Is ‘Quadrophenia’ really “the best album The Who made”?
It’s always fascinating to hear the different sides of a debate when fans come together to discuss what the best album from a given artist is, and while sometimes the discussions can get a little heated, there’s often a valid reason for it being open to different arguments. The Who are a fine example of a group that released several classic albums, but trying to come to a unanimous decision on which of their records trumps all others is a tricky task, as many fans will point to different aspects of each nominee in order to argue their case.
While they’re undoubtedly promising indicators of where the band would go later in their career, few would argue that their earliest releases, My Generation and A Quick One, are the finest examples of what they had to offer and that The Who Sell Out is possibly the turning point in their oeuvre that signifies a more ambitious approach to piecing together a full-length release. However, the three that came after this pivotal release, with their two rock operas in Tommy and Quadrophenia sandwiching their remarkable stadium rock opus Who’s Next in the late 1960s and early ‘70s, are the pinnacle of what the British group achieved together.
Each one of this trio of releases has something different to offer to listeners, and while Who’s Next is markedly different in that it doesn’t adhere to an overarching plot or concept, they’re all shining examples of how they pushed their virtuosic talents and musicianship further in order to create far more sprawling albums that covered a range of styles that had previously been absent from their releases.
However, arriving in 1973 was the final album of this outstanding run and the band’s second rock opera, Quadrophenia. Telling the story of a young mod named Jimmy who gets caught up in a world of drugs and violence in Brighton, the overarching plot of the album and subsequent film adaptation was far more cohesive than the band’s prior effort, Tommy, and this is something that guitarist Pete Townshend felt set the record above their other efforts.
In a 1996 interview with Steve Harris, Townshend revealed that “I think it’s the best album that The Who made” before going on to say, “I also think it’s one of the most cohesive stories that I wrote, and in doing this kind of thing, I learn a tremendous amount.” While Townshend believed that this epic album superseded their prior efforts, what was it about the others that meant they couldn’t live up to the brilliance of Quadrophenia after them?
Tommy, in the eyes of Townshend, was a flawed first attempt at creating a concept album, and Who’s Next represents a complete failure in being able to successfully see a conceptual project through, having been adapted from their scrapped concept album, Lifehouse. Given that Quadrophenia is the most complete example of a concept album created by the band, it’s understandable that Townshend regards it as his greatest achievement.
However, just because Who’s Next fails to live up to Quadrophenia in its ambition and failure to follow a narrative theme doesn’t make it a bad record. If you were to take each song in isolation from their 1971 album and forget that Townshend had attempted to weave a common thread between them, then this perhaps is the finest example of their songwriting abilities, but if you’re looking for out-and-out drama and ambition, then Quadrophenia is undoubtedly still their finest hour. That is, mind you, open for other fans of The Who to debate.
