Saw a great interview of John Entwistle where he stressed that he was a “bass guitarist - NOT a bass player.” Adored his gravelly West London voice. Total GOAT 🥰
~~ and Moon's style could be called "lead drums" - a term Joe Walsh has used - Moon of course took Walsh under his wing way back and mentored him on the art of hotel room demolition ..
I think the fact that John played French horn on this track and arranged all the brass on the album explains alot about his style..one man orchestra especially at full volume
I met John at a seminar he was running. The guy was an unbelievably brilliant bass player with a totally unique technique. And also the nicest bloke you could meet.
Oh snap, I must’ve missed that glancing at the credits. As a bassist and trumpeter, that makes my day big time. Super cool. I’ll look out for more of those instances when I listen to them again!
I had the privilege of seeing them live several times back in the day, and they were even better on stage. They were so tight and in sync with each other and their concerts were never the same. One of the GOAT Rock bands ever. Their sheer talent and creativity is just amazing.
Live at Leeds and it's companion Live at Hull are the best complete Who shows. There is a fragmentary boot from 69, Live in Ottawa that might be, God help me, even better. Entwistle's bass is perfectly recorded. Too bad it's incomplete.
The Ox was doing a call and response to the vocal track where you would traditionally have vocals responding, he was answering on bass. This band had 4 lead players that knew when to let the individuals shine.
@@Jessica_Roth Daltry needs to give it up. He can’t last longer than 15 minutes before babbling like Joe Biden, yelling at the audience and shuffling off. Looks like age is more than just a number for him. He’s had his time. Nothing lasts forever.
The Who improvised a lot in their live performances. I've listened to "Young Man Blues" from a number of different concerts during the same period and they're all quite different. For a good visual watch the multi-camera video taken at the Isle of Wight. Few bands played with such raw power and energy.
Yup, and their live renditions of Young Man Blues also are excellent examples of how Pete, John and Keith would be able to fly off in apparently different directions and then clinch back in, tight as can be, on the riff... which explains quite a few thing going on in The Real Me too...
I bought The Who's British version debut album in 1966. I was hooked. I saw them perform on their first American tour at the Fillmore West in 1968. I was totally blown away. I had never heard a sound like that before. Their rebellious attitude at the time reflected how I felt as a 20 year old. I had the honor of meeting them and having a great talk with Pete Townshend and watching a British monster movie with Roger. They've been my #1 band ever since. RIP Kieth and John. I'm very happy that you've discovered them. Peace........Out....... PS: at the Fillmore show Pete played through two VOX Super Beatles. I had my parents buy be one and I still have it to this very day.
Mr Entwhistle was a classicly training French horn player. Loads of melody in his lines. This blew my mind when I first heard it. Glad you're getting to experience this tune.
As said before, The Who, punk rock before punk rock. I was amazed when Matt Freeman talked about how he was influenced by John Entwistle and how he was listening to "Live at Leeds" on his stereo. Then I connected the dots. Thank you Mark! ❤️👀🎸
Yup, should check out the band Death (not the metal band of same name, the all black, all brothers, punk trio from the 70’s). In the documentary ‘A Band Called Death’ , immortalizing them as the first real real punk band -that never made it- they mention how the guys were all playing the funk and disco that was popular among the black community at the time, but then their guitar player (and eldest brother) David saw The Who perform…completely changed his outlook on music. Listen to their biggest single ‘Keep On Kockin’ you’ll hear a pretty stark resemblance. Loud and fast guitars with driving bass, but it’s short and sweet and simpler than The Who, it’s the blueprint for early punk rock!
@@LowEndUniversity "Live at Leeds" is super cool because the bass is panned to one speaker and the guitar the other, so you can really zero in on what Townshend and Entwistle are doing individually. You want to analyze a mind-blowing rock song with a wicked Entwistle bass line, check out "Young Man Blues" on Leeds.
Pete has often said he needed to keep time because nobody else was. One of the most unique rock bands ever because all four were at times playing the lead. And the majority of the time it worked magically.
Townshend was well known for elaborate demo tapes that he would play for the band. I'm sure Entwistle heard it before they hit the studio, so he probably had a good idea of the basic form of the song. Btw, this is the beginning of the album, not the middle. Entwistle totally changed what bass guitar could be. Rick Wakeman once said that his playing was "..light years ahead of what anyone else was doing at the time. Nobody played like John." He brought bass guitar foward as a lead instrument, not just a backing rhythm one.
@gasaholic47 You beat me to making this critical point. Townshend knew the performance styles of his band mates so well that the demos he made to introduce the songs to them gave them a starting point on which to build. So, to Mark's point, Entwistle had indeed heard the song and on the first take decided to just go for it. He later said he was surprised it ended up in the final mix.
@@YouzTube99 Indeed. I also had read (and I wish I could remember where) that Entwistle was quite surprised when he heard it on the final mix. Townshend and the others knew what they had when they heard it.
Yes - absolutely, and what a lot of people like on these demos is Pete’s understanding of what the band will bring. And his singing, which is great. ua-cam.com/video/rKemvvhjM_M/v-deo.html
Not a musician and without a bias, I've always been interested in rock bands that have great bass players. Then again, the Who has been my first love, which might explain it a bit.
"I Am the Sea" is essentially a preamble for The Real Me, it sets up the stunning introductory notes in The Real Me. It reminds me of when people are listening to Little Feat's Waiting for Columbus, and attempt to split Dixie Chicken and Tripe Face Boogie. They belong together as a whole! (by the way, Feat's Kenny Gradney knows how to play some bass, give Feat (live only!) a try sometime)
The best song ever from the best album ever. As a young Mod in the 1980s Quadrophenia was my life and soundtrack. I still get goosebumps listening to this track.
Great breakdown of the Real Me. I had the pleasure of seeing The Who many times, and three times with Entwistle and Moon as the rhythm section. One word to describe their power - “Thunderous”.
I guess one thing that would help understand John is the fact that he considered himself not as a bass player but rather a BASS-GUITARIST. that's why he tried to get different sounds from bass and melodic lines. also the fact that he was also a HORN player helped him to better fill spaces in a song.
You really need to watch him live.. his fingers are gorgeous. They move so naturally, similar to the way Hendrix played guitar…. As if he was just born with the bass attached.
This is my friends absolute favorite band of all time. He was stationed in CO and had tickets to go see them in the 2000's. Then, Entwistle died. He was heartbroken. His parents called to break the news and it was like his Grandmother had passed, that's how much this band means to him. We've seen them at least 4 times, him probably around 6-7, and every time it's an amazing show. At one, Pete actually heard him scream "YOU ROCK, PETE!" and he looked right at him. Like you said, after connecting the dots it's obvious how much of an influence he is on Freeman. Entwistle plays very much like I do, except he knows what he's doing lol. If you want to see his true mastery, just look up "John Entwistle Bass Solo" on here. Pick any of them. You won't be disappointed. Also, if you want to see the instant Pete goes deaf in one ear, check out their performance on The Smothers Brothers. It's intense.
The Who was my Dad's favourite band. He took me 3 times to see them. First time was in Toronto, 1979 with Heart opening. I have also seen them with my older sister since he passed. Such a great live and studio act. One of the best.
@pulsarlights2825 I'm talking about the brash and not giving a f attitude that they exude in their younger days and the playing loud and proud, which influenced the punk rock genre.
I remember someone saying the Who were 3 lead instruments (vocals, drums, bass) and Townsend was the only rhythm player. Over generalization but some truth to it I think.
I played this song for a friend and he asked what "that" was (meaning the bass). Once enlightened, his eyes got big at that sound. True skill and greatness.
The greatest part about being a musician is that there is a plethora of musicians under the sun that are recorded and written to be eventually discovered. This was that for me!
@@LowEndUniversity As you are such an open minded person, I challenge you! 'Cause all of my friends (both the punk rockers and the metal heads) have always talked shit about what I'm about to ask you, but please, show them I'm not a complete idiot and do a review for Duran Duran's "Rio"! I think John Taylor is a great bassist and to think that he wrote Rio when he was 22 is mind blowing..
Pete would walk in with his complete demos. The songs were done. He would play all the instruments and do the vocals. Then bring it into the band. If you are interested find Petes original demo of this song. He plays bass on it. Then listen to what John does with it.
I posted links to that demo and the outtake, and the outtake is closer to the demo. The one we all know and love is a different beast altogether. What Entwistle does on the outtake is just as brilliant, but more of a funky, slithering song than the rocking, charging, blistering real album opener after the ambience of sea sounds on I Am the Sea
Excellent choice, I always go back to this tune over and over again and it never ever gets old. I never knew the bass part was an improvised first take, somehow I'm even more impressed now which I didn't think was possible.
One crazy thing about this song is that the first time I heard it was when Wasp covered it. Though their bass player played a much simpler version of this. Aside from that John used to say that he didn't play bass, he played bass guitar. Even Pete Townsend said on several occasions that John was more of a lead guitar player who just happened to use a bass.
Listen to the Fab Four with Don`t let me down. Here Paul paint with the bass and Billy Preston feeds off that at first and then Paul feeds off Prestons solo. The other song is Old brown shoe. Brilliant!
This is an amazing track and the introduction to the rock opera. You're not only hearing an amazing band with four leads, but those four players each playing independently and weaving in and out (as you mentioned) because each of them is taking on one of the four personalities or social dilemmas that the lead character in the story is trying to deal with. Instead of being schizophrenic (dual personalities), he has Quadrophenia - four voices, four choices pulling him apart that he's trying to understand by asking "Can you see the real me". The four lead lines that don't converge or harmonize but weave in and out is the meta-message that takes advantage of this amazing band's skills as lead bass, lead guitar, lead drum, lead vocals...and is testament to the genius of Pete Townsend's writing and composition. Truly the best rock band ever, and Quadrophenia is the apex of their work.
The Who did so much live jamming that it is easy to see how he could have recorded this in one take, as they were essentially vamping on one chord. They had been playing Baby Don't You Do It live in 1971 with a similar groove, also just jamming around C blues, so he might have had a chance to practice similar ideas before. You are right that Entwistle was often featured as a soloist. This was very intentional at times, going back to My Generation in the early days and even 10 years later on Dreaming From the Waist. Eminence Front is a later example of the band vamping in one key and Entwistle getting to do lots of improvisation.
I think one of the best bass solos is on Naked Eye from Live at Leeds. He really took that line all over the place, very bluesy. They're way rooted in the blues. This is kind of jazzy, which John could do also.
Pete said he and John would trade riffs. Pete would play some insane & John would instantly play it back. John would play something & Pete would just stand there dumbfounded.
I love that during the chorus, all of the members are doing different things. Given that each band member represents radically different aspects of Jimmy's personality, it's fitting that when Roger sings "Can you see the real me?" it sounds like he can't even see the real his own self.
A guitarist (Keith Williams, over at Five Watt World) said the same thing about improvisation in a live setting. I wish someone had mentioned that to me around the year 2000 😁 Thanks so much for the reinforcement!
From way back then and before, there was a saying about the Who that they were four soloists that played together to make a band. Pretty much sums it up.
Check out the movie soundtrack version of this album. John was the producer and replayed the bass parts and mix. JE was a master and innovator of the bass guitar.
Pete Townsend played lead and rhythm on guitar using anger John Entwistle played lead and rhythm on bass using a pick Keith Moon played lead and rhythm on drums using the drumsticks reversed ( thick end first) with added madness Roger was just one angry individual who feared nothing No wonder it feels like a 12 course meal Best rock band that ever was
Your observation that he plays similar to the vocal line makes a lot of sense. I once heard that when writing songs, Pete would write and record the bare bones, and then the other members of the band would write their parts over Pete’s work. So he was probably going off the basic structure of the song that Pete established and added his own embellishments. John was actually an accomplished multi-instrumentalist so it wouldn’t surprise me if he wrote this whole part in one shot.
Townshend’s demos were legendary for being so polished that they could have been released by a lesser band. He was a total perfectionist. That being said, he did understand that John and Keith were going to do their own thing. He has mentioned many times that he craved a “normal” drummer sometimes.
Nailed it, conversation. I always hear the bass in conversation with the vocals. Almost a Q & A. The character in Quadrophenia is a schizophrenic, very relatable.
Awesome reaction, The Who is one of those bands I always come back to and get locked in rotation. Love these videos, keep em coming🤙 Ned’s Atomic Dustbin: Suave and Sophisticated Suicide Machines: Hey Blue Meanies: Smash The Magnavox
I’ve played bass for 53 years and I just can’t believe a “ bass teacher “ has never heard this piece. Go listen to Jack Bruce on Frank Zappa’s Apostrophe for a real lesson on improvisation within a structure 🤪
I think it's funny when younger players discover older musicians and how really good they were. Hey young people it's all been done before you were born....😅😅😅
Probably the best rock bass player of all time. He made stuff on the spot better than most can write. You should see the live version. You can see what he's doing jumping around low and high notes on the neck.
Another Tricky Day is one of his best. Then there is Who Are You....specifically the quite part in the middle of the song where you can faintly hear John playing some acoustic bass notes in the background. For years I never realized it was there, but now it's the best part the song.
You outta check out john entwisle my size from his smash your head against the wall solo album. It's a banger. I read that when in the studio the engineer would ask john to turn down the volume which always would play at 12.
You gotta watch their performance of "My Generation" on The Smothers Brothers show from the '60s. Legendary TV performance. Controlled chaos. That song in particular has some seminal bass runs that paved the way for melodic punk rock bassists like Matt Freeman, et al.
One thing to understand about the ending of the track is that Quadrophenia was written and arranged as a concept "opera" with one track flowing directly into the next, so that snare roll you hear leads directly into the next track ("Quadrophenia" the instrumental title track "overture" in which the four musical themes representing the four members of The Who are presented and elaborated)
If you want a master class on bass , listen to Sister Disco from The Who’s last album w Keith Moon “Who Are You” John Entwistle plays chords, melodies, root notes and emulates the synthesizer and is completely invisible while serving the song. I feel it’s the best example of his genius.
Interesting analysis, never thought of this bass part quite in this way. The Who were all masters of musical conversation. One can say that's what they were about, above all. This also brought to mind one I very strongly recommend you check out: "Sunshine Help Me," a supercharged live cover of a Spooky Tooth song by a UK 60s band The Move from their live EP entitled Something Else from The Move. It has some of the most intense and purposeful jamming I've ever heard.
Try the jam "Out of the Blue" on George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass". I really like it. It sounds to me like music for crawling along a cliff edge in the dark, with your friends, trying not to fall, from about 3:30, and then they find something solid at 7:30 and its all clear by 8:30. And happy happy joy joy at 11:00..
Band-Maid just released a new OLV for Don't you tell ME. That has an extended bridge/bass/guitar duel you need to check out. As for John, I think he is beyond legendary. He is one of the main OG's when it comes to the bass.
It's manic because it's inside pillhead Jimmy's addled brain at one of his most frenetic moments. I love this album, and the movie. Got to see them perform the whole thing live in 1994.
The neat thing about the Who is that (as you noted briefly) Townshend kept the rhythm together while the other three added the incredible diversions.... coming together at just the right times. Townshend's writing reflected that. In his solo stuff, that writing style changes because the way the others perform is not there.
I've long thought this is the finest work of one of the greatest rhythm sections in rock. The interplay between John and Keith is amazing.
The WHO doesn’t have a rhythm section. LOL I anyone plays rhythm it’s Pete.
QUADROPHENIA is a Masterpiece. You need to listen from beginning to end!!
That is THE ONLY one can listen to it.
My favorite album of all time!
It is my absolute favorite album. It is just brilliant!
Amen to that.
such an amazing album - and yet it seems so few younger folks know it! - wild.
Saw a great interview of John Entwistle where he stressed that he was a “bass guitarist - NOT a bass player.” Adored his gravelly West London voice. Total GOAT 🥰
What's strange is that if you hear him in the 70's his speaking voice, and odd lisping were not present.
Pete Townsend said in an interview that Entwistle was the lead guitarist, and he was the rhythm guitarist, lol!
~~ and Moon's style could be called "lead drums" - a term Joe Walsh has used - Moon of course took Walsh under his wing way back and mentored him on the art of hotel room demolition ..
After John's passing, Pete said John was his friend and musical director.
Pete said I'd be playing rhythm In the middle because somebody had to
Yes, with Ox and Moon constantly soloing, the guitar had to be more rhythmic. @@markgrant1302
I always saw John and Keith as the lead melody keepers of the band. Definitely not just "keeping time"
This is it. This is the pinnacle, the zenith, the peak of rock bass playing. Such a great bass track on this.
love your words, yeah it's peak
I think the fact that John played French horn on this track and arranged all the brass on the album explains alot about his style..one man orchestra especially at full volume
He played ALL the brass. Used a valve trombone.
apologies...you covered the French horn
He started his musical career as a young boy learning and playing horn for years
That’s what Pete says & John does play the horns the majority of the time.
@@jonathanroberts8981 He also played the brass in My Wife or Bargain I think.
What a fantastic song on every level. Always get chills from it. Pure masterpiece of rock music. Entwistle was truly otherworldly.
Every time I watch John Entwistle do this Bass Solo in Atlanta in 2000, I just shake my head in disbelief. "Thunderfingers" was from another planet.
I met John at a seminar he was running. The guy was an unbelievably brilliant bass player with a totally unique technique. And also the nicest bloke you could meet.
Entwistle also contributed the brass for this track, total legend!
Really!?!? That’s so bad ass!! Thanks!
What is it with bassist also being horn players lol. Seems like a common thread.
@@bralph82 idk but I wish I was one of them who were lol
Oh snap, I must’ve missed that glancing at the credits. As a bassist and trumpeter, that makes my day big time. Super cool. I’ll look out for more of those instances when I listen to them again!
@@LowEndUniversity He was classically trained on the French Horn from childhood and played and/or arranged the brass on every Who album.
I had the privilege of seeing them live several times back in the day, and they were even better on stage. They were so tight and in sync with each other and their concerts were never the same. One of the GOAT Rock bands ever. Their sheer talent and creativity is just amazing.
I’ve forgotten how many times I’ve seen them. 😆
Live at leeds. The bass is a must. The energy is a must. The tone. What a band live.
Bass in "Young Man Blues" on Leeds is the blueprint for Geezer.
Live at Leeds and it's companion Live at Hull are the best complete Who shows. There is a fragmentary boot from 69, Live in Ottawa that might be, God help me, even better. Entwistle's bass is perfectly recorded. Too bad it's incomplete.
The Ox was doing a call and response to the vocal track where you would traditionally have vocals responding, he was answering on bass. This band had 4 lead players that knew when to let the individuals shine.
The absolutely GREATEST ROCK BASS GUITARIST EVER
On March 1, Roger Daltrey (vocalist of The Who) turned 80 years old.
Didn’t he want to die before he got old?
@@jimlechuga3193
Nah. He only sang that because Townshend wrote the lyrics that way.
@@jimlechuga3193 You can live for many decades and not get old. Age is nothing but a state of mind, not a number.
@@Jessica_Roth Daltry needs to give it up. He can’t last longer than 15 minutes before babbling like Joe Biden, yelling at the audience and shuffling off. Looks like age is more than just a number for him. He’s had his time. Nothing lasts forever.
80, And still has his voice.👍
John played with all 5 fingers! The Who was lead vocals, lead guitar, lead bass, and lead drums. The only band that could pull that off.
In most bands, the bass and drums lock together. For The Who, the drums and guitar locked together.
Possibly the best rock bass (double) album ever. The Punk Meets the Godfather is also an amazing bass track.
Quadrophenia is something special. One of the greatest rock albums ever made! John on bass is a god to me.
The Who improvised a lot in their live performances. I've listened to "Young Man Blues" from a number of different concerts during the same period and they're all quite different. For a good visual watch the multi-camera video taken at the Isle of Wight. Few bands played with such raw power and energy.
Yup, and their live renditions of Young Man Blues also are excellent examples of how Pete, John and Keith would be able to fly off in apparently different directions and then clinch back in, tight as can be, on the riff... which explains quite a few thing going on in The Real Me too...
I bought The Who's British version debut album in 1966. I was hooked. I saw them perform on their first American tour at the Fillmore West in 1968. I was totally blown away. I had never heard a sound like that before. Their rebellious attitude at the time reflected how I felt as a 20 year old. I had the honor of meeting them and having a great talk with Pete Townshend and watching a British monster movie with Roger. They've been my #1 band ever since. RIP Kieth and John. I'm very happy that you've discovered them. Peace........Out....... PS: at the Fillmore show Pete played through two VOX Super Beatles. I had my parents buy be one and I still have it to this very day.
Check out the bass in 5:15 from Quadrophenia. Absolutely shockingly brilliant
Love the very subtle octave jumps he slips in during the chorus during his "3 finger diddles"
"Okay, I am a bass" is perfect. Even Geddy and Geezer knew when to come in for a landing.
I don’t listen to too much of The Who, but ever time I hear them their bass is always so killer! John was such a talented musician
Want to kill a party? Put on the WHO's greatest hits. People start to listen.
Mr Entwhistle was a classicly training French horn player. Loads of melody in his lines. This blew my mind when I first heard it. Glad you're getting to experience this tune.
They were at their greatest, peaking with energy beyond belief....this is the album that contains the essence of what and who the Who were.
As said before, The Who, punk rock before punk rock. I was amazed when Matt Freeman talked about how he was influenced by John Entwistle and how he was listening to "Live at Leeds" on his stereo. Then I connected the dots. Thank you Mark! ❤️👀🎸
I think I remember a few comments alluding to this on my Rancid video! Super cool.
Yup, should check out the band Death (not the metal band of same name, the all black, all brothers, punk trio from the 70’s). In the documentary ‘A Band Called Death’ , immortalizing them as the first real real punk band -that never made it- they mention how the guys were all playing the funk and disco that was popular among the black community at the time, but then their guitar player (and eldest brother) David saw The Who perform…completely changed his outlook on music. Listen to their biggest single ‘Keep On Kockin’ you’ll hear a pretty stark resemblance. Loud and fast guitars with driving bass, but it’s short and sweet and simpler than The Who, it’s the blueprint for early punk rock!
@@MrSirhcsellor Thank you for sharing this! Great stuff to learn. Cheers! 🎸
@@LowEndUniversity "Live at Leeds" is super cool because the bass is panned to one speaker and the guitar the other, so you can really zero in on what Townshend and Entwistle are doing individually. You want to analyze a mind-blowing rock song with a wicked Entwistle bass line, check out "Young Man Blues" on Leeds.
Pete has often said he needed to keep time because nobody else was. One of the most unique rock bands ever because all four were at times playing the lead. And the majority of the time it worked magically.
If anyone was keeping time it was entwistle
Townshend was well known for elaborate demo tapes that he would play for the band. I'm sure Entwistle heard it before they hit the studio, so he probably had a good idea of the basic form of the song. Btw, this is the beginning of the album, not the middle.
Entwistle totally changed what bass guitar could be. Rick Wakeman once said that his playing was "..light years ahead of what anyone else was doing at the time. Nobody played like John." He brought bass guitar foward as a lead instrument, not just a backing rhythm one.
@gasaholic47
You beat me to making this critical point. Townshend knew the performance styles of his band mates so well that the demos he made to introduce the songs to them gave them a starting point on which to build.
So, to Mark's point, Entwistle had indeed heard the song and on the first take decided to just go for it. He later said he was surprised it ended up in the final mix.
@@YouzTube99 Indeed. I also had read (and I wish I could remember where) that Entwistle was quite surprised when he heard it on the final mix. Townshend and the others knew what they had when they heard it.
Yes - absolutely, and what a lot of people like on these demos is Pete’s understanding of what the band will bring. And his singing, which is great. ua-cam.com/video/rKemvvhjM_M/v-deo.html
Not a musician and without a bias, I've always been interested in rock bands that have great bass players. Then again, the Who has been my first love, which might explain it a bit.
John Entwistle is such a beast!
The Who was Roger Daltrey on lead vocals, Pete Townshend on lead guitar, Keith Moon on lead drums, and John Entwistle on lead bass.
"I Am the Sea" is essentially a preamble for The Real Me, it sets up the stunning introductory notes in The Real Me. It reminds me of when people are listening to Little Feat's Waiting for Columbus, and attempt to split Dixie Chicken and Tripe Face Boogie. They belong together as a whole! (by the way, Feat's Kenny Gradney knows how to play some bass, give Feat (live only!) a try sometime)
The best song ever from the best album ever. As a young Mod in the 1980s Quadrophenia was my life and soundtrack. I still get goosebumps listening to this track.
Saw the Who for the first time in 79, over 30 times since, probably half with Entwistle, including solo Ox tour too.. I treasure the memories
Great breakdown of the Real Me. I had the pleasure of seeing The Who many times, and three times with Entwistle and Moon as the rhythm section. One word to describe their power - “Thunderous”.
I guess one thing that would help understand John is the fact that he considered himself not as a bass player but rather a BASS-GUITARIST.
that's why he tried to get different sounds from bass and melodic lines.
also the fact that he was also a HORN player helped him to better fill spaces in a song.
You really need to watch him live.. his fingers are gorgeous. They move so naturally, similar to the way Hendrix played guitar…. As if he was just born with the bass attached.
In addition to playing the bass, John Entwistle arranged the horn section. He was an EXCELLENT French Horn player himself.
And "Who" is responsible for the horns? John Entwistle.
It’s 4 guys playing lead all at the same time. And it totally working.
I can listen to this album non stop all day. Brilliant. Dive into The Who and you’ll realize why they’re top 5 all time.
Like he’s giving the vocal character a mental voice to the lyrics or something. Just complete manic chaos matching the drumming and lyrics.
This is my friends absolute favorite band of all time. He was stationed in CO and had tickets to go see them in the 2000's. Then, Entwistle died. He was heartbroken. His parents called to break the news and it was like his Grandmother had passed, that's how much this band means to him. We've seen them at least 4 times, him probably around 6-7, and every time it's an amazing show. At one, Pete actually heard him scream "YOU ROCK, PETE!" and he looked right at him. Like you said, after connecting the dots it's obvious how much of an influence he is on Freeman. Entwistle plays very much like I do, except he knows what he's doing lol. If you want to see his true mastery, just look up "John Entwistle Bass Solo" on here. Pick any of them. You won't be disappointed.
Also, if you want to see the instant Pete goes deaf in one ear, check out their performance on The Smothers Brothers. It's intense.
The Who was my Dad's favourite band. He took me 3 times to see them. First time was in Toronto, 1979 with Heart opening. I have also seen them with my older sister since he passed. Such a great live and studio act. One of the best.
The Who
Punk Rock before punk rock
Right on! 🎸👀❤️
”I’m the punk with the stutter”😁
Really? Can you name a few punk bass players or drummers that can play like Entwhistle and Moon?
@pulsarlights2825 I'm talking about the brash and not giving a f attitude that they exude in their younger days and the playing loud and proud, which influenced the punk rock genre.
I always thought that 'I'm Free" from Tommy really sounded really punk.
The Entwistle band was the best thing about Woodstock '99. They played in the aircraft hangar close to the main stage. Been a Who fan for 50+ years.
I remember someone saying the Who were 3 lead instruments (vocals, drums, bass) and Townsend was the only rhythm player. Over generalization but some truth to it I think.
I played this song for a friend and he asked what "that" was (meaning the bass). Once enlightened, his eyes got big at that sound. True skill and greatness.
The Ox is and will always be the Jimi Hendrix of bass guitar
I love Entwistle, but I wouldn’t see him as that. Jaco Pastorias was far more “the Jimi Hendrix of bass” in my opinion.
The drums are killer on this too
IKR
Yeah this is a bass and drum solo with a song under it, and it's awesome!
@bjack1547 the isolated drum track of this is epic...particularly the scream he lets rip at the height of his drum shredding. Riteous.
So you are going to analyze John ,good luck.
LONG LIVE THE WHO🇬🇧♥️
Best bass guitarist in my book.
Always great sound.
The greatest part about being a musician is that there is a plethora of musicians under the sun that are recorded and written to be eventually discovered. This was that for me!
Love the diversity in genres and eras this page covers. Always a brilliant analysis and lesson. Another job well done!
Thank you kindly! That means so much!
@@LowEndUniversity As you are such an open minded person, I challenge you! 'Cause all of my friends (both the punk rockers and the metal heads) have always talked shit about what I'm about to ask you, but please, show them I'm not a complete idiot and do a review for Duran Duran's "Rio"! I think John Taylor is a great bassist and to think that he wrote Rio when he was 22 is mind blowing..
I did that one awhile back already! Watch here: ua-cam.com/video/SgQ4Ez97SaI/v-deo.html
@@LowEndUniversity omg, sorry, I didn't see it! Thanks!
Really love your channel Mark! I enjoy seeing you in my feed.
If you haven't already, watch The Who Live at Royal Albert Hall. The song is called 5:15 The bass is insane
This, definitely check out!
Pete would walk in with his complete demos. The songs were done. He would play all the instruments and do the vocals. Then bring it into the band. If you are interested find Petes original demo of this song. He plays bass on it. Then listen to what John does with it.
I posted links to that demo and the outtake, and the outtake is closer to the demo. The one we all know and love is a different beast altogether. What Entwistle does on the outtake is just as brilliant, but more of a funky, slithering song than the rocking, charging, blistering real album opener after the ambience of sea sounds on I Am the Sea
Excellent choice, I always go back to this tune over and over again and it never ever gets old. I never knew the bass part was an improvised first take, somehow I'm even more impressed now which I didn't think was possible.
One crazy thing about this song is that the first time I heard it was when Wasp covered it. Though their bass player played a much simpler version of this.
Aside from that John used to say that he didn't play bass, he played bass guitar. Even Pete Townsend said on several occasions that John was more of a lead guitar player who just happened to use a bass.
Listen to the Fab Four with Don`t let me down. Here Paul paint with the bass and Billy Preston feeds off that at first and then Paul feeds off Prestons solo. The other song is Old brown shoe. Brilliant!
Paul is a brilliant, inventive bass player who always serves the song.
George Harrison wrote "Old Brown Shoe" on piano, after learning to play piano... that's how professionals do it.
This is an amazing track and the introduction to the rock opera. You're not only hearing an amazing band with four leads, but those four players each playing independently and weaving in and out (as you mentioned) because each of them is taking on one of the four personalities or social dilemmas that the lead character in the story is trying to deal with. Instead of being schizophrenic (dual personalities), he has Quadrophenia - four voices, four choices pulling him apart that he's trying to understand by asking "Can you see the real me". The four lead lines that don't converge or harmonize but weave in and out is the meta-message that takes advantage of this amazing band's skills as lead bass, lead guitar, lead drum, lead vocals...and is testament to the genius of Pete Townsend's writing and composition. Truly the best rock band ever, and Quadrophenia is the apex of their work.
Keith died in 1978...they were only a karaoke band playing themselves afterwards....no other drummer mattered to any band like Keith did in the Who
This song reminds me of Hendrix Stand Next to Your Fire. I've been listening to the Who for over forty years, and they are still awesome.
Don’t forget there’s also also the movie they made of this as well.
The Who did so much live jamming that it is easy to see how he could have recorded this in one take, as they were essentially vamping on one chord. They had been playing Baby Don't You Do It live in 1971 with a similar groove, also just jamming around C blues, so he might have had a chance to practice similar ideas before. You are right that Entwistle was often featured as a soloist. This was very intentional at times, going back to My Generation in the early days and even 10 years later on Dreaming From the Waist. Eminence Front is a later example of the band vamping in one key and Entwistle getting to do lots of improvisation.
Nice pull! Everyone sleeps on Dreaming From the Waist. One of my favorites
I think one of the best bass solos is on Naked Eye from Live at Leeds. He really took that line all over the place, very bluesy. They're way rooted in the blues. This is kind of jazzy, which John could do also.
Pete said he and John would trade riffs. Pete would play some insane & John would instantly play it back. John would play something & Pete would just stand there dumbfounded.
If you want to see him enjoy his craft. Watch "Boris the Spider" LIVE.
They didn't call him "Spiderfingers" for nothing !
Pete Townshend is an amazing rhythm guitarist. He famously mused that he had to be because the bass (John) and drums (Keith) were the lead parts
Might be apocryphal, but Moon was asked why he didn’t play a drum solo. He replied “Do you see anyone else on stage playing drums?”
The best bass guitar track ever recorded....period.
I love that during the chorus, all of the members are doing different things. Given that each band member represents radically different aspects of Jimmy's personality, it's fitting that when Roger sings "Can you see the real me?" it sounds like he can't even see the real his own self.
This is my favorite Bass track. I can't usually hear the Bass but you can't miss it on this track!
A guitarist (Keith Williams, over at Five Watt World) said the same thing about improvisation in a live setting. I wish someone had mentioned that to me around the year 2000 😁 Thanks so much for the reinforcement!
Good advice about improv solos. Never thought of it in this way.👍🏻
Thanks! 😉
From way back then and before, there was a saying about the Who that they were four soloists that played together to make a band. Pretty much sums it up.
Not only was he the band’s bassist, he also played the brass instruments.
Check out the movie soundtrack version of this album. John was the producer and replayed the bass parts and mix. JE was a master and innovator of the bass guitar.
The Who always made room for each other in the arrangements. That was a big part of their trademark sound.
Pete Townsend played lead and rhythm on guitar using anger
John Entwistle played lead and rhythm on bass using a pick
Keith Moon played lead and rhythm on drums using the drumsticks reversed ( thick end first) with added madness
Roger was just one angry individual who feared nothing
No wonder it feels like a 12 course meal
Best rock band that ever was
Your observation that he plays similar to the vocal line makes a lot of sense. I once heard that when writing songs, Pete would write and record the bare bones, and then the other members of the band would write their parts over Pete’s work. So he was probably going off the basic structure of the song that Pete established and added his own embellishments.
John was actually an accomplished multi-instrumentalist so it wouldn’t surprise me if he wrote this whole part in one shot.
Townshend’s demos were legendary for being so polished that they could have been released by a lesser band. He was a total perfectionist. That being said, he did understand that John and Keith were going to do their own thing. He has mentioned many times that he craved a “normal” drummer sometimes.
Nailed it, conversation. I always hear the bass in conversation with the vocals. Almost a Q & A. The character in Quadrophenia is a schizophrenic, very relatable.
Awesome reaction, The Who is one of those bands I always come back to and get locked in rotation. Love these videos, keep em coming🤙
Ned’s Atomic Dustbin: Suave and Sophisticated
Suicide Machines: Hey
Blue Meanies: Smash The Magnavox
I’ve played bass for 53 years and I just can’t believe a “ bass teacher “ has never heard this piece. Go listen to Jack Bruce on Frank Zappa’s Apostrophe for a real lesson on improvisation within a structure 🤪
I think it's funny when younger players discover older musicians and how really good they were. Hey young people it's all been done before you were born....😅😅😅
You know this applies to those older musicians too, right?
this was the transitional song for me as a bassist!
i have always thought of it as him playing a horn line along with the baseline
Probably the best rock bass player of all time. He made stuff on the spot better than most can write. You should see the live version. You can see what he's doing jumping around low and high notes on the neck.
Another Tricky Day is one of his best. Then there is Who Are You....specifically the quite part in the middle of the song where you can faintly hear John playing some acoustic bass notes in the background. For years I never realized it was there, but now it's the best part the song.
You outta check out john entwisle my size from his smash your head against the wall solo album. It's a banger. I read that when in the studio the engineer would ask john to turn down the volume which always would play at 12.
You gotta watch their performance of "My Generation" on The Smothers Brothers show from the '60s. Legendary TV performance. Controlled chaos. That song in particular has some seminal bass runs that paved the way for melodic punk rock bassists like Matt Freeman, et al.
Mimed !
@@ewantaylor4478Was it?! I didn't realize that kind of thing predated Top Of The Pops.
One thing to understand about the ending of the track is that Quadrophenia was written and arranged as a concept "opera" with one track flowing directly into the next, so that snare roll you hear leads directly into the next track ("Quadrophenia" the instrumental title track "overture" in which the four musical themes representing the four members of The Who are presented and elaborated)
If you want a master class on bass , listen to Sister Disco from The Who’s last album w Keith Moon “Who Are You”
John Entwistle plays chords, melodies, root notes and emulates the synthesizer and is completely invisible while serving the song.
I feel it’s the best example of his genius.
You should listen to his isolated bass tracks. Mind blowing.
The Ox-Cam bit on the DVD of "The Kids Are All Right!"!
A great review. I'm a guitar player. I always loved the bass in this song
Interesting analysis, never thought of this bass part quite in this way. The Who were all masters of musical conversation. One can say that's what they were about, above all. This also brought to mind one I very strongly recommend you check out: "Sunshine Help Me," a supercharged live cover of a Spooky Tooth song by a UK 60s band The Move from their live EP entitled Something Else from The Move. It has some of the most intense and purposeful jamming I've ever heard.
This is a horn section part, played on bass.
i adore this song. i whistle the Ox's opening bass line all the time, he is just a master
Thank you for the explanation that improvisation is a conversation. Much appreciation
Glad it was helpful!
Try the jam "Out of the Blue" on George Harrison's "All Things Must Pass". I really like it. It sounds to me like music for crawling along a cliff edge in the dark, with your friends, trying not to fall, from about 3:30, and then they find something solid at 7:30 and its all clear by 8:30. And happy happy joy joy at 11:00..
Best band ever, started late 50s and still going. You gotta listen to The Ox bass solos, awesome!
Band-Maid just released a new OLV for Don't you tell ME. That has an extended bridge/bass/guitar duel you need to check out.
As for John, I think he is beyond legendary. He is one of the main OG's when it comes to the bass.
It's manic because it's inside pillhead Jimmy's addled brain at one of his most frenetic moments. I love this album, and the movie. Got to see them perform the whole thing live in 1994.
The neat thing about the Who is that (as you noted briefly) Townshend kept the rhythm together while the other three added the incredible diversions.... coming together at just the right times. Townshend's writing reflected that. In his solo stuff, that writing style changes because the way the others perform is not there.