The Who Album: “BBC Sessions [Bonus Track]”

Previous reviewers have aired some legitimate concerns. Being live (albeit on radio) performances are not always going to be perfect. Also live on radio doesn't provide the band with the instant feedback and adrenalin rush of a live concert audience. Yes, this album is available with an 8-song bonus disc (I got mine at a store that rhymes with "Test Guy"). Yes the announcer's occasional interruptions serve only to remind us that these recordings are from a radio show.

With that said, get over it. There is plenty here for Who fans to be excited about. No, it is not as revelatory as the Beatles' Live at the BBC. But the Beatles appeared on the BBC more than 50 times over three years, compared to the Who's mere ten times over five years. The Beatles' set included 29 songs that never appeared on previous official releases. The Who's set offers up a mere three rarely heard songs from their early repertoire.

Beyond those comparisons these performances provide a snapshot look at the growth of one of the world's greatest rock 'n' roll bands. Much of the 1965-66 material shows Townshend developing as a songwriter from the rather anemic "The Good's Gone" and "La La La Lies" to the anthemic "My Generation" and Who classics like "Substitute" and "I'm a Boy." There are also several R&B covers, like the Olympics' "Good Lovin'" (a year before the Young Rascals made it a hit), James Brown's "Just You and Me, Darling" and the Holland-Dozier-Holland "Leaving Here."

Beginning with 1967, the more familiar Who-sound has been fully developed with tracks like "Happy Jack" and "Pictures of Lily." ("I Can See for Miles" would have fit nicely here--and it IS one of the tracks on the bonus disc.) Unfortunately, the seven-minute "A Quick One" is a rather perfunctory performance and pales in comparison to the version on Thirty Years of Maximum R&B.

The Seventies' performances are more inspired, including "Shakin' All Over," "Relay" and "Long Live Rock" (and, yeah, Townshend does botch the lyrics on a verse).

[Quick reference to the bonus disc on some editions: Terrific versions of Tommy's "Pinball Wizard" and "See Me, Feel Me." A killer version of "I Can See for Miles" with Entwistle's thundering bass brought gloriously to the forefront. Entwistle also shines on the concert favorite "Heaven and Hell." It closes with a chilling 1967 version of "Summertime Blues." My only complaint: Why isn't this disc included with ALL copies? I get really angry when record companies cut deals with individual record retailers!]

If, like me, you're a longtime fan of the Who, you'll want to add this to your collection. Casual fans would be better served by one of the band's numerous compilations like My Generation: The Very Best of the Who. RECOMMENDED

Overall, the quality of this disc is excellent, and the only performances that let the standard slip slightly are Relay' and Long Live Rock' from a Whistle Test performance in 1973 (live vocals to a pre-recorded backing track). The main complaint though are the omissions. Over the years there have been several bootlegs of these sessions, plus they were rebroadcast in two parts on Radio 1 back in 1989, all of which have featured tracks not included on this set. So Sad About Us is missing from the September 1966 session ("excluded on aesthetic grounds" to quote the booklet), the reason being the rather out of tune backing vocals towards the end of the song. Pinball Wizard is absent from the excellent April 1970 session, and another blunder is the version of Shakin All Over that has been used. Although the same version it has the presenter speaking over the intro, and the opening guitar riff has been clipped by a few notes at the start. Heaven And Hell was also included as part of this session, but that version was used for the b-side of Summertime Blues. The main casualty is the October 1967 session that The Who recorded at De Lane Lea Studio, the first BBC session to not be recorded at a BBC location. Missing from this session are versions of I Can't Reach You, Our Love Was and I Can See for Miles (which was the mono single version anyway). Previously released but not included on this collection are Summertime Blues and My Way (both appeared on the revamped Odds And Sods, but don't credit this BBC session as their origin), plus the Happy Jack and Top Gear Radio 1 jingles (the box set and Sell Out respectively). As widely reported, this was to have been a 2 disc set, and the above omissions have probably been made to bring the time down to fit on to one disc, which is a shame if that is the case, otherwise it would have been up there with the Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin and The Beatles BBC sets (all mentioned in the liner notes) that have been released over the last 10 years. As it is, it comes close, but nonetheless, it's good to have these historic recordings in official form finally.

I don't know why but it seems as if MCA and the BBC have something against The Who. I mean just look at Jimi Hendrix: BBC Sessions and compare even the packaging to The Who: BBC Sessions. Compared to Jimi Hendrix: BBC Sessions, The Who: BBC Sessions is very cheap looking. That's not the real bad part of the cd though. The sound quality is only ok and in some parts the sound is terrible. Also, many songs should have been added to this collection as it is only 1 CD which is strange for a BBC set. Most of the selections are from the early pop days of The Who and there isn't enough late 60's, early 70's material. It would be great if some songs from Who's Next were included. The CD booklet is also inadequate for a BBC Sessions CD. I mean, don't get me wrong, this CD does have many good songs that are performed great, it's just isn't what I had expected. This Cd, however, is a good way of hearing how The Who sounded in the mid 60's live, which was great. Some great tracks are: My Generation, The Good's Gone, Substitute, Boris The Spider, Happy Jack, Pictures Of Lily, A Quick One (While He's Away), Shakin' All Over and Long Live Rock.

Although for several months I had constantly kept hearing rumors that this disc was going to be released, it wasn't officially available until earlier this year. Like some of their contemporaries before them - The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, (early) Fleetwood Mac (featuring Peter Green) & Led Zeppelin - the BBC sessions tell the story of just how influential it was for The Who to get their music on the air; often to a staid or bewildered British public. For the most part, these are live performances of songs in the BBC Radio studios, with minimal overdubs. The material comes across as raw & exciting, though obviously there are bound to be some "rough spots." Early covers of soul songs & James Brown material illustrate just how far The Who have evolved over the years. The BBC radio jingles are good for a laugh, & Roger Daltrey tells the story of how they were "coerced" into doing things like that to get on the air! Best of all for me on this compilation is the new version of "The Seeker." Pete does his usual flash "power strumming" of the chords (as opposed to individual notes) & the effect will send shivers down your spine! Pete also flubs his lines during the final verse of "Long Live Rock." A worthwhile addition to their catalog.

Awesome, there arent many words to describe my reaction to this album. The moment i played it in my car, i was completely adrenalized..Im a huge fan of The Who and the BBC album makes my collection complete. With standout tracks such as "Good Lovin" and "Dancing in the Street" and early live takes of "La,La,La Lies", " Pictures of Lily" plus two live versions of "substitute" this album just keeps going.The biggest standout to me is the unedited full live version of " A Quick One "( While He's Away )this track is so much better than the studio version.. I was never a fan of live albums but, this one clearly has changed my views..5 stars