Then and Now: 1964-2004

Performer: The Who
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: The Who includes: Pete Townshend (vocals, guitar); John Entwistle (vocals, bass); Roger Daltrey (vocals); John "Rabbit" Bundrick (piano, Hammond B-3 organ); Greg Lake, Pino Palladino (bass); Keith Moon, Kenney Jones, Zak Starkey (drums). Producers: The Who, Shel Talmy, Kit Lambert, Glyn Johns, Bill Szymczyk. Compilation producer: Andy McKaie. Recorded between 1964 & 2004. Includes liner notes by Matt Kent. This collection commemorates the 40th anniversary of the Who, and covers the entire span of their career. Perhaps even more significantly, though, it includes the first new Who recordings in 22 years. The youthful vibrancy of the band's mid-1960s mod period is represented by the breathless "I Can't Explain," the sneering/stuttering youth-culture anthem "My Generation," and the proto-"All the Young Dudes" camaraderie of "The Kids Are Alright." The collection moves on through the high points of their late '60s output ("I Can See for Miles"), '70s arena rock ("Won't Get Fooled Again"), and the synth-adorned, post-Keith Moon "You Better You Bet." After the Who's final studio album in 1982, there were sporadic reunions over the years, but no new songs. Following the death of bassist John Entwistle in 2002, there was a flurry of studio activity, as borne out by the two new tracks that close out the disc. While both "Real Good Looking Boy," a meditation on the vanity of youth, and "Old Red Wine," about the value of maturity, find Pete Townshend writing from the wisdom of age (59 in 2004), the classic Who sound is in full effect. With Roger Daltrey's wailing, rock-god vocals and Townshend's churning guitar powerfully rumbling along, these new tracks show a vital rock band far from ready to put a cap on its career.

From the youthful arrogance of their early 1960s recordings to their ambitious rock operas and the more introspective FM rock staples of their mid-1970s albums, the Who raged like a rock & roll inferno. Pete Townshend's guitar fireworks and Keith Moon's larger-than-life drumming combined with the busy basslines of John Entwistle and Roger Daltrey's vocal roar to create one of rock's mightiest noises. The band reconvened numerous times following the hard-living Moon's death in 1978, and even continued to play for several years following the death of Entwistle in 2002.

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