Consensus Who album?

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CrankyCranky Frets: 2629
I'm kinda new to The Who, particularly when it comes to listening to full albums.  Is there a consensus "best Who album" among us?  Beside whatever Rolling Stone says?

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  • stickyfiddlestickyfiddle Frets: 26746
    Who’s Next
    Tommy
    Quadrophenia
    Live at Leeds 

    Depending on who you ask it’s usually one of those 4.
     
    Personally I like Who’s Next and Live at Leeds, but I’ve never quite got into a single album as any of these ones miss a bit chunk of stuff from somewhere else - you can do a lot worse than any of their recent Best Of complications. 
    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • CrankyCranky Frets: 2629
    edited October 2020
    ^ Cool.  I have 3/4 of those mentioned, so that's a good sign.  I love all of them, I love the band's energy.  They always remind me, when I'm feeling down or bored by my own playing, to just stfu and put some life into it!

    Tommy's the one I've been coming back to lately, which is weird for me as I'm not normally a "themed album" guy, but it has some great tunes on it.  The acoustic playing on the back end of Overture is awesome.
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  • RandallFlaggRandallFlagg Frets: 13929
    My faves are:
    • Who's Next
    • My Generation
    • Live At Leeds
    • 30 Years of Maximum RnB box set


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  • scrumhalfscrumhalf Frets: 11262
    I prefer Live At Hull to Live At Leeds, it's a seriously good album. 
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  • ronnybronnyb Frets: 1742
    The soundtrack to ‘McVicar’ is worth a listen too. I think it’s a Who album in all but name.
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  • WhitecatWhitecat Frets: 5378
    'Who's Next' is the masterpiece IMO.

    But I'm gonna be controversial and say that my second favourite album of theirs is 'It's Hard'. Love that record, even though it's kinda more 'of its era' than other they've done.
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  • I'm going to add Who are you to the list too, really like that album.
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952
    Who’s Next and Quadrophenia are the two best albums for me. I find most of the others a bit too patchy.

    But you really need a compilation that covers all the eras, because they’re very different and there are great songs in all of them. I’ve got Then And Now, which has most of the well-known classics.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • merlinmerlin Frets: 6594
    I revisited The Who By Numbers recently. Love the folky elements. 
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  • Who's Next, Live at Leeds, Quadrophenia, Tommy.

    The latter is quite amazing - bass and drums are underplayed and played quite straight as they wanted to release an album that would cover it's recording costs as I understand it.

    The moment in Almost Famous (mostly shit except for) when it cuts from the kid listening to Sparks from Tommy cutting to an older kid listening to it from Live at Leeds is almost as good as the bit in Kids are Alright movie were Townshend slides across the stage when Daltrey screams at the end of the synth/drum battle in Won't Get Fooled Again.
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  • RedlesterRedlester Frets: 1072
    Live at Leeds is their best record because it's the most consistent. The deluxe version is great but the original LP version does the best at capturing what the Who are all about: power, striving, and aggression. Above all aggression. 
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  • stickyfiddlestickyfiddle Frets: 26746
    Redlester said:
    Live at Leeds is their best record because it's the most consistent. The deluxe version is great but the original LP version does the best at capturing what the Who are all about: power, striving, and aggression. Above all aggression. 
    Yes, but it doesn’t have Won’t Get Fooled Again on it...
    The Assumptions - UAE party band for all your rock & soul desires
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  • RedlesterRedlester Frets: 1072
    Redlester said:
    Live at Leeds is their best record because it's the most consistent. The deluxe version is great but the original LP version does the best at capturing what the Who are all about: power, striving, and aggression. Above all aggression. 
    Yes, but it doesn’t have Won’t Get Fooled Again on it...
    You don’t need it. 
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  • CrankyCranky Frets: 2629
    So one of my favorite Who songs is A Quick One While He's Away, which appears on A Quick One and The Kids are Alright.  Is either of those album worth it?  Nobody's mentioned them yet 
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  • RedlesterRedlester Frets: 1072
    I think a great version of a quick one is on the Stones’ RnR Circus. 

    Version on the deluxe Live at Leeds too. 

    Forgot to mention The Who Sell Out. Captures a whole era of pop and pirate radio. 
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  • EmielEmiel Frets: 212
    For early Who, listen to ‘Who Sell Out’, it’s close to a pop masterpiece.

    Then continue with ‘Tommy’ and ‘Live at Leeds’. The latter is properly their best album.

    About ‘Who’s Next’. Look on Youtube for ‘Lifehouse’. That project could perhaps have been the best rock album ever... bits and pieces became ‘Who’s Next’.

    ‘Quadrophenia’ is very different... you can call it artrock or even prog rock. Fantastic singing, playing and production. 

    ‘Who By Numbers’ is and ‘Who Are You’ especially are good later Who albums. If you like the folky bits, listen to Townshend’s and Ronnie Lane’s ‘Rough Mix’ collaboration. Fantastic album if you call me. And if you like latter day Who, check out Townshend’s ‘Empty Glass’ and ‘All Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes’. Some say Pete kept the best material for his solo works. The Cowboys album is my favourite Townshend solo work.
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  • WazmeisterWazmeister Frets: 9444
    edited October 2020
    Definitely the early stuff for me...

    Meaty, Beaty Big and Bouncy
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  • KDSKDS Frets: 220
    As a few have said, who’s next, quadrophenia live at Leeds
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  • LitterickLitterick Frets: 584
    Live at Leeds, recorded at the Leeds University Refectory.



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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71952

    Yes, but it doesn’t have Won’t Get Fooled Again on it...
    Or Baba O’Riley and Behind Blue Eyes.

    Or anything from Quadrophenia, which would be my pick for their best album overall, even though it also doesn’t have those.

    Live At Leeds has the interminable version of My Generation which spoils it.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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