The four songs Keith Moon wrote for The Who
In rock music, there is a theory that the band’s drummer is always the wildest member. This image of erratic partying drummers comes from the life of Keith Moon. As the drummer for The Who, Moon gained a reputation for his wild behaviour and aggressive approach to percussion. Although an essential group member, Moon often gets overlooked for his writing contributions to The Who.
Although, in fairness, if you start blowing up your own drum kits regularly, it makes sense that you will likely be remembered for that rather than your writing talents. In one of the most infamous moments in The Who’s history, Moon packed his kick drum with explosives during an appearance on American television. Exploding at the end of ‘My Generation’, the impact was so great that it caused a cymbal to slice Moon’s arm and cause permanent hearing damage to guitarist Pete Townshend. While this incident certainly contributed towards Moon’s wild image, it undoubtedly explains why his writing credits are often forgotten. If Charles Dickens had blown more stuff up, people would probably pay less attention to his literary work.
Nevertheless, Moon did contribute various songs throughout The Who’s career before his untimely death in 1978. His writing experience with The Who began with their second studio album, A Quick One. The record features songs written by all four members of the group, with Moon and bassist John Entwistle contributing two tracks each. Moon’s efforts come with ‘I Need You’ and ‘Cobwebs and Strange’. ‘I Need You’ is a fascinating track which feels distinctly un-Who-like. Apparently, the original title for the track was ‘I Need You (Like I Need A Hole in the Head)’, and it was Moon’s way of expressing his annoyance with The Beatles. The track is not exactly subtle, with lyrics bemoaning their Northern accents and a section of the song in which he imitates John Lennon’s voice.
Moon’s other writing contribution to A Quick One was ‘Cobwebs and Strange’, the final track on side one of the album. An instrumental track, perhaps in an effort not to offend any more fellow musicians, the song is a chaotic menagerie of sound. An almost psychedelic experiment, the track feels as though you are listening to a marching band while tripping on acid. In addition to various fantastic drum breaks, each member of the band also plays a wind instrument on ‘Cobwebs and Strange’, with Townshend on the penny-whistle, Daltrey on the trombone, Entwistle taking the trumpet and French horn, and Moon playing the tuba.
Moon’s next effort at writing comes in the form of ‘Girl’s Eyes’, a little-known track recorded during the sessions for The Who Sell Out. The album is a pop art masterclass, parodying adverts and jingles for products. ‘Girl’s Eyes’ features vocals from Moon and Entwistle and, although excluded from the initial release of Sell Out, it was later included as a bonus track on expanded editions of the album. Lyrically, it is charmingly simplistic and feels as though Moon may have swallowed a rhyming dictionary while writing it. Despite this, it does not feel particularly out of place when looking at the material being recorded by the group during this time.
Moon also contributed the song ‘Tommy’s Holiday Camp’ for The Who’s seminal concept album, Tommy. Although Townshend is credited with writing the music and singing lead on the track, it was Moon who suggested the idea. Although certainly not the strongest effort on the album, it provides a jaunty and fun penultimate track on the iconic record. Tommy cemented The Who’s movement from young anarchic mod rockers to mature artists, and remains one of the greatest albums of the 20th century.
Of course, Moon contributed towards various other tracks throughout the years, notably ‘Bell Boy’ from Quadrophenia, but these were the songs that he had the biggest hand in creating. Regardless of his songwriting talents, Keith remains a legendary figure in rock music and the gold standard for wild and energetic rock and roll drummers.
