The Who by Numbers

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The Who by Numbers
Studio album by The Who
Released	3 October 1975
Recorded	April – 12 June 1975, Shepperton Studios' soundstage using Ronnie Lane's Mobile Studio
Genre	Rock
Length	37:19
Language	English
Label	Polydor Records
Producer	Chris Charlesworth, Bill Curbishley, Glyn Johns, Robert Rosenberg
Professional reviews
Allmusic link Robert Christgau (B+) link Rolling Stone (positive) link
The Who chronology
Quadrophenia (1973) The Who by Numbers (1975) Who Are You (1978)
Singles from The Who by Numbers
"Squeeze Box" Released: October 1975 "Slip Kid" Released: 7 August 1976

The Who by Numbers is the seventh album by the English rock band The Who, released on 3 October 1975, in the United Kingdom through Polydor Records and on 25 October 1975, in the United States by MCA Records. It was named the tenth best album of the year in The Village Voice Pazz & Jop critics poll.^[1]

History

Without the massive structure and ambition of the band's better known works Tommy and Quadrophenia, Pete Townshend's songwriting stands on its own in the sparse and dark The Who by Numbers. Gone are the synthesizers and the massive layers of overdubs. In their places are descriptions of Townshend's alcoholism, lust, and self-loathing, as well as the dark side of creeping middle-age and the fear of irrelevance. On "They Are All In Love," Townshend laments: "Hey goodbye all you punks, stay young and stay high / Hand me my checkbook while I crawl off to die." These themes extend from the hopeless refrain of "However Much I Booze" (sung by Townshend, as Daltrey thought it too personal to sing), "There ain't no way out", to the disillusioned question, "How many friends have I really got?"

A few tracks stand in contrast, including the playfulness of the top ten hit "Squeeze Box" and "Blue, Red and Grey's" claim that "I like every minute of the day." But John Entwistle's contribution, "Success Story", returns to display nearly as despairing and cynical a view of stardom as the rest of the record. "In a Hand or a Face" revisits both lyrical and musical themes of Who songs dating back to the previous decade and offers an unexpectedly fiery ending to the album.

In an interview 30 Years of Maximum R&B, from Pete Townshend declared "Dreaming from the Waist" and "Sister Disco" (from Who Are You) as his least favorite songs to play on stage. In humorous contrast, John Entwistle, declared in the same series of interviews that "Dreaming from the Waist" was one of his favorite songs to perform live.

The cover was drawn by John Entwistle as he was drawing a cartoon history of The Who.

The Who by Numbers peaked at the number 7 position on the UK album chart and number 8 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States.

Track listing

All songs written by Pete Townshend unless stated otherwise.

Side one

1. "Slip Kid" – 4:32
2. "However Much I Booze" – 5:03
3. "Squeeze Box" – 2:42
4. "Dreaming from the Waist" – 4:09
5. "Imagine a Man" – 4:04

Side two

6. "Success Story" (John Entwistle) – 3:24
7. "They Are All in Love" – 3:03
8. "Blue, Red and Grey" – 2:50
9. "How Many Friends" – 4:07
10. "In a Hand or a Face" – 3:25

1996 reissue bonus tracks

The bonus tracks on the 1996 reissue were recorded live at Swansea Football Ground on 12 June 1976.

11. "Squeeze Box" – 3:13
12. "Behind Blue Eyes" – 4:39
13. "Dreaming from the Waist" – 4:57

Sales chart performance

Album

Singles

Sales certifications

Personnel

The Who

• Roger Daltrey – lead vocals
• John Entwistle – bass guitar, 8-string bass, brass, keyboards, vocals, lead vocals on bridge in "Success Story"
• Keith Moon – drums, percussion
• Pete Townshend – guitars, keyboards, ukulele, accordion, banjo, vocals, lead vocals on "However Much I Booze", "Blue, Red, and Grey", and bridge of "Success Story"

Additional musicians

• Dave Arbus – violin
• Nicky Hopkins – piano on "Imagine a Man", "Success Story", "They Are All in Love", and "In a Hand or a Face"

Production

• Jon Astley – remixing
• Chris Charlesworth – executive producer
• Bill Curbishley – executive producer
• John Entwisle – album art
• Richard Evans – remaster album art direction, design
• Glyn Johns – production
• Bob Ludwig – remastering
• Robert Rosenberg – executive producer
• John Swenson – liner notes
• Chris Walter – photography

References

External links

• Guitar tablature
• Lyrics^{[dead link]}
• The Who by Numbers liner notes - Song-by-song liner notes for the album