice Keith song
about a dedicated, if not exactly intelligent, girl fan.  Hey, she knows
all the charts.  ;-)

"Mary-Anne" -  An alternate take with a pronounced organ (!) (Hey now!)
I like it but the "original" is better.

"Glow Girl" - Love it, love it, fucking love it.  Another of my favorites.
More character study brilliance from Pete.  Lord, the imagery.  The 
flashy, Pop-Art, simulated plane crash.  And into....reincarnation!  Again,
the intelligence of the writing is striking.  Listen to Moon's playing!
Listen to OX's chuggness & then that beautiful bass melody at the end!
And Moon's final snare rolls.

My God, people!  Has there ever been a better band?  Has their ever been
a greater group?  It's all there on SELL OUT.  Genius in a stark, youth-
ful form.  A monstrous combination of intelligence & humor.  A near-per-
fect testament to outstanding rock music created by the most outstanding
rock band.  I fucking love it.  Love it, love it, love it, fucking love 
it!!


- SCHRADE in Akron