JAREDRYANLEE.COM

The Who – Tommy – MCA (1969)

Favorite Song:  Pinball Wizard
Other Notables:  Sparks (the song from Almost Famous)

I’ve been a big fan of The Who for a long time and this is probably my favorite album of theirs, mainly because it was the first I discovered.  Tommy is a rock opera/concept album telling the story of Tommy Walker, a young boy who witnesses his father’s murder and goes into a state of being deaf and blind.  The story in the album is fairly loose, but the general gist is that he suffers physical and sexual abuse from family members, develops an incredible talent for playing pinball, eventually snaps out of it, and starts a cult where he makes everybody play pinball while deprived of all their senses.  Your typical American story, er, told by British dudes.

The great thing about this album isn’t the story, it’s the music and arrangement.  Pete Townshend pretty much wrote the whole thing himself, and I’m sure he was totally sober the whole time.  The highlight of this album is definitely “Pinball Wizard,” one of the few songs that stands on its own without the need of another song leading into it.  However, this album is meant to be listened to from beginning to end.  Townshend’s guitar work is phenomenal, and Keith Moon is easily one of the greatest rock drummers ever to have lived (and OD’d).  I was actually pretty shocked at how low on the list Tommy is.  I expected it in at least the top 25.  Tommy is an influential masterpiece.

Bottom Line:  “Listen to Tommy with a candle burning and you will see your entire future…” (Almost Famous)
Final Grade:  A-

This entry was posted on Friday, October 2nd, 2009 at 7:00 pm and is filed under music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.