Re: Glancing very briefly: Pure And Easy

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

"Pure & Easy" has always been one of those mid-level Who songs for me.
Not one of my favorites, but not one I constantly skip, either.  I lean
more towards liking it than hating it.

It seems a bit long to me - like editing out one chorus wouldn't go amiss.
It has a slowness & sappiness about it, too.  Perhaps too idealized?

But it's an important song.  It *is* LIFEHOUSE.  Roger is remarkable on
the studio version.  And OX gets those "doodle-do, doodle-do's" during
& after the "And a child flew past me...." line.  Bubbling brilliance!
And Moon's no slouch on this one, either.  Delicate & subtle when he needs
to be, strong & insistent where appropriate - a matching symmetry to 
Townshend's varying guitar tones.

> "Distortion becomes somehow pure in its wildness,
> The note that began all can also destroy."
>
> I suspect that Pete was once again speaking here of spirituality. The 
> note is the maker of all things? Or is it the Big Bang? (Scott might say 
> it's the same thing) 

This song is interesting scientifically in two ways.  It brings to mind
String Theory - the theory that the building blocks of matter are *vibra-
ting* loops of energy.  Also, with the "destroy" line, it brings to mind
vacuums, scalar fields, & universal drops to a lower energy state - which
would indeed be very destructive albeit a new "beginning."

So, while some draw spirituality from this song, I can extract "scientific-
ality!" ;-)

That's the wonder of Pete's writing.  You see yourself when you see The Who.


- SCHRADE in Akron