Rough Mix

Pete Townshend, Ronnie Lane, ronnie Lane Pete Townsend | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 19, 1989)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Atlantic / Wea
• ASIN: B000002JK2
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #53,038 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. My Baby Gives It Away

2. Nowhere to Run

3. Rough Mix

4. Annie

5. Keep Me Turning

6. Catmelody

7. Misunderstood

8. April Fool

9. Street in the City

10. Heart to Hang Onto

11. Till the Rivers All Run Dry

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The Who's ringmaster Pete Townshend and the Faces' bass man Ronnie Lane took their mutual admiration society to its obvious conclusion on this 1977 all-star effort (with guest appearances from guitarist Eric Clapton, Stones' drummer Charlie Watts, and Bad Co. bassist Boz Burrell). Overall it's an appropriately loose-limbed and rocking affair, with some good tunes traded back and forth (namely Pete's "My Baby Gives It Away" and Ronnie's "Annie"). It's also a little schizophrenic, though; with Townshend's sculpted song structures occasionally at odds with Lane's back porch ditties. There's surprisingly little vocal interplay either; although the one real duet, a hushed take of Don Williams's "Till the Rivers All Run Dry," is the clear highlight of the set. --Michael Ruby

Product Description

Pete Townshend's 1977 collaboration with former Small Faces and Faces songwriter and bass player Ronnie Lane combines the loose, rollicking folk-rock of Lane's former band Slim Chance with touches of country, folk and New Orleans rock 'n roll, along with Townshend's own trademark style. Lane's tunes, especially the beautiful Annie, possess an understated charm, while Townshend, with songs such as Misunderstood, the Meher Baba-inspired Keep Me Turning, and the strange love song My Baby Gives It Away, delivers some of the best material of his solo career. This stands as a minor masterpiece and an overlooked gem in both artists' vast bodies of work. Eric Clapton, John Entwistle and Charlie Watts guest. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The "Mod Summit", August 4, 2006

By 

PHILIP S WOLF (SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA. USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rough Mix (Audio CD)

Old friends Ronnie Lane & Pete Townshend join forces in late Winter 76 / Spring 77 and the result was: " Rough Mix".

The Who had been idle in the studio for almost two years at this point. Their last project "The Who By Numbers" was a great record but a few folks took it as if it was a Pete Towshend solo record because of the theme of Pete's songs were very personal and the overall sound was not as dynamic as previous releases.

That said, lot's of us took: "Rough Mix" as if was the new "Who" record. Well, it's not that BUT it stands on it's own merit as one of the best things that Pete was ever involved in.

Ronnie Lane, had been on his own for a few years at this time and he is an important partner for Pete on this piece of work. He is a great contrast in style to Mr. Townshend and helps "Rough Mix" work as a balanced record. His tunes: "Nowhere To Run", "Annie" & "April Fool" seem to have had an amazing effect on Pete's writting and playing to free him up from the turmoils of The Who and the results here are some of the best Pete Songs, some of you have never heard.

It all begins with "My Baby Gives It Away" a very loose and happy but raunchy love song that sounds nothing like The Who has done since "Magic Bus", Pete sounds like a new man on a mission and it's a good opener. Ronnie, get's to shine on "Nowhere to Run" & "Annie" and he seems a little more relaxed than Pete, but he sure can write good tunes.

The title tune is from a studio jam the boys undertook with Eric Clapton, and it's just OK but it does not hold interest for repeated listenings. Same goes for "Catmelody" as you can tell this also devolped from a jam featuring a few guys from The Rolling Stones.

But "Keep Me Turning" is the great lost Who song that we had been waiting to hear for years...fantastic !!! The same could be said for: "Heart To Hang Onto", as this could have been an epic number if Roger had the chance to sing on this, both of these great songs, still pop up in Pete's solo concerts to this day .

For my money the best thing recorded for this project was the great: "Misunderstood" it is as loose as you could ever get from Pete, but at the same time it has a very tight focus due to his writing...fantastic plus two.

And let's not forget: "Street In The City" which is just Pete, and an orchestra doing a: "Mini-Opera", this experiment works for some but is a shock to lovers of: "Live at Leeds" as our hero has done a 180 from the power chords of old, and on this has steered close to a classical work. I think it is an experiment, that he indeed pulls off well, and it's rumored that Pete has demos of more along this line, I hope they get to see the light of day

Things come to a close with one of Baba's favorite songs: "Till The Rivers All Run Dry" and it's like a prayer, as was the intention.

This being the: "Deluxe Edition", there is an essay on the making of this classic and complete lyrics and recording information. Three bonus tracks are added here; "Only You" & "Silly Little Man" by Ronnie Lane and another studio jam called: "Good Question", they are OK, but they are not the great lost recordings we are searching for.

"Rough Mix" still holds up well almost thirty years later and this is the edition to purchase, Ronnie went on to rock in Heaven, and Pete didn't die OR get old, thank goodness.

This is one of Pete's finest efforts, and with Ronnie's help, the mix is good.

Four Stars!!!

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Townshend-Lane Shine on This Collaboration, January 27, 2000

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rough Mix (Audio CD)

This would be ex-Faces Ronnie Lane's next-to-last record. [He would release only one more solo album, 1979's See Me, before multiple sclerosis no longer permitted him to record.] Together with Pete Townshend they create a memorable album.

Rough Mix kicks off with the most Who-like of the albums tracks--"My Baby Gives It Away," which is propelled by the drumming of Stones' drummer Charlie Watts. Townshend's vocal performance is fine, but he doesn't have the instensity that Roger Daltry could have added to the song.

Only two other tracks rock as hard as the opening track. The instrumental "Rough Mix," which features Eric Clapton's lead guitar and the organ work of John "Rabbit" Bundrick, who would go on to tour with the Who in 1979. The other is Ronnie Lane's "Catmelody," a jumping number featuring Stones sideman Ian Stewart on piano.

The rest of the album is a mostly accoustic affair. One of the album's standout tracks is Lane's absolutely gorgeous "Annie," which features his former Slim Chance members Graham Lyle on guitar and Benny Gallagher on accordian. Equally lovely is Lane's "April Fool" with Clapton on Dobro. Townshend also turns in one of his prettiest melodies and excellent acoustic guitar playing with "Keep Me Turning."

Only the string-laden "Street in the City" seems out of place on this disc, and at over six minutes is too long.

The album closes, however, with the melancholy "Heart to Hang on To" with Lane and Townshend sharing vocal chores, and the Don Williams country classic "Till the Rivers All Run Dry."

This is one of Townsend's strongest non-Who projects and Lane's contributions are stunning. If you enjoy either of these artists you will enjoy this collaboration. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why doesn't Amazon allow for 6 stars?, May 27, 2004

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rough Mix (Audio CD)

Having bought this on vinyl when it first came out, I awaited the CD release which has rarely left my playlist in the last decade-and-a-half. This is an album that defies pigeon-holing and it's highpoints overshadow its flaws (and there are several) by a high exponential factor. This is one of the saddest and most joyous recordings I've ever heard. Sad because it marked Ronnie Lane's diagnosis with MS and joyous because it souded like a bunch of guys just happy to play music together. The hits outrank the stiffs by a large margin as well. "Street in the City" threatens to be an other self-indulgent Townshend epic, but the sweetness of his singing and the wistful feel redeem its flaws. Nearly every Lane track is flawless and the arrangements are great, bringing in banjos, mandolins and harmonicas, where needed,to give it a timeless sound. Just writing about the record makes me smile.