Re: FACE DANCES

["Brian Cady" <cadyb@home.com>]

> And while EMPTY GLASS could've been a solid WHO album, Pete's song-
> writing "unevenness" continued on into his solo efforts as well.  Instead
of
> *great* solo albums, we got a few *great* songs on mostly mediocre
efforts.

Well at least you extend it off Face Dances and It's Hard.  One of the
things that irritates me about criticism of those two albums is I see many
of the same "flaws" in the Who Are You LP and even Empty Glass.  "Cat's In
The Cupboard" and "Gonna Get You"?  Good crash-bash workouts but lyrically
they make "Did You Steal My Money" look good.  And "Guitar and Pen" and
"Keep On Working" are not that different from "How Do You Do It Alone."

Personally I think his writing didn't necessarily "stink."  I just think he
felt he'd burnt himself out in the old Who style (or felt that times were
changing) and went into a different, more overtly literary style.  And it
halfway worked when he played it as a solo act but didn't mesh well at all
with The Who.

The other thing that really, really bugs me about criticism of FD and IH is
when people say they are written in the same style.  This proves to me that
the person who says it has never listened to them.  FD and IH are (with the
exception of "Athena" and "One Life's Enough") written in almost
diametrically opposite styles.

        -Brian in Atlanta
         The Who This Month!
        http://members.home.net/cadyb/who.htm