My Generation (Deluxe Edition) [Original recording remastered]

The Who | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 27, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Mca
• ASIN: B00006GF6Y
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (62 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #20,347 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The roaring, raging quartet heard on Who's Next, Live at Leeds, and Quadrophenia is scarcely discernable on much of this, their first album. But the Mod-fueled, American R&B-inspired sense of ambitious pop that powers A Quick One, Sell Out, and even Tommy isn't so hard to find here. This reissue not only expands the original with a bonus-disc treasure trove of 17 outtakes and rarities (including the Pete Townshend-penned, previously unissued "Instant Party Mixture"), but has been remixed from the original 1964-'66 session tapes by producer Shel Talmy and released in true stereo for the first time. Anchored by early Who/Townshend anthems "My Generation" (also included in an instrumental version), "I Can't Explain," and "The Kids Are Alright," disc one's original LP set veers somewhat schizophrenically from Townshend's nascent power-guitar thrashing on the anthems and Roger Daltrey's ill-advised James Brown and Bo Diddley impressions on "Please, Please, Please" and "I'm a Man," respectively, to the surf-inspired John Entwistle-Keith Moon instrumental showcase, "The Ox." Not surprisingly, it's the Townshend originals (like "It's Not True," "Legal Matter," and the proto-psychedelic "Circles") that point to what the band would become in a few short years. The bonus material on disc two leans equally heavily on covers, but also contains its share of signposts to the future Who, including a rare, alternate version of "Anyhow, Anyway, Anywhere." Also included is a new booklet with many rare photos and a history of the album's recording by Andy Neill (coauthor of Anyway Anyhow Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the Who 1958-1978). --Jerry McCulley

Product Description

It's kind of odd that the Who's first album would be the last to be reissued in deluxe fashion, but, given the prominent role the late John Entwistle plays on it (his instrumental 'The Ox' was and is a sonic marvel), it's kind of fitting, too. But the real reason it took so long for the Who camp to release this is that they added so much to it! Disc one presents the original album mixed in stereo for the first time by original producer Shel Talmy, plus single sides like 'Bald Headed Woman' and Daddy Rolling Stone.' Disc Two is a collector's dream, with more loads of first-time stereo-in fact, 28 out of the 30 tracks here are in stereo! Previously unreleased, full-length versions of 'The Good's Gone' and 'I Don't Mind,' an unreleased instrumental version of 'My Generation' and an unspeakably rare, French EP-only alternate version of 'Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere' the highlights. Three sets of liner notes analyze

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

74 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great album, but the remix needs an explanation, September 2, 2002

By 

Terestai (Littleton, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Generation (Deluxe Edition) (Audio CD)

After years of EQ-adjusted CD releases and bootleg discs that claimed to be "from the mono masters," we're finally treated to a CD that's been culled from the earliest possible sources. While the sound quality is superb and the packaging is lavish (the Who's management must have seen the "Instant Party" bootleg!), they should have packaged a track-by-track explanation of what you're hearing. These are the songs as they exist on the three-track masters, blemishes included, and without any overdubs.

This may seem an odd choice, given the large amount of variation between the songs as they're presented here, and how they were presented on the original LP and CD releases. But there IS a reason... upon hearing the original three-track masters, it was discovered that many elements were recorded directly to the finished mono mix. Therefore, isolated tracks of these "add-ons" didn't exist to be put into this stereo remix. Such elements include the guitar overdubs on "My Generation" and "A Legal Matter", the vocal harmony in the second verse of "Much Too Much" and, most noticeably, the doubletracked vocal in "La-La-La Lies" which covered up the error that is now laid bare on this CD. Note: I've read that the french horn on "Circles" was not an overdub, but is still not present on this stereo remaster. This is the biggest reason I've deducted a star from my rating (and the fact that both discs clock in at under an hour.)

The extra tracks are incredible! They fill in a gap that could previously only be filled by tracking down copies of "Who's Missing", "Two's Missing" and the "Rarities" albums. The standouts here are "Instant Party Mixture" and the alternate vocal version of "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere." Interestingly enough, the common version of the latter track is not present, because of the same overdub issue I mentioned above. The vocal line we're more accustomed to hearing was an overdub, and does not exist today in an isolated form. The vocal line you hear on this CD was the original, and has only been officially released once - by accident - on a 1966 French EP. All previous CD releases of this track have been on bootlegs, and have all sounded hideous. This sounds like it was recorded yesterday.

This set is alternately cohesive and chaotic. It captures the raw studio essence of The Who in 1965, but comes off as sounding unfinished. It's a proud testimonial to how the '60s British music machine worked - it wasn't recorded perfectly because the record wasn't expected to have a shelf life of more than a month. Recording was done in a quick and dirty fashion, and that hampered the ability to perfectly remix it. They did the absolute best with what they had to work with, and it's well worth the money... and the years of waiting.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not that I'm not grateful, November 18, 2002

By 

Gordon Pfannenstiel (Russell, KS United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: My Generation (Deluxe Edition) (Audio CD)

First, I really do appreciate the effort that has gone into improving the Who's catalog for the CD age. The Rolling Stones have finally followed suit...Capital/EMI, when are you going to get it together?

Unfortunately, this is a flawed release for several reasons. I don't think it was a mistake to remix from the original 3-tracks, but it was a mistake not to include a first-rate remaster of the original mono album. With 160 minutes of available time on a double CD, it is simply inexplicable, and a darn shame.

Also, the entire catalog is now remastered, but we still don't have a wonderfully remastered orginal version of Anyhow, Anytime, Anywhere or Substitute, or, for that matter, the second version of Circles, Pictures of Lily, or the stereo version of Magic Bus (not to mention the much longer version). These are not the only omissions, but certainly the biggest.

So, on the one hand, kudos to MCA for at least making the effort to present the Who in the best sound possible; on the other hand, shame on MCA for charging for a double CD while ommitting essential early material and ommitting the original mono album entirely.

60 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Years of waiting..... for THIS?, August 28, 2002

By 

"steronious" (Germantown, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: My Generation (Deluxe Edition) (Audio CD)

After years of legal feuding, Producer Shel Talmy and people in The Who organization finally settled their differences, and a remixed version of The Who's first album is now available. Unfortunately, the group of talented people who worked on this set either didn't pay much attention to detail... or they pursued an amazingly wrong-minded approach - - re-writing history in the pursuit of making money with repackaged product.
The sound IS much clearer than before, but it is thin. It doesn't seem to have the power of the original mixes. By far though, the worst thing about the set.... is the missing overdubs! Pete Townshend's guitar overdubs on "My Generation" couldn't be located, so they are missing. Missing! All those slashing guitar chords from the bass break in the middle of the song are not there.
How can you release a "definitive" CD of this album.... and use a remixed version of the title song WITHOUT all the guitar overdubs! Insane. The original mono mix of "My Generation" is included as a bonus track, but buried at the end of the second disc, it just seems like an afterthought. Among other annoying choices, "Circles" is missing all of the french horn overdubs.
There are also some really disturbing examples of sloppy mixing. For example, at 1:18 into "La-La-La-Lies," the vocal part abruptly CUTS OFF before the end of a phrase. The original CD does not have this problem. It's a pretty obvious mistake.
OK. This is a historically important album. The booklet is beautiful. The cleaned-up sounds lets us hear Keith Moon's drumming in glorious detail. But the new remix misses the big picture - forsaking the artist's original intentions in the name of prissy sonic clarity. This set can only be viewed as a major disappointment.