Quadrophenia - THE WHO***

I Am The Sea/The Real Me/Quadrophenia/Cut My Hair/The Punk & The Godfather/I'm One/The Dirty Jobs/Helpless Dancer/Is It In My Head/I've Had Enough/5.15/Sea & Sand/Drowned/Bell Boy/Doctor Jimmy/The Rock/Love Reign O'er Me

Given the acclaim for Tommy and other recent Who albums hopes were high that the rock opera Quadrophenia would attain the same standard. Sadly this did not happen, the only decent track being the UK top 20 hit 5.15.

“The story is over complex, too obsessed with nostalgia at the expense of entertainment and it just isn't as enjoyable as Tommy. What Quadrophenia also lacks is great tunes.”

“It's a two-disc, ridiculously overblown rock opera with way too many overdubs and a needlessly complicated plot that would've been simple if it weren't for the ‘four-personality’ thing.”

“For many listeners, Quadrophenia was simply too much. To this day critics talk disparagingly of the album as if it is a stereotypical prog rock dinosaur, devoid of tunes and stuffed full of self-indulgent musicianship.”

“Quadrophenia is invariably compared to Tommy, which is the most effective way of showing the limitations of the second Who rock opera. Neither the story nor the production is particularly great, and it makes this double album a massive disappointment compared to its predecessor.”

“It’s too lengthy and self-indulgent to be a great rock album, and it re-hashes too many of the same musical ideas simply to stretch out things.”

“Diversity is important to an album to make sure it does not grow boring. If diversity isn't there, then the sameness better have really good music to go with it. This album has a lot of sameness, with music that only occasionally rises to being memorable.”

“Not everyone relates to the story of Jimmy, but I do. It is a journey from teenage angst to spiritual redemption. The four great themes, each related to a band member and a part of Jimmy's personality, give this long work continuity, so that despite its hard rock edge, it is great art. In fact, it is musical alchemy. The themes combine together toward the end in the instrumental The Rock, which is the philosopher's stone of rock. The four themes become elemental icons.”