Tommy

the who more like who cares about rock operas am i right? this was like the most Fine album i’ve ever heard i really just can’t care though

I love concept albums. This one in particular sounds like it could be a play or even a musical. However, I feel like I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I do like that the songs blend in together, though. Also, I don't know why but this album gave me Wizard of Oz vibes, no particular reason. No track really stood out. Fave track(s): Go To the Mirror!

It was alright. Favorite song: “1921”.

I listened to this album start to finish while driving. I had higher expectations than I should have due to knowing some songs by The Who previously. I will say that the album flow was well arranged and the songs often seamlessly transitioned from song. I always like that. The lyrics were all straightforward to my ears and seemed as though they just looked around the room for objects of inspiration. The standout song on this album is Pinball Wizard.

what's happening in his head? ohh i wish i knew i wish i knew

A landmark of musical history. This is a great example of where the music and lyrics are so well done but unless you are aware of the story it probably seems very disjointed and meaningless. Maybe just downright creepy. I do love the music and some of the tracks absolutely stand up today but it’s not something I want to listen to on its own. I’d rather watch the film, so it’s all in context.

I want to live The Who but I just can’t get into it

No me dejo ratear el anterior todo mal :(

There are some really good songs on this album. I've seen it performed, too, as the rock opera for which it was written. Kind of works in a weird way, but the songs are engaging and entertaining. Pete Townsend is musically very interesting and an incredible guitarist and vocalist.

J'ai passé un moment sympathique avec ces Who malgré un genre musical attitré totalement fantaisiste (hard rock) sans aucun lien avec le genre réel de l'album. Cette écoute a toutefois failli être gâchée par ma N+1. Je vous joins l'échange confidentiel en question que nous avons eu sur Teams : « - Robprocédurière ? - Quoi ? - Pourquoi ce processus est en cours de traitement depuis deux jours ? - Parce que c'est mon premier processus du genre alors j'y vais lentement, je prends le time... - Tu veux qu'on le fasse ensemble ? - Ouais carrément. - 12h15 ? - Non 12h22 parce qu'il restera Tommy's Holiday Camp et We're Not Gonna Take It à 12h15. - Pardon ? - J'y peux rien si la trackliste est longue comme le cul. » Je leur accorde donc un trois sur cinq.

This is the soundtrack to the Who's less good film. There's good songs to be found in here though. They are a rare band where the drummer's songs are the best and most disturbing! Fiddle about, eww. There's still some excess fat on here - two ten minute overtures and a closing track which runs a long time on very little. But by and large it's good.

Too folky for my current mood

I love this album for various reasons and find it musically interesting but it's not my favorite combination of rock and "opera". Theoretically meets the criteria for a good show but overall feels flat to me. I love "Pinball Wizard" and "Go To The Mirror" as stand alone rock tunes. This is a great album but can't rank it above a 3 since I wouldn't typically listen to it front to back... and I not sure I'd want to see it performed live.

Having listened to a couple of early albums by The Who, the significance of "Tommy" really comes through. The scope of the album, the vision of Pete Townshend, and the ambitions of the band are big and eccentric and you can understand why this is a landmark album for the band and for rock and roll music. When the band is brilliant on this, they shine. The interplay of the vocals is masterful, the harmonies on songs like "Tommy Can You Hear Me?" are fantastic, and Keith Moon proves he's got chops for days. Not to mention, what an out there premise this entire album rests on. 10 stars for creativity and commitment to an artistic ideal. But there's a lot of dead weight, and for all his stellar abilities and singular voice on his instrument, I was so tired of Moon's drumming by the 3/4 mark that it detracted from the album. It encapsulates my admiration/repulsion to this band. There's no question that there's genius at work in so many elements of this band, but somehow, some of that genius is what undermines my enjoyment. I know this is better than a 3-star album, but I can't imagine a time when I'll be looking for something to listen to and decide to listen to this from start to finish. That's why it's a 3-star in my book. A brilliant 3.

Not my favorite thing, but I appreciate the ambition.

It's funny how many reviews are either 4-5 stars calling it a masterpiece or 1-2 stars saying it's garbage. Usually this tells me this is mostly due to differences in genre preference, but with Tommy I think it's mostly due to how one perceives the execution of the concept. I seem to be the rare reviewer who falls somewhere in between. I see Tommy as both a work of creative genius and a confusing mess. The Good: Well, it's completely unique being the first true rock opera and essentially creating a new genre of music. There are songs that work as standalone tracks independent of the story (i.e. the singles, most notably "Pinball Wizard" which is undoubtedly the best song on the album). And then there are songs that you wouldn't necessarily put on just for fun (or catch on the radio) that are beautifully composed and interesting. The bad: Despite the aforementioned comment about the good, some of the songs just aren't good (e.g. "Holiday Camp"). Others come across as mere filler. Now, I remember seeing my local high school perform this decades ago and I really enjoyed it. Middle school me liked it so much I watched the VHS of the official concert for it (Phil Collins was in this, right?) many, many times. But, something about the album by itself just doesn't connect, and it's easy to get bored. The ugly: the story itself doesn't make any sense. I read the synopsis before listening so I get what is SUPPOSED to be happening (not that it seems like it's a great story by itself anyway) but at very few points during the album is the plot actually comprehensible. Overall, I agree this is a must listen album, but perhaps we would be better served watching the concert for it and seeing some of the action take place on stage so it makes more sense and not just hoping it ends soon.

After the success of The Who Sell Out, our favorite mod rock band go on to do a double-album rock opera. This is the album that set the bar for all future concept albums. Including both an overture and an underture! Not many rock albums will have an underture, I can tell you that right now. It unfortunately takes a while for the album to really kick in. Side B is when the songs start getting good enough to make note of, as the album flows from one song to the next without much distinction. In my youth I was more easily impressed by concept albums that pulled this stunt, but now I expect a bit more for the songs to be distinct and memorable. I can't help but feel this highlights a distinct blindspot in The Who's output: spotty songwriting. For every great song they'll have, there will be several songs that are not noteworthy at all. Not bad, but also not noteworthy. For reference, side C boasts the excellent song Pinball Wizard, but requires slogging through "Do You Think It's Alright?" and "Fiddle About" to get there first. It is a uniquely mediocre experience that best showcases my problem with The Who and double albums at the same time. Tommy isn't a bad album. It is competently written and performed. It is not something I would recommend on the basis that it is overlong and not all that great to warrant the runtime. I understand Quadrophenia is better?

Rock opera go brrr. Music itself is interesting and surprisingly layered and diverse. Some bluesy stuff, some orchestral stuff, lots of weird interludes. Very clean production. Lyrics are.. interesting. Will needa give this another listen

Rock opera, doesn’t hit me like other great who albums, could not get into the filler tracks

Definitely interesting as a concept album and very cool that it was the first "rock opera" but I didn't feel like the music grabbed me as much as I would want it to.

Pinball Wizard is obviously the high point of this album but I liked the whole flow of the album. I'd enjoy listening to this all the way through again. It was good but not quite 4 stars good.

I think this is meant to be viewed/listened to live, straight through. Just sitting on my couch it’s not exciting me, nor is it unpleasant. It’s just there. Pinball Wizard 10/5 stars though.

This is a pretty decent album. I found a lot of it to just be very basic and plain. Cool idea for a lot of it, but just bland.

Not as good as the reputation it has - only a couple of good songs and a lot of filler, especially on the special edition with live versions.

Its a solid album. The music is amazing and really well composed even tho the lyrics and singing is inconistant

Somehow it's background music, even if you try to focus on it. Not special, but keeps the silence away effectively.

Es bueno, muy instrumental

I didn't really get too much into the story, but I still enjoyed the album. Favorite: Pinball Wizard

Best Song: Pinball Wizard. That guitar melody which pops up throughout the album makes its presence most known here. It also feels the most "rock" of all that's on offer. Worst Song: Cousin Kevin. Is it just me, or does it sound like some of the vocals are really off-key? Overall: I always applaud weird and avant garde choices in art, and a rock opera about a deaf, dumb, and blind kid who becomes a pinball savant is certainly weird. Sadly, in the effort to present a continuous narrative, the actual music becomes less interesting. Would probably be interesting to watch a stage production, but it struggles to hold my interest over such a lengthy album.

Suffers from the same "rock opera" problem as The Wall, and with way more of an added cringe factor since I was a kid. Still an overall fine album, but let's be honest - what are you reaching for on this record besides "Pinball Wizard"?

Not my favorite Who album by far.

How can you not love an opening track with flugelhorn? Overall just OK.

Overlong and a bit preachy in hindsight, this album nonetheless contains some absolute bangers like Pinball Wizard and Acid Queen.

some first-rate tracks but much is forgettable and the central idea is silly

While I didn't really dislike it, I think The Who took themselves too serious and created an album that works fine as a rock album but that doesn't have the musical quality necessary for it to work as a rock opera. The story comes with an intended pathos and gravitas that simply aren't backed up by enough technical skill to have much impact at all.

Interesting concept album with a controversial topic, so this must have stirred up some emotions back then. It was a very bold move to make a rock opera, but it somehow is a bit tedious to listen to. At many times more of the same, building up tension but it hardly ever comes to a real explosion.

Standard '70s concept album affair. Do I recognize this is perhaps one of the most quintessential. Still though, for my first time listening to it, I prefer their older simpler work. This had a lot of ideas, and the narrative thread was incredibly strong.

Decent classic rock, but nothing standout

Quite enjoyable.

Un autre album de The Who... Par contre ici on a un concept plus fort et une oeuvre majeure dans la carrière du groupe. Il faut effectivement avoir écouté cet album. Écouter un opéra rock n'est pas une tâche facile. Faut être dans le mood. L'écoute en vinyle est probablement plus agréable et appropriée puisque les pauses pour les changements de côtés allègent un peu le tout. Pinball Wizard est dans mes pièces préférées du groupe et une pièce qui représente bien le groupe, son unicité. La groove dans I'm Free est intéressante. On n'est pas au niveau de The Wall, mais on a un album qui coule bien.

Not a big fan of the album or the band. This is bloated, over reaching and as of these days a bit tasteless. Gotta admire the ambition but it misses.

I might be spoiled, as my first exposure to Tommy was the full-cast anniversary edition. The songs are here, but the songs feel lightweight in comparison, with the album as a whole feeling bloated.

Good. Need more listens

Despite being iconic I thought it was fairly middling...

Rock Opera par excellence. (6/10) FT: Pinball Wizard, Sally Simpson

Heard it a handful of times before. Good album. Overrated.

Ambitious, and one can assume groundbreaking at its release. But in the end, only worth listening front to back in order to string the story together as almost no song stands on its own except of course Pinball Wizard… And maybe take the pedo stuff down a notch, too, eh?

The Who will always be the bargain basement version of better bands. The only song that stuck out for me was Pinball Wizard. I guess if you get tired of the Beatles, the Stones, and Zeppelin there's always the Who.

Some classic songs, and love the overall vibe, but many of the songs aren't ones I would re-listen to standalone.

not their best album. 2.5/5

Pretty wild. Didn't know Tommy had a whole backstory going on. Not something i would put on just to listen to since some of them are odd but overall a good piece of work and quite experimental.

Nothing wrong with it. But I don’t feel like I will be going back to it. Cover art 3/5

Enjoyed this much more than I thought I would a storytelling concept album.

The story didn’t make a lot of sense to me but I really enjoyed quite a few songs and loved the progression throughout the album. Would listen again but probably not going to put it on myself.

Fun and cinematic, most definitely the soundtrack to a musical

Started out enjoying this, but it lost me in the middle somewhere.

It's taken me years to work out what's wrong with The Who. They've performed some of the greatest songs of all time, but I find the quality drops if you listen to a whole album. Who's Next is an exception, but usually a Who album has too much filler. So part of their problem is lack of good songs, but Tommy has good songs. I have two problems with this album. Firstly, any song that doesn't have Townsend power chords tends to be weedy. Secondly, their vocals aren't up to snuff. Roger needs to be singing balls-out rock or he should shut up. Pete should never sing. They needed to hand these songs over to other musicians. Except Pinball Wizard. That is magnificent.

Very cool concept/ rock opera

To be honest, I've only ever been familiar with Pinball Wizard & I'm Free. I actually don't even know what Tommy is. Was it a musical? A movie? Both? I still don't know. I'm still only familiar with those 2 songs. This is just super meh to me. It was fine. Rating this a 3.

Opera album with minimal hits

I have heard of this album, and I do not think I ever saw the movie. But it is a rocking album!

I didn’t really care for much of this album other than Pinball Wizard and Tommy Can You Hear Me

Finde ich bei weitem nicht so scheisse wie das Erstlingswerk, das mir The Who zunächst komplett vergällt hat. Diesem Album hingegen muss ich (schlechte) drei Sterne geben.

Some awful bits redeemed by some alright bits. On the whole pretty self indulgent and ridiculous.

It's cool that it's one of the first concept albums, and I can see it's major influence but it wasn't really my cup of tea. It was alright.

I did not care for this

The movie is one if my favorites, but it doesn't change the fact that this is one of The Who's weakest albums. Some pretty nice songs and the concept is quite excellent, but there are sadly too many fillers.

Some great moment, but then the second after you feel tired.. Just too long.

Despite the fact that there are 5-6 really excellent songs, Tommy is perhaps the most boring Who album, because it is too long and has a lot of fillers. I'm a Who fan, so it kind of breaks my heart to say it like that... However, I have to admit, it made me want to listen to the film again. I hope the next Who's album will be the killer "My Generation"!

Sasvim dobar album, ali ga nisam previše pratio koliko sam trebao, svakako mislim da bih se trebao vratiti na ovaj album da ga još bolje jednog dana poslušam.

Epic rock opera with an epic song. Fave: Pinball Wizard

Ok but a bit more 'operaish' than i had expected. i am sure it would be better having seen the film but none of the songs seems to be given the space to get going.

Much of the music is pretty decent and I had partly hoped this might be instrumental so I didn’t have to listen to this nonsense story full of Townsend’s weird obsessions. I get that he’s probably working things through but this Tommy metaphor is in such poor taste.

🎵 He's a pinball wizard 🎵

I know for many Tommy is the Who's magnum opus. But for me I want the power. Pete attacking the guitar, Keith treating everything as if he's the frontman, Roger preening and John holding it all together

I have probably listened to this album at least 10 times before reviewing this album. The first few times was out of curiosity about the rest of the album that includes "Pinball Wizard". The next few times was to try and understand the whole rock opera. The last couple of times was to decide how much some of the characters and songs creep me out. This album still makes me feel icky. I haven't watched the movie yet (maybe never will?). I did not know that a couple of the creepiest songs were credited to Entwistle. I thought the creepiness was all on Townshend's shoulders. There are tracks that I still enjoy ("Pinball Wizard", "I'm Free") and some of the instrumentals are worth listening to, to see what the band was trying to explore musically (my fav was "Sparks"). Overall, the album comes out as an "okay", with a wish to skip some of the story portrayed across the album.

This did have it's ups and downs but I really enjoyed this! I am confused tho- is Tommy ok?

I do not get the story but I do get the music.

It's certainly ambitious and there is some great stuff here. The drumming in particular is obviously fantastic but all the performances are great, there are some lovely harmonies, and it introduces and develops certain motifs in a really satisfying way It's a bit all over the place though - the concept is so scattered, and musically it doesn't exactly gel together (Good Morning Campers or whatever it's called is fun but incredibly out of place) and it really feels like the entire thing hangs around Pinball Wizard. Which is an incredible song but... the 70+ minutes bookending seems excessive

Never have I looked up the supposed story of Tommy. It is bonkers. I've listened before without really paying attention and the album is much better knowing the rough storyline.

A cool concept with some great songs mixed in... but man did it really start to get tedious. I was ready for this one to be over by the time Tommy got his senses back.

Ah, the original rock opera. I think it's pretty cool how the concept was birthed out of a desire to find a way to escape the "short song format" of music that had existed up until this point. I had not heard this in full before, and was not familiar with the plot. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to completely discern the plot from the music alone; I had to rely on a little help from Wikipedia. Needless to say, the plot is very much a product of the 1960s. The album did feel a little long and bloated, but it was bizarre, which I appreciate, so it evens out. There were some great songs on this album. That said, musically, this particular album is classic Who. They aren't reinventing any wheel there; this particular album is all about the introduction of the rock opera format, which it turned out their musical style was perfect for. This album dared to try something new, and while not perfect, brought about a significant form of musical storytelling. That in and of itself makes this album a worthy addition to the project. Thanks, Who, for gifting us the rock opera!

C'est OK. Pas mauvais, très bon concept, mais j'ai l'impression d'écouter une comédie musicale sans l'image

My first time giving this a spin, and I mostly enjoyed it. The first few tracks are nice and theatrical and set the scene well - much like the start of a musical, which I guess this pretty much is (didn't realise See Me, Feel Me was originally more of a recurring theme than it's own track - another musical theatre trope?) I like the really short tracks (they help a lot with plot exposition) and always have respect for ambitious concept albums, especially groundbreaking ones like this. I'm not sure the individual parts are strong enough to keep me coming back to listen to the whole, though, especially when it's so long. 3.5

A real mixture in terms of quality, but I suppose that's easily done with a concept album. Each song fulfils a purpose after all. I like the Tommy movie with the other performers. Less fussed by the Who's actual album. But Sally Simpson, Pinball Wizard, 1921, and It's A Boy are still great in this. I'm Free is quality too

Es como una ópera rock. Se me ha hecho bastante bola. Ni fu ni fa.

3.5

not for me

It was ok.

You know... fine, okay. I guess.

There were some good songs on it but it was way too long. 2.5

Hele zit, maar wel ontzettend goed gedaan. En gewoon een goede band.

Tsja. Hier en daar een beetje theatraal, maar zeker acceptabel.

test

It is musical feat that I appreciated more when I was in college.

Decent, but not their best

Not their best album, not even their best double album (Quadrophenia is more consistent), but completely with the zeitgeist in the late sixties, hence it's the one Who album everyone has head of.

The Who's: Tommy stands apart from other Who material for me. This sorta album was not being done at the time and though they can make better music, looking at what was created with this rock opera, the legendary status of it can not be denied. I just have to compartmentalize this from the rest of The Who discography. For me personally, I'd give it a 3. For the impact it made on culture and what have you, at least 4 stars.

This album coined the term Rock Opera. Regardless of what I think about the music, I have to at least appreciate it for the courageous step out of the norm that it is.

Great album

I wonder if it is possible to submit reviews for others

Pinball wizard rb2 memories

I've had to sit through several tragic high school productions of the stage musical inspired by this album. I'm not sure I'll ever really be able to appreciate it properly. I went into this with an open mind but it gave me unpleasant flashbacks.

It is a fairly bloated album. Fair play for trying to pull this off but they have better albums - the subject matter of pinball, pop-culture messiah and paedos is probably not for everyone. Where's the book Pete? Best Tracks: 1921; Pinball Wizard; We're Not Gonna Take It

Pinball Wizard was great. The rest was just okay. Interesting concept, but not for me!

3.5

Pretty great album. Never really listened to the whole thing before. 3/5

I preferred the film version.

Catchy rock, elguitar riffs, fængende

lots of tracks that have no words so I zone out. i liked pinball wizard and tommy's holiday camp. they were funky.

some classics on here but pretty long...

This is definitely one of the first cohesive concept albums/rock operas ever released by a band which means it definitely earns a spot on this list; however, I feel that it was a bit pretentious and overly long for what it was. Don't get me wrong: I had a fun time listening to the whole album and thought there was plenty of variety and great instrumentation here, but I can't help but feel that it came across as a bit generic and repetitive at times. While the concept was carried throughout the whole album, the overall story was not very clear to me upon my first listen. Maybe this is something that becomes more apparent in subsequent listens, but typically an album of this sorts makes its characters and plot clear from the start and has story beats that carry this all the way to the end. With 'Tommy', I did not feel a strong connection to this concept which just left me listening to it as a random collection of songs. When looking at it through this lens, I don't think it's their best work from a songwriting and arrangement perspective (although I have not heard a ton of Who material). This one has the potential for me to truly understand and respect it more, but I am not sure that there was enough here even in its long length to make me want to come back for sure. Overall, I enjoyed this one and understand its spot on this list, but it wasn't as great as some people might think it is. 3/5.

I have a difficult time with concept albums, especially with linear story lines. I don't feel there is enough for me to grab on to and follow through in the music. The guitar work ranges from great to mediocre, but i think this would be worth another spin. Undertone is a good self contained groove. Pinball Wizard kicks ass. Sally Simpson is a cool groove. We're not Gonna Take It/See Me, Feel Me doesn't feel powerful enough musically to match the lyrical content cap of the album.

how to disguise halfassed songwriting by telling people it's on purpose pinball wizard is sick

An interesting attempt at a rock opera concept album, but I think it wears out its welcome and got very repetitive fast and could have been shortened to just one album. I look forward to hearing their later efforts which are much better eg Quadrophenia

weird

I don't like rock operas and this album didn't change that, but I didn't hate it as much as I thought I would. 2.5/5

I don't believe I'd ever listened to this whole album before. It does feel rather unfair to write a review after one listen of something that's, if memory serves, 487 songs long. But my gut instinct tells me I'll reach for Who's Next over this every single time. I do like all things pinball though, so...

Ambitious but overly long and overblown. Quite dark at times with songs like Cousin Kevin and Fiddle About is literally about Tommy getting molested by his uncle, wtf? Anyway, there are some good tunes on here, Pinball Wizard being the highlight but overall it does drag on a bit and I think would benefit from some visuals on stage or film.

I liked I’m Free

Quite good

I love a concept album. This is great in scope, I just need more listens to get the lyrics down. Likely to grow on me further

wasalt sa nofsu

Pinball Wizard is the best song and naturally the most well known. There are some weird songs on this album. I have seen bits and pieces of the motion picture before but I did not watch it for this listening. I am not sure I will watch it or listen to this album again.

Don’t listen to a ton of The Who but I thought this was good

A lot of short little tracks, I think I'd enjoy this more if I had watched the show beforehand or read up on the plot synopsis. As it is, it's an okay listen but I didn't connect very well to the music. Favourites: Pinball Wizard, Go to the Mirror

Quite strange and confusing, in almost an interesting way. Lots of potential here

Es como una ópera rock. Se me ha hecho bastante bola.

Not a huge fan of the softer, high pitched voices used in this album. For a hard rock album, it's decidedly soft. Rock Opera is a cool concept, but some real strange tracks exist to hold the confusing narrative together. Highlight Tracks: 4, 8, 13, 21

No songs I had heard before, and unfortunately none that stood out.

Si lo curtiese más seguro me gustaría más.

No me emocionó tanto como lo otro que ha salido acá de los The Who. 7/10

Ooof, this was a little darker than I was expecting. I guess you can’t drag out pinball wizardry for a full 75mins but that didn’t prepare me for the torture of for poor inert Tommy to be his uncle’s fuckmeat. Musically it’s not doing much for me, I thought The Who were supposed to Rock, this is all jangly folk acoustic guitars. A bit forced and lame. Fun fact: how does Tommy play such a mean pinball? Answer: he’s not blind at all, it’s psychosomatic so his eyes are perfectly fine.

Pinball wizard is good. The rest of it is kind of a slog.

Plenty of good musicians in the band. Why moot them? I didn’t mind it, and know it’s a concept album, but it’s probably more up Helen Keller’s alley.

Goes on a bit, some great tracks and a lot of filler IMO, doesnt change my mind on rock operas

Mostly good - better than I was expecting, but too many off tracks for me

A very cohesive rock opera record that at times can test your endurance with long instrumental parts, without much textual substance. It has a greatly unique quality however, and I admit it deserves its status as a classic. Just not in classic territory for me personally.

I'm conflicted about The 'Oo. Daltrey must be the worst singer ever to become a rock Gos after Dylan. Townsend lurches from writing absolute classics to ridiculous nonsense. Most of this album falls into the latter. Sometimes I love them, but other times (like this) I just wonder what they were thinking.. Rock opera? Well if you must, Pete, but I'd prefer Who's Next instead, please.

Liked though couldn't listened to the end.

I loved Tommy the first time I heard it. But then I heard Quadrophenia and realised everything the band did better. Tommy has aged much worse in my book, with a story which hangs together by a thread with an awkward mix of molestation and whimsy. The amount of short \"filler\" tracks wears thin, as does the long \"Underture\" jam to fill out time. I also much prefer the energy that \"Listening to You\" has in concert or in the 1975 film. At its best, Tommy showcases the Who as an ensemble of peerless musicians and must have been powerful live. Christmas, Pinball Wizard, Go to the Mirror... all classics. I have to appreciate the scope and ambition behind it as well, so this gets 3* from me.

словом, мы все больны пинболом... ну что сказать, 69 год. По прослушивании метался немного, делать ли скидку на время выхода, и по итогу решил немного сделать. С другой стороны этот альбом - буквально отец того ебучего рака, который уничтчожает нормальную музыку, и имя ему - КОНЦЕПТУАЛЬНОСТЬ. Да, это прородитель всех этих сюжетных альбомов и рок-опер, самого душного и графоманского говна. И это слышно, лол! По сути оценивать это как музыкальное произведение вообще смысла не имеет - музыки тут хуй да нихуя. Все инструменталы блеклые и одинаковые, хотя в начале вроде был задел на музло с какими-то дудочками, там, синтами. Но почему-то всё это очень быстро испарилось, и остался только унылый гитар плакинг (а здесь 24 песни, на секунду!) Но, конечно, не музыкой единой, у нас же тут ИСТОРИЯ, а значит надо слушать тексты, читать справочные материалы и смотреть (естественно!) фильм, снятый по альбому. Последнее, естественно, я делать не буду, а вот первыми пунктами озаботился. Про историю я уже упоминал как-то у себя на канале - она на самом деле довольно рофляная. Вкратце: пиздюк видит, как батя-мореход убивает любовника его матери и слепнет/глохнет от охуения. Потом его травят, ебут и всё такое, а потом он становится всемирно известным игроком в пинбол (лол), потом мессией и в конце его вроде как опять ебут прихожане (но это не точно). Ну типа история-то не самая унылая, это вам не горгород! Но всё-таки понять её можно исключительно из пересказа на википедии - собрать самому разрозненные тексты песен в цельную истори решительно невозможно. Даже учитывая, что там ОЧЕНЬ много тупо прямолинейного сторителлинга, типа "Я кузин Томми, я хулиган, сейчас я буду его пиздить и пытать, ахаха какой я злой!". Ну в итоге и получается, что единственный адекватный вариант получить от этого продукта удовольствие - это прочитать сначала сюжет, потом с гениусом сидеть читать тексты, ну и всё, собственно. А, фильм ещё, да! Надеюсь ни по одному альбому больше никогда не снимут фильм. В итоге что имеем? Ну, есть пара в целом слушабельных треков: The Acid Queen (наверное самый приятный), Eyesight to the Blind (это шестой трек, и только на нём начинается хоть какая-то музыка на альбоме), Christmas (самое близкое к песне, которую можно понять без контекста сюжета), Pinball Wizard (куплеты бодрые, припев хуйня какая-то), ну и мульяшная Tommy's Holiday Camp (напоминает музыку из губки боба или типа того). Вообще плюс-минус ровный пробег нормальных песен начинается только под конец - последние три трека немного напряжения дают. Но всё равно в целом это унылейший экспириенс, интересный лишь как историческая справка и какая-никакая веха в развитии музыки. Впрочем, в отличие от многих других альбомов, к которым у меня в этом списке претензия из разряда "как это вообще сюда попало", здесь могу сказать, что попало не зря. Ну важный альбом, в целом. Жалко, что не интересный. 6/10

Top album!

// Favs: – Score: Light 3

Opera rock

It's kind of a shame that this album developed a reputation as the great early rock opera, since The Pretty Things did it first (and better) with S.F. Sorrow. It's not great, not terrible - just like everything else The Who has ever done. Best track: Pinball Wizard

Gave it a listen, have always been aware of this but never listened to anything other than pinball wizard until now. Really cool concept and can see how it would have been awesome in it's time and context. Doesn't really do it for me listening to it today.

Better story than it is music. Famous concept album But for me not all the songs are that great. It’s definitely better as a whole but only a few songs are enjoyable as standalone pieces. 7.3/10

Slow, relaxing and airy rock. Lots of instrumentals so far. Album seems like it needs to be felt as an experience and in the right setting.

Some very good music here. Unfortunately, the concept it is so famous for brings some quite underwhelming filler tracks.

I find it an interesting overlap between stuff like the Beatles and darker/heavier/more psychedelic 70s rock. The vocals occasionally get awful. Especially on cousin kevin. Overall, I like their later albums better. But still enjoy Pinball Wizard

not as turd as i remember it being last time i listened to it. its a huge self indulgent ego stroking project from townsend but the less said about townsends stroking habits the better. speaking of nonces, not a big fan of listening to any song about noncing. only a nonce thinks a noncey uncle is an integral part to a rock opera. reading the synopsis on wiki did make listening to it more understandable, though it is a plotline that holds up about as well as something from Hollyoaks.

Not impressed, not quadrophenia. May work better as a live/stage preformance

It has some nice songs but it drags on too much. By the second hour it was really hard to find this enjoyable. By the end, I no longer cared about the overall story, so I guess rock operas are not my thing.

Liked this album

Good album although didn't finish it but would listen again.

That feels sacrilegious, tbh, but I’m writing this as a review hearing it now, not as a product of its times, primarily. It is of course a genre-busting revelation. But wow, the politics of this record do not hold up at all. Disability as metaphor is so tired, and the way sexual violence is portrayed is um, problematic, to say the least. That said, I enjoy the storytelling, and musicianship, and the vision of it all, and also too, I found a fair number of songs to just be boring? And, there are some great lines, harmonies, and sweet memories of singing along to it with my dad as a kid. (edited)

Boring/meh

Speciaal album. Sommige nummers zijn best oké, andere vind ik helemaal niets

Groundbreaking for its time with some fine tracks but overall an underwhelming experience

Some good musicianship. Hit and miss with the songs but some strong ones in there to make up for the weaker ones. Pinball Wizard is a worldie. Album makes more sense as a soundtrack.

Mmmm I was a massive Pearl Jam Fan in High School, so had an understanding that The Who was a good band, but just never really got into it. Never listened to this album, but know the story, which is super wierd and interesting. After the first listen...not for me. Sorry Eddie! 24 tracks! For such a long album, I don't think they needed to repeat the chorus so many times in so many songs... Really like the drama of Overture and Underture and Pinball Wizard is the standout track

Not bad for the first choice.

Álbum triple (en Spotify solo 2), con disco en estudio y otro en directo donde se puede apreciar el tipo de rock de principios de los 70. En ocasiones guitarrero, algún tema que ha llegado hasta hoy y buenas sensaciones, aunque no me ha llegado a llenar del todo

Remembered this from the musical. Still like it

A classic

Prior to this I’d only probably heard the singles/famous songs off this album, so it was cool to finally listen to the whole album. Overall, the album was good, but nothing really grabbed me (other than the songs I already knew). Also the story of this concept album is a bit odd at times and not super compelling. However, it’s iconic and I’m glad I listened to it.

Interesting narrative weaved throughout, recognized the pinball song but otherwise unfamiliar with The Who. Felt like relatively standard rock stuff, some cool sounds sprinkled throughout though.

Meh

You can definitely give props for the rock opera attempt... it is interesting, and something that i amazingly love when it comes to quadrophenia. this album doesn't have any great songs (i'm free and pinball wizard are probably my least "favorite" popular who tracks). still originality and style shine through.

Great

Interesting to know this is a concept album. Some good songs here and there, but I am having the same experience I have had previously with The Who, which is to say I just can't really get into them.

I used to love this when I was a nipper and I think it mostly held up til around the middle where it gets a bit boring. Also, why is there so much rape/molestation craic on this album? Like a concept album about a wee fella playing pinball doesn’t seem like the right venue?

got bored

This was a trip down to Wikipedia. I can admire the idea of the rock opera, but in some ways this one feels a bit self-indulgent. It feels somewhat exploitive of the idea of a "deaf, dumb, blind kid" as well as abusive situations of said character. I doubt that was their intention, but it's a peculiar choice. I suppose it's "edgy" of those times, now it just feels kind of try-hard. I can definitely respect The Who going for it though, and I think it has artistic significance. No tracks I really dislike, but nothing really speaks out either, which I suppose is potentially good as a cohesive album. There are other rock operas I would rather listen to, but I can respect it.

Pretty formative for me, this one. It was when I first realised that rock music can tell stories (and as a nerdy kid that loved books but wanted to be cool this was transformative). Yes it's pretentious and pompous at points, but so am I.

Need to listen again for the concept of it, nothing special from a surface listen

Points for being one of the first Rock Operas and reoccurring motifs and cool songs like "Pinball Wizard" and "I'm Free".

idk man, not that entertaining. Just....bland

I appreciate that this album has an actual narrative compared to other concept albums of the time that were more about themes. The probably with this album is that it is boring and not good. It’s influence and benefit to the concept album is important but there is no diversity and no pieces to hold on too.

Not sure what to think about it. Not really my style

Decided to look up the story this time and cool no one knows what the hell its about either. The music and ideas are still fun tho

Never been big on the Who, but I did enjoy this one. More of a 3.5ish. Love the idea of a rock opera, it just stretches a bit long. Keith Moon and John Entwistle steal the show on quite a few tracks, but then again, they always did. Favorite tracks: "Eyesight to the Blind", "Go to the Mirror!"

More rock operas and especially prog projects need to take cues from this album. The story is small scale, and the 75 minutes drags less than many ambitious 60-minute projects. Fine pop writing, but ultimately the instrumentation doesn't hold up the structure of the thing. A very enjoyable 3.5, but the critical acclaim baffles.

Made it halfway. Really not of interest to me. As an actual stage performance, sure, but as a headphones listening experience, nah.

So I get that this is supposed to be a concept album and tried to keep that in mind, but sadly it just didn't interest me much musically.

Tommy has just never grabbed me. I like the Who, just not so much Tommy.

Enjoyment: 5 Replayability: 4 Cohesion: 5 Flow/Pacing: 3 Artistic Merit: 4 Weighted Average: 4.4 Review: After listening twice through, this album left me wanting. It has the makeup of an album that I should completely enjoy: a concept with an interesting subject matter, progressive rock operatics, a HOF band... but it just... didn't click for me. The Overture sets up the album very nicely, but it slowly devolved with each new track and the out-of-place interludes. Maybe I'm just having a bad morning and I couldn't wrap my head around this one as much as I wanted to. There's a chance I'll re-review this in the future. But for now, I'll sit in disappointment. Liked Song(s): Overture, 1921, Pinball Wizard, Go To The Mirror!, Tommy's Holiday Camp Disliked Song(s): Fiddle About Recommend? Maybe

My least favorite The Who album, but it might be because I've heard it way too often

Disappointingly unfun to listen to. But I guess it laid the groundwork for albums like Pink Floyd's The Wall, so at least it has this going for itself.

"Townshend came up with the concept of Tommy after being introduced to the work of Meher Baba, and attempted to translate Baba's teachings into music." Damn, we are already off to a bad start. The best rock and roll is a vehicle for simple and relateable human emotions expressed as directly as possibly (ideally under 3 minutes), but when it's used to drag out a paper-thin (and frankly pointless) story to double LP length, then it's completely lost the thread. There's a couple of decent musical bits here like "Pinball Wizard" and the final half of "We're Not Going To Take It", but trying to make it through this entire album is molasses-slow slog through a bunch of non-songs that don't up to anything in the whole.

again.. very long one…. didn’t love much of this honestly. i had higher hopes but i already don’t remember any of it

Didn’t like it. None of the songs resonated with me

ik ben geen fan van opera rock

3/10 What is the point of a double album if in my opinion you only have 1 really good song (pinball wizard) and maybe 2-3 other decent songs, I didn’t mind there’s a doctor. The who are starting to feel overrated

Thought I would really enjoy this, but it just dragged on. I wanted to like it but very few songs spoke to me like I thought they would.One thing that has always stuck through me was my uncle calling the who the greatest band of all time, better than the beatles specifically, and everyone else. I respect the who, but they're just not for me.

Proto-eksempel på verdensfjerne rockemusikere som går helt vill i egen rockearkitektur. De verste eksessene fra det påfølgende tiårets progressive labyrintmusikk får her i all hovedsak sin fødsel. Babyen er slimete, blodig og skriker etter oppmerksomhet. Akker meg her når jeg forestiller meg hvor geniale musikerne selv trodde dette var.

Kva var dette for idé? Om

I am actually a fan of The Who and I think they have some really good stuff but this album just did not work for me. I don’t think is showcased The Who very well.

You’ve got to admire the ambition but as per most concept albums the music gets lost in the wider purpose of the story. Very underwhelmed.

Похоже на рок, но очень сильно странное, напоминает какой-то мюзикл.

It's okay - not something I'd relisten to but the rock opera concept is interesting.

1. 3.5 2. 3 3. 3.5 4. 4 5. 3 6. 3.5 1. 2 2. 2.5 3. 3 4. 2.5 1. 2 2. 2 3. 4.5 4. 2.5 5. 3.5 6. 3 7. 2.5 8. 3 1. 2.5 2. 3 3. 3.5 4. 3.5 5. 3 6. 3

Groundbreaking, but didn't do much for me and felt like a drag. I just don't think The Who are for me since this and Who's Next were essentially snoozefests.

What really surprised me about this critically acclaimed rock opera was how mediocre it actually is 4 / 10

I know that this isn't really a true album but a soundtrack for the film, but I don't know that it stands on its own particularly well. Mostly because it's too long. And I'm trying to listen while working and it's not a music style that lends itself to that very well. So I gave up, because it's way too long to keep listening to something distracting me from getting shit done.

eh

It was very theatrical, couple of good songs. Overall wouldn't put it on again.

Meh

not as bad as “The Who Sell Out” but damn it’s close

Got bored of this

Wow, insane vocals. I can see how they influenced many acts that followed in their rock opera steps. That being said, the album is way too long to hold my interest. Everything started to sound the same towards the end of Disc 1.

A weaker The Who album, imo. Mostly a bunch of musically faffing about. Movie was better, but even then it didn't blow me away. Tina Turner was fun in it. Couple decent tracks, like "Pinball Wizard", but mostly forgettable.

I really want to like this album more then I do.

I just don’t like the who. This is like the Wall but shit. A couple of good songs wrapped in massive self-indulgence with a sinister dollop of paedophilia on top.

So I have pretty mixed opinions about this album. For instance, I was ready to drag this album through the mud because I’m already getting sick of The Who and how much they come up on the list when I honestly think they are not great at creating albums where I care about the whole “picture”. My take away is always that they write a handful of great all time rock songs but them bury them under other filler tracks creating underwhelming after underwhelming album. And don’t get me wrong I can understand and appreciate a concept album and the attempt that was made but so much of this album really is just stuff you have to get through to get to the great stuff. I found the vast majority of this album to be mediocre rock. OK before I get carried away with my criticism, I really have to say I like their compositions. The first time I was ever curious and interested with the who was when one of my favorite musical artists played a medley of their songs live. It really won me over and it really made me interested in their music and career but every time I’ve ever spent with their actual material I’m always so underwhelmed with the delivery so to speak. I don’t think it’s very good when other artists playing your music make your music sound better. I will say it does make me appreciate the music itself more. Like if you were describing this album as a house you’d say “it has good bones but it needs some work”. All that being said the 3 song section of the album that goes from “pinball wizard”, “there’s a doctor”, to “go to the mirror” is the greatest thing they have ever written. Honestly they could’ve combined them into one long song but then there would only be one song on the album that I saved…

Y'a des petits bouttes pas pire et des longs bouttes plates. Gros effort pour rien de vraiment spécial. Écoute pénible. 2.49 étoiles

Has some good instrumentals but other than that Nothing special about this album 3/10

It’s not my bag. Gave it an honest try.

This process has really cemented my dislike of concept albums. And i've had a number if who albums and been disappointed by them all. it is saved from one star by the obvious talent in their musicianship and their ambition.

This was really underwhelming

overrated. 2.21

When I think about it as broadening my knowledge of an extremely influential British band, I kind of enjoy it. When I think about it as a collection of songs about weird guys, I don't feel the same.

I cant stand up their own arse who. I like their early 60s stuff ( A quick one is miles better concept album type who) but as soon as he started swinging his microphone around giving it the rock star big ones i lose interest

Shit

i just dont really like the who

I like it, but its not exactly for me

Nope. Not my thing. I like The Who, but this is not my cup of tea.

A rock opera original but never really warmed to it (I think it’s the recitatives) preferring the who classics unfortunately - won’t get fooled again, baba, who are you….

I love musicals. I love big, operatic, over the top pop and rock songs. I do not like this album.

Too long

Pretentious

I genuinely thought I'd like this album more than I did. I've always loved Pinball Wizard as a standalone track, but unfortunately the rest of the album fell flat for me. Whilst there's some decent tunes littered across the record, the majority of the songs feel quite samey and bland, and the ‘storyline’ throughout got slightly confusing.

I feel the urge to dump on this album, and it's definitely not for me. It's like a childhood trauma songs from "Always Sunny". I think it falls flat in effectively every way, but I can't deny that it's influential and an honest attempt at doing something. I can't bring myself to rate it a three, but I recognize that I may be being mean here.

Un album qui donne envie d'élever des boeufs au Texas, cigare en bouche et chapeau de cowboy sur le crâne. Malheureusement les paralysies du sommeil provoquées par quelques sons font baisser drastiquement la note global du projet. Dommage ...

så tråkigt!!!!!!!

I like the toms on “eyesight to the blind”. Damn, some of these songs are so dark. I’ve heard of Tommy for years but never listened. Whoa, the AI commentary on “Tommy’s holiday camp” is interesting. Prob won’t listen to this album again. I recognize it’s genius but it’s not for me.

My first The Who album on the list and the first I've listened to in my life. It's basically just chords and drum fills?

Bummer. This one has not aged particularly well.

Rock opera, FFS. This was a struggle to get through. Pinball wizard and the last track served it from a one star review.

The rock operas I've heard have never done too much for me, and this one is (kind of) included in that. I definitely liked many songs from this, but it felt almost cumbersome to listen to all at once. I felt like there was some filler in here that made this pretty inconsistent track to track. But the great songs are still in there, and I see why this has influenced many other bands. Favorites: Amazing Journey, Cousin Kevin, Pinball Wizard, We're Not Gonna Take It

i expected more from this having liked the who in the past but this album is so boring the concept is interesting but it doesnt keep me interested 4/10 Favourite: 1921 Least Favourite: Fiddle About

Not a fan

yeah, rock opera ain't it, man

Que cosa más larga

Sooo long, the few high points don’t justify it.

The thing with concept albums is you need to buy into the concept. For me; this story is fucking stupid and dragging it out to a double LP just sort of angered me.

As someone who was never a big Who fan and only really liked the greatest hits, I had never listened to this album start-to-finish. Let's see how it goes... The plot is weird and creepy, just like Pete Townshend. The music is OK. I get that this was "ambitious," but it just seems ridiculous to me. I am sure I would love it if I were a Who fan. I never knew the title of that song was "Go to the Mirror!" I would have guessed it was "See Me, Feel Me, Touch Me." (Edit: Oh, the song I was thinking of is actually the end of "We're Not Gonna Take It." Which I also didn't know.) Some good songs here, but also a whole lot of filler. For reference on my Who opinions, here's relevant excerpts of my review of My Generation: "My previous review of Who's Next holds true for this album as well: 'Obviously a classic, but I was never able to get into The Who like other people. I had the greatest hits and that was more than enough for me. This album was well-represented on there. The hits on this album are of course great, but the rest does nothing for me. I wouldn't use ANY of them for CSI theme songs.' ... This is fine. I don't dislike The Who. I just don't see what the big deal about them is. And Townshend is a weirdo."

Whilst this was a super important album and hugely influential, most of the songs are shite.

Bloated, egotistical and pretentious

Favorite songs: Overture, Amazing Journey, Underture, Pinball Wizard, Go to the Mirror!, Tommy, Can You Hear Me?, I’m Free Some creepy, weird shit with Uncle Ernie

I appreciated the sillyness and fun spirit throughout the album. Personally, storytelling albums like this are difficult for me to get behind since I tend to not listen closely to the lyrics in general. While this album was entertaining, it never really sparked an interest for me. Nothing stood out. Maybe this was because of it's length or the fact that I was multi-tasking while listening. I don't think I would return to listening to this again.

feels very brit rock? pretty strange though so far

Man, this album is long. And I don't think I love it. But it's fine. I can see why people like it; I do actually enjoy the piano and other instrumentals. But nothing about it stands out or gets me excited.

The Two

It just kept going. And going. And going. I think there is an alright album in there is you strip out about 30 minutes. I actually like "Pinball Wizard" less after having listened to the whole album.

Could do without most of this album tbh. A rock opera? Ok then. At least make it a bit more exciting. Highlights were Pinball Wizard and 1921. The rest felt tired, over repetitive motifs. Underture can fuck off n all. 2.0/5.0 Best Song: Pinball Wizard

Ain't so bad, there is something to it, but still lacks.

Was alright but it’s too long so I only listened to the first 10 songs

It's been a long time since I've listened to this album start-to-finish. I used to like it quite a lot, but I think I just got tired of it eventually. We'll see what happens to my opinion of it after such a long break. Unfortunately, I'd forgotten how many of the songs on this album just aren't that good. I understand why I got tired of it. It's a long album, and just not really worth it.

Almost a 3 but too long and boring

Was interested in this, kinda looking forward to it to. Not the biggest The Who fan, but like some of their stuff, and never listened to an album in its entirety. I appreciate this is a 'rock opera' of sorts, but genuinely, this was the most boring album I've heard in a while. Every song seemed to just be setting up for Pinball Wizard, then coming down from that song. There was nothing else on this album. Just listen to that song alone and you've had a better listening experience. Not really a must listen to in my opinion, but I can get why others feel it is.

Super rough vocals. "Christmas" was especially rough in places.

Truthfully only songs I really like on here are the instrumental ones. I get that this gets props for being her first rock opera but the story and most of lyrics are terrible. It’s musically solid but kind of insufferable to sit through the entirety of this plot.

I'm starting to question this list. Pinball wizard alone doesn't qualify this album as one of the greats.

Boo boo

Nah. And that fiddle around song makes me uncomfortable.

I was so prepared to give this a 1. This is already in a genre I historically dislike, and I figured I could up sum up the album by saying "There are two different songs on Tommy where the titular character gets molested by a family member. No thank you." But here's the thing. I listened to the first half while driving to go on a first date. And it went really well. (Future Rylee, what is it with you and girls named Lily?) On the drive back, I found myself enjoying Tommy significantly more. It's not just the fact that the second half contains Pinball Wizard, the only truly fantastic song on the album. But it's a little louder, a little more rockin'. A little happier. Or maybe that was just the butterflies in my stomach talking. While I'm still not a big fan of this genre of prog rock, and I do not like the innate exaggerated performances that come with it, I have at least a tiny bit of affection for Tommy. Maybe if it was shorter, and had one less song about molestation, or more songs like Pinball Wizard or Go to the Mirror, or if I liked Billy Joel more, who obviously took a lot of inspiration from the song Sally Simpson. Tommy could've been a lot of things for me. I don't think it ever could have been a fantastic listen, but it could've been a lot worse if that date didn't go well.

while i can recognize and appreciate the who as important figures in rock music history, i'm coming to terms with the fact that 60s rock is not my personal favorite. i feel like i can only take it in doses and i'm okay with that for now lol. giving this a 2 cause i was kinda bored, no shade--i think i'd need visuals to appreciate it. i also didn't finish it

There is a lot of mediocre songs with Pinball Wizard shining in between.

i like the who, but i cant stand these rock operas.

I don’t get it.

Variety: 2 Adequacy: 2 Listenability: 2 Uniqueness: 4 Emotionality: 2 = 2.4 rounded down to 2 "Nothing to say, and nothing to hear and nothing to see" I like The Who. Quite a bit in fact. I have always bounced hard off of this album though. And I've tried more than a few times. There are things to admire for sure - several songs are good to great, the concept and ambition are highly influential... It mainly just bores me as I don't find the story all that interesting, nor do I find the characters to be more than hollow ciphers that are hard to care about. I find the movie to be even more of a chore. I have probably not given this a try in about 20 years or more, so maybe my stance on Tommy has softened. This also has a very weirdly stuffy sounding production that males the whole thing feel claustrophobic and small, when it should be big. Maybe I just found a poor copy, but this gels with my memory of past listens as well. THE TRACKS "Overture" - The farty trumpet on this is just as grating as it's always been, and the slightly catchy motifs we get a preview of are not enough to overcome the disappointing salad-like nature of this thing. \ "It's a Boy" - Thank goodness some of these are so brief. This barely holds together as even an interlude. "1921" - Well, we're not off to a great start having already scraped the bottom of the barrel. Full schmaltz Who are the worst Who usually. There's none of the power or dynamism on display here, and I get that we've got a LOT to get through, so why not have variety? Right? Generally Townshend gets called in to do stuff like this and it's for the better as he can actually pull off vulnerability that Daltrey just is not capable of. I just don't care for it here. "Amazing Journey" - I was starting to feel repetitive but we're finally to something interesting. This one actually feels like a real song. We get some actual rock instrumentation with a showy bit of drumming from Mr. Moon, and some nice self-harmonizing from Daltrey. The song goes through a few big changes along the way and yet it pulls off the trick of not feeling like a cobbled together medley. Decent stuff (If you want to see this trick pulled off a hell of a lot better check out "A Quick One, While He's Away" from The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus film). "Sparks" - This one did feel like an interlude. A long but somewhat interesting interlude. "Eyesight to the Blind (The Hawker)" - The closer to side one rightfully feels the most developed of any of the tracks on this side, but it just ends up feeling sort of mundane and rambling. Side two "Christmas" - The first thing on this album that I was half-tempted to tap my toe to. Then the "Tommy can you hear me!" refrain came in and took a big ole shit in the punch bowl. Yeah, I know I better strap in, cause there's a lot more of that. "Cousin Kevin" - I recall this being a pretty disturbing part of the movie, and the song by itself is just as dark. It's also the catchiest thing yet, and heads above anything we've heard yet. Quality. "The Acid Queen" - Another middling number that never seems to be able to climb out of the quagmire of what's come before. Even the build near the end seems to want to rise but in fact never gets loud or bombastic enough and the song ends in a wet fart ( that's two flatulence references for anyone counting - not a good sign). "Underture" - It's far more interesting than "Overture" is the best I can say about this? It does build towards something, but is about 8 minutes too long. This should have been titled "Intermission". Side three "Do You Think It's Alright?"/ "Fiddle About" - Another deeply disturbing one. This one doesn't have the musical lightness to contrast with the content that "Cousin Kevin" did. Just work to get through this. "Pinball Wizard" - Took us long enough but we finally come to the album's centerpiece, and I think the only great song on here. Very dumb lyrics aside, this one feels like classic Who to me and while not their most epic, it certainly rocks out in parts. Hooks aplenty, and easily hummable. Danged good, if still in the bottom third of their best material. "Go to the Mirror!" - Half of this is quite the catchy number, and the other half of "Touch me...." is like a hair floating in the delicious soup that just arrived. Could you eat around it? Should you? I think I will scoop it up and just hide it in a napkin. Out of sight out of mind. The rest of this is just too good. "Tommy Can You Hear Me?" - The worst acoustic campfire singalong drags us towards the end of side three. I can't wait to make it to that last disc. "Smash the Mirror" - The most soulful track on the album so far. Daltrey puts some stank on it here, and it largely works just due to him. The gimmicky "Rise,, rise, rise..." and the sound effects kills it stone dead though. "Sensation" - This was pretty decent, unoffensive stuff. Nothing too memorable, but no shitting the bed. Side four "Sally Simpson" - The piano adds a welcome bit of variety here. Another fine, but not especially great track. "I'm Free" - This was only 2:41 long if you can believe it. Felt like a loooooong 6:00. "Welcome" - Great melody and I dig the harpsichord and harmonized background vocals. Things get wild a third of the way in. Man, I wish there had been more of this throughout. "Tommy's Holiday Camp" - As short and purposefully annoying as it was, I actually dug the evil carnival vibes. Not really much of a song, but this albums needs all the highlights it cobble together. "We're Not Gonna Take It" - What a dud. "See Me, Feel Me" - Separating this out into its own track as it's the one time on the album where a build happens and feels like it reaches the peak it aims for ( also I think some editions do this already anyway). Despite the fade out, it still feels pretty epic. HIGHLIGHTS - "Cousin Kevin" - "Pinball Wizard" - "Go to the Mirror!" - "Welcome" - "Tommy's Holiday Camp" - "See Me, Feel Me" MIDLIGHTS - "Amazing Journey" - "Sparks" - "Eyesight to the Blind (The Hawker)" - "The Acid Queen" - "Underture" - "Sensation" - "Sally Simpson" LOWLIGHTS - "Overture" - "It's a Boy" - "1921" - "Christmas" - "Do You Think It's Alright?"/ "Fiddle About" - "Tommy Can You Hear Me?" - "Smash the Mirror" - "I'm Free" FINAL THOUGHTS I'm definitely not opposed to the idea of a "Rock Opera" in theory or in practice. I would lump this in with any number of entries that followed in its wake, along with some stuff that is probably more properly well into straight musical territory. But almost all those other ones I find I enjoy more than this. I think what it mainly comes down to is the band just reached too high, far beyond their capability. They just were not built for this in my opinion. Quadrophenia at least, while just as thin on narrative, is light years more advanced musically, and would be a much better choice in this slot. I'm sure it's probably on here as well, but I think it trumps Tommy in that regard, even though I guess Tommy was the codifier of the idea ( if not the first to do it). I have to note here that my favorite version of this is a full on full rock cover version by The Smithereens where they distilled what works best about the material, removing a lot of the schmaltzier stuff, and even putting life and energy into tracks that I just don't like the original version of. Check it out if the original disappointed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IETIbUiK8mY&list=OLAK5uy_l_dF6TKOnEsoGt9_fYRePl11Q5Xos6ToM PLAYLIST ALTERATIONS - I think this can be nicely boiled down to those highlights. FURTHER LISTENING - The Rocky Horror Picture Show - Original soundtrack written by Richard O'Brien and performed by various - Jesus Christ Superstar written by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber - "A Quick One, While He's Away" by The Who ( serves as a MUCH shorter, and better realized version of what they were trying to accomplish here) - Schoolboys in Disgrace by The Kinks - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust.. by David Bowie - Quadrophenia by The Who - The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway by Genesis

At least some of the songs were short.

Wow I hated this so much. The vocals are droning, the music is just not my jam and what’s the deal with this going on and on and on. I could barely stomach listening to more than a few seconds of each track. I’m only giving it a (2) for the concept (even though I generally dislike musicals, it’s something different to have an album tell a story) and Pinball Wizard is alright.

the who is mid! brit pop rock sucks. please, i've had enough Would I listen again? Nope Deserves to be on this list: Nope 2.1

Logre limpiar todo mi cuarto con la instrumental de fondo

Een dubbelalbum, neeeeeeee... Nou moet ik wel toegeven dat ik The Who meestal best ok trek, behalve dan hun Sell-out album, maar ik word meestal niet enthousiast van een dubbelalbum. Tenzij je Stevie Wonder heet, maar zelfs toen was ik er ook wel klaar mee na bijna 2 uur. Maar goed; the Who heeft me al 2 keer verrast, 1 keer positief en 1 keer negatief. Gaan ze de streak volmaken? Uh ja nou ja. Overture en, vooral, Underture zijn hele vette nummers, maar ik kijk ook naar de queue en denk wel jezus tering. We zijn nog niet eens op de helft van het album... Gelukkig vind ik de zanger van The Who niet vervelend, duren sommige nummers nog geen minuut en klinkt het instrumentaal vaak gewoon echt prima. Ik krijg een beetje rockopera vibes van dit album. Eerlijk? Ik ben geen fan van rockopera. En dus ook niet van dit album. Rockopera kan nog een beetje fun zijn als je volledig de foute kant op gaat. Maar nu klinkt het grotendeels als een soort matige musical. EN als je mijn liefde voor musical een beetje kent, dan weet je dat dat erg slecht nieuws is. Dit was een ontzettend ambitieus project, en ik geloof meteen dat dit van ongelooflijk veel invloed/waarde is geweest voor de rock muziek. De ambitie spat er zeg maar vanaf. Maar het is niet een album wat ik ooit nog een keer wilt luisteren. 1 keer was genoeg, en dat er dan ook een superdeluxe versie van is die ruim 3 uur duurt? Ik snap dat niet zo goed, maar he, more power to you he. Ik doe liever 3 uur lang iets anders. FAVO: Underture,

Pinball Wizard is cool but otherwise this was uneventful and plagued with ditties. As someone that considers themselves a bit of a mod, it hurts me to say that I don’t think The Who have aged all that well. I’m willing to give them another chance if another album of theirs comes up, but this one wasn’t for me.

mas largo que el padrino no me jodas version super deluxe: ni idea version normal: yea

njaee, det här hade för mig inget super mycket som stack ut. hade säkert hittat något jag uppskattade vid flertalet lyssningar :p

Too long and overwrought and not that interesting. As usual with the who the arrangements are head turning but the vocals and some of the lyrics are head shaking.

não tenho tempo e nem disposição pra ouvir 24 músicas, vai ser muito enjoativo principalmente pq o rock do the who n me desce, é mto estadunidense sla, tipo u2 2/5 / 4/10 por esse motivo

Pretty weird and way too long. Not a fan of the rock opera style tbh

Pinball Wizard carries the entire operation on its back, not for me

Hmmm

what the actual fuck were some of those lyrics? Fiddle About felt like I was reading Pete Townshend's personal diary. rotten. 1 star for the drumming and an extra for pinball wizard

lame

Yeah idk I guess it was alright. Whatever. I found out that I owe the IRS 9k in taxes so really the last thing I wanted to hear along with that is a The Who album.

I listened to the whole first discus I'd feel bad quitting on an album again, but this was so unenjoyable for me. Not a fan really at all.

fav songs: smash the mirror theatrical, repetitive, detached 30/100

Alright, very proggy and probably just not quite to my tastes. Appreciate what it did in terms of being a rock opera

idk

i’m sure this is someone’s favorite album of all time but it is not mine

# Album Name: Tommy # Artist: The Who # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: A grand opening. The first 12 tracks is an absolute grind. Honestly, i wanted to pull my eyes out. God this is such shite. Shame. Expected big things outta this lot. Theres only one good song on this record and its a banger, but its still couldnt save this steaming turd. # Top Tunes: Pinball wizard # Would I listen to it again? No

Did not enjoy it much, but nice to hear what The Who sound like.

Tommy's Holiday Camp actually hurt my ears pretty mid but not the vibe Freakin Tommy, man.

Så filmen med HP da jeg var yngre. 4/10

Uhhh not my favourite

2.5/5