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Twenty-some odd years ago I made the statement to a few musical friends that I felt The Who’s Quadrophenia would stand the test of time better than Who’s Next. No one agreed with me. Considering that four decades have passed since these gems were originally released, let’s return to the discussion and see what form of patina each album now carries.

Let me make clear that Who’s Next is a fantastic work that belongs on any reasonable list of the best 100 rock albums of all time. And let’s face it, nothing from Quadrophenia ever opened an episode of “CSI Miami.” In addition, the seminal synthesizer work on “Baba O’Riley” was a tour de force, and the anthemic “Won’t Get Fooled Again” still raises adrenaline levels when it culminates in Roger Daltrey’s supersonic scream. “Behind Blue Eyes” is as beautiful as anything Pete Townsend ever wrote. Most especially, it could be argued that Who’s Next is every bit the concept album that Quadrophenia is.

It’s this last point where I will make my argument. The overriding theme of Who’s Next encapsulates the norms of the counter-culture of the late 1960’s/early 1970’s. What were those norms? The questioning of authority (“Won’t Get Fooled Again”), free love (“Love Ain’t For Keeping”), drug use (“Baba O’Riley”), and general hippiedom (“Going Mobile”). Conversely, the primary themes shown through the protagonist in the concept album Quadrophenia are the more universal challenges of the human condition. What themes? Alienation (“The Real Me”), unrequited love (“Sea And Sand”), self-worth (“Bell Boy”), depression (“I’ve Had Enough”), and redemption (“Love, Reign O’er Me).

Simply put, the songs on Who’s Next appeal to standards and moods now quite dated, if not disproven. However, the themes of Quadrophenia are timeless, and those experienced at one time or another by every person from the beginning of time to as long as humans inhabit the globe. They are themes that are unequivocally Shakespearean. They are themes that pull at the heartstrings of any listener, even today.

Let me throw a little more gasoline on this fire. I would make the same argument between Led Zeppelin’s IV (ZOSO) album and Physical Graffiti. IV‘s “Black Dog, “Rock & Roll,” and “Stairway To Heaven” are classics in the rock genre, but for me Physical Graffiti, even with a lack of a mega-hit, is the most creative, musical, and inspired album in Zeppelin’s stellar catalog. I daresay Robert Plant would agree with me (though I admit Jimmy Page may not).

All in all, whether you agree with my assessments or not, I hope I’ve provided the catalyst to pull out those classics and give them a fresh listen. They all deserve it.

This entry was posted on June 28, 2012 at 4:29 pm and is filed under Music with tags led zeppelin, physical graffiti, quadrophenia, the who, who's next, zoso. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.