Quadrophenia.

[Fritz]

'Quadrophenia - Can You See The Real Me" , documentary on BBC4 right now about the making of one of the greatest rock albums ever recorded, imo. Absolutely fuckin brilliant. Please make time to watch it if you ever get the chance.

[video=youtube_share;gDbAtWpoA6k]http://youtu.be/gDbAtWpoA6k[/video]

 

[Sunshine on Leith]

'Quadrophenia - Can You See The Real Me" , documentary on BBC4 right now about the making of one of the greatest rock albums ever recorded, imo. Absolutely $#@!in brilliant. Please make time to watch it if you ever get the chance.

[video=youtube_share;gDbAtWpoA6k]http://youtu.be/gDbAtWpoA6k[/video]

Have to agree - fantastic documentary. First seen it when if came out around three years ago and watch it regularly throughout the year.

On the subject of Quadrophenia, i've got tickets for Pete Townshend's sell out Classical Quadrophenia show at the Royal Albert Hall next July. Something different but one i'm really looking forward to.

PETE TOWNSHEND ANNOUNCES CLASSIC QUADROPHENIA - The Who

 

[Sunshine on Leith]

Really looking forward to seeing this concert in full next summer...


[video=youtube;jrNK1Rm3r6I]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrNK1Rm3r6I[/video]

 

[Stu]

Harks back to the orchestral version of Tommy I seem to recall.

I've been 'with' Quadrophenie since 1973, it never grows old, nor less relevant.

Maybe the greatest rock album of all.

That documentary is a stoater too.

 

[Sunshine on Leith]

Harks back to the orchestral version of Tommy I seem to recall.

I've been 'with' Quadrophenie since 1973, it never grows old, nor less relevant.

Maybe the greatest rock album of all.

That documentary is a stoater too.

My favourite album of all time. I have the original on vinyl with the story book intact, the film soundtrack, the CD again with the booklet. I've owned the film on VHS, DVD and now Blu-Ray, saw the theatre production at the Festival Theatre a few years ago and even saw a small production in the High Street earlier this year at a Fringe show. I had the book by Alan Fletcher, but lost that many years ago while still at my parents.

Safe to say i'm a bit of a fan of all thing Quadrophenia

 

[Fritz]

When i got my first CD player in 1990, Quadrophenia was the first CD i ever bought. Got it a week before the machine arrived and was going frantic at not being able to hear it. :smug:

 

[Stu]

My favourite album of all time. I have the original on vinyl with the story book intact, the film soundtrack, the CD again with the booklet. I've owned the film on VHS, DVD and now Blu-Ray, saw the theatre production at the Festival Theatre a few years ago and even saw a small production in the High Street earlier this year at a Fringe show. I had the book by Alan Fletcher, but lost that many years ago while still at my parents.

Safe to say i'm a bit of a fan of all thing Quadrophenia

I can't compete with that G but I still have the original vinyl album, complete with the story book, which I bought when it first came out. Stunned by it then, it seemed to speak of many of the things I was going through at that time at that age. The album has power, artistry and meaning. It is many things including an incisive yet affectionate social commentary and documentary. Only Pete Townshend in my view could have written such an imaginative and creative opus. His ideas and invention have travelled beyond others always.

I went to see a stage production of it a few years ago and really had to think twice about that as I'm no real fan of musicals and didn't want to see this piece of work close to my heart 'messed around with'. It was great though and I remember my partner was blown away by the rendition of Love Reign O'er Me in particular.

Hard to imagine now that Quadrophenia was met with a slightly lukewarm response in some circles initially. It is a total masterpiece.

A few more words from me on the subject:

Quadrophenia The Tears of a Clown

When the original Quadrophenia album by The Who was released in October 1973 I was a young teenager approaching sixteen years of age with all the angst and most of the unhappiness that those years can muster and provide. Id caught up with the The Whos violently productive era in the 1960s, mainly by originally listening to the compilation Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy which featured the great and classic Who hits of that era such as My Generation, I Cant Explain, The Kids are Alright. Intrigued and totally entranced by this band and by its songwriter, Pete Townshend in particular, I discovered the bands original rock opera,Tommy and set about arming myself with every single piece of Who material I could, right back to their original incarnation as The High Numbers.

Pete Townshend, artist, intellect, hero

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There was no question. The Who and Pete Townshend spoke for me. They detailed all the anger and frustration I had as a youngster and there was something liberating about the on-stage violence and destroying of instruments but much more importantly the way that Townshend wrote that made them my band. Because of those seminal years, years when I managed to see three of the original Whos imperious live performances and followed them avidly, they remained my band.

Lets spin rapidly up to date. Its August 2009, fully thirty-six years after the double album telling the story of young Mod, Jimmys life. Im a whole lot older, I see things through different, more wary and experienced and yes sometimes more sullied eyes. I observe the local entertainment listings and see that a stage version of this story that was very precious and sensitive to me all those years ago is to be aired at the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham. What to make of this?

The video preview material seemed a little trite and overly choreographed. It concerned me that my memory ofQuadrophenias power and majesty would not marry well with this theatrical production. Im unashamedly not an aficionado of musicals, on stage or celluloid, but this story is a special one to me. I had to see how people would interpret this masterpiece of torment and anguish and how it sits in this era and with me personally.

I am so happy that I did.

The familiar sounds of waves crashing heralded the beginning of the performance with the ethereal overture of I Am the Sea leading onto the driving, insistent and direct riffs of The Real Me. This was good, better than good, my concerns had been buried within seconds by the excellent live band situated as part of the set at stage rear. It must be born in mind that the very last time I had heard this music played live it was by The Who themselves, standing up there on stage. It was wonderful to hear it again though.

The lead character of Jimmy was played by four actors, often simultaneously on stage. This was to depict the four (Quadraphonic) aspects of the young Mods confused character. In the original Who album liner notes these characteristics were defined as, the tough guy (Who singer, Roger Daltrey), the romantic (bassist John Entwistle) a lunatic (drummer Keith Moon) and a beggar and hypocrite (Townshend himself). Understanding which character was which was somewhat confusing at times, especially when not seated close to the stage. It may have been even more difficult for those not necessarily cognisant with the original story.

​

The Clothing was pretty much in the main authentic looking with Fred Perry shirts, parka coats and a little pop-art imagery. There were though one or two over-the-top stagey outfits with ridiculous Union Jacks depicted, particularly adorning The Godfather. The latter didnt really hit the mark for me and detracted from the feel of the production. An attractive and showy Vespa scooter played a central role in one scene and was criminally kicked over after being ridden across the stage by Jimmy!

Several songs outside of the original Quadrophenia double album were featured (some from the film soundtrack background music), My Generation, So Sad About Us, I Cant Explain, The Kids are Alright and Im The Face. Im not sure how I felt about this as the original concept was so faultlessly melded together that the addition of these classic songs almost made them feel like intruders.

Jimmy and Bell Boy

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The band were tight and powerful and the casts singing excellent, especially the emotional rendition of Love Reign Oer Me, which was a complete stand-out. Even my partner with no prior knowledge of the story admitted afterwards that this beautiful song made her feel very emotional at this stage. The whole experience was only slightly spoiled by the auditoriums sound which contrived to overpower and drown Pete Townshends memorable lyrics at times.

I must confess myself to feeling very choked at times, listening to the often note-for-note faithful replaying of the original music. As a young and mixed-up teenager when Quadrophenia came out I very much identified with Jimmy and I confess it took me straight back to those days. In that sense the whole evening worked well for me. I had been able to re-visit and re-work a part of me that was hardly forgotten and still sits at the core of who I am today.

The show was all over within a couple of very enjoyable hours including a short intermission. After accepting a healthy ovation from the audience the cast cheekily but very much in modern recognition chanted back to the onlookers the We are the Mods mantra of the sixties. it was a nice moment for those of us who understand this history and sent everyone out of the Royal Concert Hall doors with an even wider smile.

As I had witnessed and silently thought to myself on the previous night when the tremendous and familiar roar of a Mod scooter ride-out swept stylishly and proudly down a main thoroughfare of Nottingham towards the opening night of Quadrophenia, this thing called Mod will never die. I know that.

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