The Who

More on the Who, and a little on St. Patrick’s Day

General Geekiness

The Who go Irish?

Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle team up with the Chieftains and play an Irishy acoustic version of “Behind Blue Eyes.”

There’s something refreshing and different about the song. Just makes me sigh and smile. Of course, the original version is still one of my all-time favorites, but this one is very pretty. Could be all of the Irish music I listened to during my brief stint as a step dancer.

I’d never heard that version of the song before and thought it was lovely, so, I had to share. Thoughts?

On the Who

General Geekiness

My love for The Who began in my senior year of high school. It was a long, slow process, this becoming attuned to a “new” band, but it seemed like the world was kicking me in the seat of my pants to listen to them.

My first encounter was the summer before senior year. I was at a Shakespearean acting camp, and as luck would have it, I wore my Beatles shirt the same day as my friend Nick wore his Who shirt. “Who are they?” I asked. Nick listed their most famous songs–“Baba O’Riley,” “Pinball Wizard,” etc–and I stared at him like an idiot.

Flash forward three months. I sat in art class, and my teacher played The Who to get himself psyched for their concert. I liked it enough, but didn’t think anything of it.

A couple months later I was looking online at Beatles and Queen fan art, when I noticed a few of the artists also drew The Who. Intrigued, I went to the library and listened to a few Who albums–Greatest Hits, Tommy and Quadrophenia. With the opening notes of Tommy‘s “Overture” I was hooked.

On visiting places in movies

General Geekiness

There are fewer things in life that make me smile more than knowing that I’ve been somewhere that a movie’s been filmed. It’s a simple pleasure, but one that I particularly like (especially when watching a movie and recognizing a place).

When I was younger, my family went on a trip to the UK. One of our stops was Oxford, where we visited Christ Church College. Otherwise known as the place where the staircase from Harry Potter is. Also, part of The History Boys was filmed there. I had to smile.

A big surprise came when I was watching Quadrophenia last summer. The whole mods and rockers thing intrigues me, but enough on that. I knew that the movie partially took place in Brighton (where I visited in high school), but I didn’t realize that the big fight took place outside a restaurant I ate at (or just paid a visit to the loo…I can’t remember). Either way, I walked down quite a few of the streets (and of course, the beach) used in that cult film.

What’s On the Turntable? Vol. I

What's On the Turntable?

So, what have I been listening to as of late?

This time, it’s Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire) by The Kinks. It’s a concept album, following up their brilliant The Kinks are the Village Green Preservation Society.

This album is one that evokes an emotional response from me. The first time I heard it, I felt really angry and uncomfortable. I don’t know why. For a few months, I only listened to it that one time. Now I’ve given it a second listen, and can say that I really enjoy it. It takes a powerful piece of work to inspire emotion from me. This being ticked off is of a different sort than say, being force fed tripe Top 40 (I’m looking at you, Taylor Swift).

“Some Mother’s Son” may be my favorite track on the album. There’s something quite mournful about it, given the topic of soldiers dying to protect their homeland. The juxtaposition of soldiers fighting and children at play is a powerful, haunting one. It really makes you think.

Ray Davies’ writing is something special. While other rock bands of the era were focusing on strange moves from rock (“Revolution 9” by The Beatles), or elevating rock to a more artistic level (Tommy by The Who), Davies stays focused on what he knows: life in England. Though not joyfully nostalgic like Village Green Preservation Society, Arthur takes a good look on opportunity poor English life post-World War II.

First time Kinks concept album listeners should start with Village Green Preservation Society. It’s easier to get into.