The Who Album: “The Ultimate Collection (Remastered)”

I'd like to start by saying that a best of, or greatest hits compilation, always leaves some fan's favorite song off. A compilation should really be judged by its inclusiveness of all the top 40 hits, as well as key album tracks. A compilation is not procured for fans who have all the artist's cds. It designed to make money and to appeal to window shopping fans who want all the hits, plus a little extra. Does this two disc compilation of The Who satisfy that kind of buyer? Yes. The Who have 16 top 40 hits to their credit, and they're all here except "The Relay" and "Athena". So in that sense, this compilation gets a thumbs up. Does this compilation have many non-top 40 classics? Yes. Too many to just list here, but as a compilation, this is the first to encapsule such a dearth of music from The Who. Unless you want to get The Who's box set. For those who don't want to buy all 10 studio recordings, this two disc pit stop has everything you'd want. It's about time someone realized that The Who deserves a two disc compilation instead of one. "Eminence Front", though not a hit, has been absent from Who compilations until now. All the tracks are digitally remastered, another plus when shopping for a compilation. The liner notes are alright, tracing the band's history, but it doesn't offer an exciting read. In my opinion, aside from The Who's box set, this is the best compilation of The Who thus far. A testament of a great rock and roll band. There's plenty more positive things to say about The Who, but I'll keep my critique to just this compilation.

I love The Who. And I traded in "The Very Best of" from 1996 as I bought "The Ultimate Collection," excited that MCA had finally brought most of the best tracks together in one package. Problem is, they remastered these tracks again and, as a long-time listener, I find them unbearable to listen to.

The problem is that they are bright and edgy without enough of the lower sounds to balance it. So the snare drums go "splat" and Roger's voice sounds shrill and, worst of all, the basic bass drum is hardly audible. What you have is a very crisp, hard-edged sound that just doesn't sound like previous releases.

I'm NOT talking about vinyl, I'm talking about the remasters that came out in the mid-1990s. When I first listened to "Won't Get Fooled Again" on "Ultimate" I went running for the "Who's Next" CD to make sure I wasn't making this up. Immediately you hear a smoother high end and Daltrey's voice sounding natural and the drums sounding like Keith Moon.

Sorry to be a party-pooper, but I rushed back to see if I could retrieve the "Very Best of" that I'd sold back. Fortunately, I can buy it back. For those of you who haven't plunked down the money yet, if you care about the difference in sound I'm describing, be sure you can give "The Ultimate" a listen before you buy it!

Okay, Okay, I know that The Who have been the most anthologized band in the history of rock music. After all, how many other bands have more "best of" compilations in their catalog than they have studio albums? But this time MCA got it right. Thirty-five songs from 1964 to 1982 provide ample evidence why The Who should wear the mantle of "The Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band in the World." Sure, one could quarrel that the Top 40 hits "The Relay" (No. 39, 1973) and "Athena" (No. 28, 1982) should have been included just to make this a complete collection of The Who's U.K. and U.S. hits, but this collection is stronger for including such album tracks as "I'm a Boy," "Baba O'Riley" and "Bargain" instead. And as a bonus, the initial pressing include a 4-song bonus disc, which contains the rare U.S. single version of "Substitute," an early version of "I'm a Boy," a previoulsy unreleased acoustic version of "Happy Jack" and the U.K. single version of "Magic Bus." Even if you already have all of The Who's studio albums (like me), it's great to have all of these songs together in one collection. The 28-page booklet is also very informative with lots of great pics! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

This is the collection all "Who" fans have been waiting for and it's just in time for their Summer Tour. The two CD's contain 35 tracks from 1964's, "I Can't Explain" classic to the show-stopping 1982 cut, "Eminence Front". All the best cuts are represented here including, "My Generation", "I Can See For Miles", "Magic Bus", four cuts from "Tommy", five cuts from the fantastic "Who's Next" and all the under-rated hits from the late seventies and early, early eighties. It's not just good, it is all remastered and even the older remastered cuts sound better.

To beat it all, a bonus CD of four tracks is included with "Substitute" (rare U.S. version), "I'm A Boy" (early version), "Happy Jack" (previously unreleased "acoustic" version) and a U.K. single version of "Magic Bus"! All remastered. It sounds like it was just recorded!

The booklet is great as well. Twenty seven pages of photos, history, album covers and trivia - it satisfies everything. Grab it and go see them this summer.

The new greatest hits album by The Who really is, as its name suggests, the Ultimate Collection of the band's best songs. It contains all of their best songs. Previously, a person in the market for a greatest hits album had to find a compromise between sparse collections of songs that either omitted significant material or arranged tracks in an order that didn't quite make sense. This one's got their best 35 songs on two discs, remastered, and in chronological order.

Disc one kicks off with the band's very first single "I Can't Explain", which the band often uses to start their live shows. Included on the disc are some lesser-celebrated, but equally worthy songs like "The Kids Are Alright", regarded as one of the first "power pop" songs, and Tommy's "I'm Free" and "See Me Feel Me". The disc ends with "My Wife", "Baba O'Reilly" and "Bargain" from the epic "Who's Next", making for a good transition into disc two, which begins with "Behind Blue Eyes" and "Won't Get Fooled Again". Incorporated on disc two are "Long live Rock" and "Pure and Easy", a song that was left off of "Who's Next" but, as the liner notes explain, is a significant song because it sums up Pete Townshend's view on the importance of rock music relating with the audience.

Name your favorite song and it's on here, from "My Generation" to "Pinball Wizard" to "Who Are You". It's all good, as they say. The Ultimate Collection is by far the most fulfilling greatest hits collection by The Who. With over 130 minutes of remastered music, and a 28-page booklet with extensive liner notes and photos, this album shouldn't be missed.