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23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A changing musical direction, August 18, 2004
This is one of my favourite Who albums because it's got so much musical energy and excitement pulsating all throughout. It reflects the band's changing musical direction, like it or not; who wants a band or singer to have the exact same style on each and every album? Most music put out in 1978 was like this, very influenced by New Wave and the dawn of the Punk movement. And since I love this album so much, I was shocked to discover that the remastering had taken away some lyrics and instrumentation on the songs, like the first part of the chorus in "Trick of the Light." And the songs are linked together thematically, all about the changing nature of music. The album begins with a jolt of energy and pulls one right in until the final moment, Keith's final moment of glory on his beloved drums before his untimely premature death. His drumming on the other tracks hadn't been the greatest (esp. on the only track I don't really care for, "Music Must Change," where he had to play cymbals because he couldn't master the drumming it required), but on the title track, the closing track on both the original release and the later remaster, he comes back to life with a vengeance, going out in a blaze of glory.
The bonus tracks are kinda skimpy in comparison to the great bonus tracks on many of their other albums which doubled their original lengths, and three are just different versions of songs that were already featured, but what we have is really good. The best ones are the lost verse mix of the title track, "No Road Romance," and the band's version of "Empty Glass," which became the title track of Pete's real first solo album. Interestingly, the band version contains the refrain "Killing each other, then we jump off a ledge," but by the time the solo album was released two years later, the suicidal line, from one of three known songs Pete wrote during this time period with lines about jumping or falling off of a ledge, one of the others being "Love Is Coming Down" (a track on this album), had been changed to "Killing each other by driving a wedge." That was a really marvelous selection of a bonus track, on a really marvelous album which doesn't get enough credit.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
So long Keith..., November 22, 1999
Yes, The Who were starting to ease into a kinder, gentler point in their career. True, The Who were forever changed when one fourth of it's original, incendiary line up became yet another rock casualty; but what a swan song this was. From the first notes of the muscular opening track "New Song" to the triumphant punch of the album's closer "Who Are You", Pete Townshend's matured outlook and vision remained just as clear as it ever had. With Daltrey's gruff, beefy vocals, Entwhistle's dazzling bass flourishes, Townshend's cranking power chords, and Moon's incredible timing and fills, this 1978 album bristles with all the energy of a band half their age. Rockers like "Had Enough" and "Guitar & Pen" showcase the vocal prowess and power of the man called Daltrey, whilst beautiful gems such as "Love Is Coming Down" and "Music Must Change" remind the listener of the songwriting genius of Pete Townshend. Hearing the bonus tracks at the end of the CD is icing on this already glorious cake, and is essential for any true Who fan (especially hearing some of the last drumming Moon ever put down on tape with "Empty Glass"). Everytime I put on this CD (and it's a lot) I am transported to a wonderful place. There are many reasons for it, and one is the magic in the chemistry of these four individuals... That this CD is the final curtain call for this legendary line up makes "Who Are You" even more important, and sadly, more poignant.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Moon's Last, April 2, 2001
Who Are You was the final album made by the original Who quartet. The album is the least consistent of the original lineup's career, but the high quality of several of the songs make up for the lackluster ones. The title track as legend would have it was inspired by a situation where a drunken Pete Townshend got into a fight with some punks and they uttered the line who the f*** are you to him. The song is an instant classic with it's pulsating beat and first rate vocal performance by Roger Daltry. "New Song" is a catchy song about artists recycling their material and "Sister Disco" is a strong rocker in a "Baba O'Reilly" vein. Other songs like "Guitar & The Pen", "Trick Of The Light" & "Music Must Change" fall short. The reissue contains some nice outtakes including an early version of "Empty Glass" and a version of the title track with a lost verse. Sadly, Keith Moon would pass away shortly after the album's release thus extinguishing one of the brightest drumming flames in rock history and ending one of the greatest bands of all-time. The Who would go on, but without Keith Moon, they were never the same.
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