The Who - Quadrophenia
Roger Daltrey - Vocals
John Entwhistle - Bass, Horns, Vocals
Keith Moon - Drums, Vocals
Peter Townshend - Guitars
and
Chris Stainton - Piano
Ranked at #266 on Rolling Stones top 500 Albums list, This is a truly unforgettable album released in 1973. Although it didn’t receive half as much praise as their first Rock Opera Tommy did, it is just as comparable and much more powerful then any one of their other albums. The lyrics are a bit hard to understand the full concept of the story, but the general idea is about a boy looking back on previous experiences and leading to the present, which brings you right to the end of the album. This Collection of songs is a relic to Peter Townshends writing abilities, and quite possibly one of the most underrated albums of all time.
The album is supposed to represent the musician’s personalities tied into the story line of the boy like this…
Roger Daltrey - A tough guy, but a helpless dancer too.
John Entwistle - A romantic person - but questions “is it me for the moment?”
Keith Moon - A lunatic, but he’ll carry your bags for you.
Peter Townshend - beggar, hypocritical, love reign over me.
And since the boy in this story is said to have Schizophrenia (random changing of personalities) by his Psychiatric, you’ll see all of these personalities come into deep effect with the concept.
So with that said, Here’s your review
(NOTE: I am not aware of the name of the boy, so he’s just going to be called ‘the boy’ for now).
DISC 1 : 40:16
I am the Sea / 2:08 - an overture of the album. You can hear the sea noises in the background, and occasionally Daltrey singing the main themes of the album at different points, which leads right into the next song.
The Real Me / 3:20 - Probably one of the best songs on the albums, and one of the best by the Who. The song is driven by the bass and powerhouse drumming accompanying it. This is about how the boy doesn’t seem to be understood by anybody, and sort of sets up how he reacts to everything throughout the album. Also leads right into the next song. 5/5
Quadrophenia / 6:13 - A Great instrumental song, with different violin, piano, guitar, and bass riffs you will hear throughout the album, acting as an Overture to the musical aspects. The rhythm changes about four minutes into the song, into another great session of the orchestra and band. This reoccurring song will play a major role later, and it fades out to the sea noises again. 5/5
Cut my hair / 3:44 - A song better known for its vocals by Daltrey. It goes over events happening in the boy life, trying to fit in, and that most events are leaving him confused. At one point in the song, it states ‘my mother found a box of blues’, which is major to the plot, since at this moment, when his mom found dope in his room, he gets kicked out of his house, takes some pills, and takes the next train out of town. The song structure moves pretty slow, with the piano being the main aspect and the refrain drives the song a little more with the violin and drumming by Moon. Overall it isn’t the best song on the album, but perhaps the most important. 4/5
The Punk Meets the Godfather / 5:10 - This song is written according to ‘the Godfather’ being Townshend, and ‘the punks’ being the new punk bands at the time the album was released. Ask for what it has to do with the story line, I’m not quite sure. The song is pretty good, seems to catch my interest in the middle when the Daltrey sings some lyrics overdubbed and then the instruments come back and really reinforce the song. But overall, 4/5
I’m One / 2:37 - An acoustic intro to the song and transferring to the natural distorted guitar cant help but remind you of Behind Blue Eyes. The lyrics explain themselves here, which symbolizes the boy is trying to fit in with the rest of his peers. Good tune to add in there to keep the album rolling. 4/5
The Dirty Jobs / 4:29 - This song reveals the hard life of the boy every day. ‘The Dirty Jobs’ song title should already explain it enough, but overall, It’s a pretty good song. Every instrument really adds so much power during the whole song, so it definitely deserves a 5/5
Helpless Dancer / 2:33 - An acoustic guitar and piano driven song that is about how the boy hates people. Not because he is racist, but because they just sit back and let the world gets worse and worse but do nothing about it. Really, the lyrics are what completes it, but nonetheless, 4/5
Is it in my Head / 3:43 - Another song where the lyrics explain everything that’s going on. Pretty slowed moving, transferring from acoustic strumming to Some pretty cool distorted guitar riffs/solos, but never really picks up the pace. Its an alright song, still nothing to get thrilled about Imo 3.5/5
I’ve Had Enough / 6:14 - A great ending to Disc 1, where the boy describes getting ready for the dance hall, ‘with his GS scooter and his haircut neat’ but then the girl he loves hooks up with his friend Jack, which really sets him off. He wrecks his scooter in the pouring rain, and says He’s Had Enough! With one of Daltrey’s Distinguished screams, and end ends disc 1. 5/5
DISC 2 : 41:24
1. 5:15 / 4:59 - An Excellent intro to disc 2, where the boy goes to Brighton, after getting high on the train (‘out of my brain on the train’). That’s basically the bulk of what the songs about, but shows how the second disc already is going to build up to be more energizing then the first. 5/5
2. Sea and Sand / 5:01 - Song mostly about the girl the boy likes. Starts with a slow paced acoustic riff, and by the end of a song, ends up with a high energy twin guitar solo. Overall, a noteworthy tune, 4/5
3. Drowned / 5:25 - ‘Drowned’ takes a look back on the album, heavily relying on the sea as symbolism. He repetitively states that he wants to go back to the sea to be set free. This is an incredible combination of talent by all members of the band, and definitely deserves a 5/5
4. Bell boy / 4:55 - Keith’s point of view of the story, and is featured singing in certain parts starting around 1:15 into the song. Some symbolism of the ocean is referred to again, but not close to as much as ‘Drowned’. Again, this is another song that merges the genius of all the musicians, though from this point on, the rest of the album gets even better. 5/5
5. Docter Jimmy / 8:36 - My favorite song on the album. The boy alludes just about everything that’s happened in the story already, but with more vigor then before. The song seems to change moods quickly though, going from the reflections of his life, to being caught up in the moment, and totally shifts halfway through the song, which arguable marks were the album begins to end, around 4:50. From this point, the instruments work with each other so well, including the orchestra and vocals, it will definitely capture your desire to hear more, and leads right into the next song. 5/5
6. The Rock / 6:37- Another Musical, much like track 3 on disc 1 (Quadrophenia), but instead of being like an overture, is more of an underture, probably derived from Tommy. I believe in this part of the story, he sails out to sea, and lands on (none other then) a rock, where he catches up with his past and present thoughts, leading from this song right into the next. Incredible song, regardless of any argument 5/5
7. Love Reign O’er Me / 5:38- From the beginning of this song, it’s obvious that this last song on one of the greatest albums is going to draw to an intense and dramatic close, which ultamitly leads to the death of the boy. This song is much like We’ve had Enough, but serves for an ending making you want to hear it again, as well as rethink and capture everything you’ve just heard. 5/5
This CD, as I repetitively said, builds up from normal life, with its occasional problems, up to a powerful eruption of emotions, and really is art in a way. I guarantee anybody who buys it to like it, but wont give you your money back…sorry. Clearly, this album is much better and well developed then Tommy, since The Who just got the feel for making their rock opera in 1969, but really nailed it here in 1973, and like I said before, most people probably aren’t familiar with it since Tommy was The First rock opera, and took a lot of public response from this one.
If anyone spots any mistakes or errors, just let me know. I haven't seen the movie or really developed a well-written response to every aspect of the story (obviously), but I hope you enjoyed it!
