MAKING OF THE ALBUM: The Who – Tommy

Prior to the release of Tommy in 1969, The Who were more known for their hit singles than the albums that they were released from. The band had become a sensation after songs such as I Can’t Explain, My Generation, Substitute and The Kids are Alright brought them to the attention of the mainstream. Around the time that their second album, A Quick One, was released in 1966, guitarist Pete Townshend had played a sample of an experimental track he had recorded to his manager, Kit Lambert. The song, entitled Gratis Amatis, had been partially composed as a joke and ran at approximately ten minutes, featuring an array of bizarre noises accompanied by high pitched vocals. Although initially considering the music to be ludicrous, both Lambert and Townshend soon began to entertain the idea of a rock opera.

Ostensibly a concept album, Townshend’s idea for the opera would focus around a young man called Tommy, who has grown up to become deaf, dumb and blind after witnessing the murder of his father by his mother and her lover. The album charts his mother’s attempts to cure him of his condition, whilst Tommy is confronted by all manner of sin. Having been raised by a successful composer, Constant Lambert, Kit Lambert was enthusiastic about Townshend’s ideas and took on the role of the producer, influencing the band to move away from the simplistic pop sound of their earlier albums and into something darker and more mature. Townshend was passionate about the project and wrote dozens of songs, many of which were scrapped during production, whilst the album went under a variety of different titles before eventually settling on Tommy. Some of these earlier suggestions included Deaf, Dumb and Blind Boy, Journey into Space and The Brain Opera.

The recording of Tommy commenced on September 19th 1968 at IBC Studios in London, the same facility that had been the home for A Quick One, as well as the Small Faces‘ 1966 self-titled debut, Are You Experienced by The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Goodbye by Cream. Being the principal composer, the majority of the material was written by Townshend, although bassist John Entwistle would contribute two tracks. During the sessions, Townshend would clash with Lambert on numerous occasions due to the sound of the album, which he felt was too clean and tame, whilst Lambert also insisted that an orchestra be brought in. Townshend, who wanted the band to be able to perform the album on tour, refused and only allowed keyboards and Entwistle’s French horn.

In 1969, when Tommy was released, rock concept albums were largely unheard of. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles did not have a solid narrative and it would be another decade before Pink Floyd produced The Wall. Thus, Tommy was a remarkable achievement and took critics by surprise, many of whom had not considered The Who to be the kind of band who would be capable of producing something so sophisticated. A Top Ten hit in the UK, despite the subject matter being far from commercial the album would be followed by three successful singles, with Pinball Wizard reaching no. 4 in the charts. Six years later, controversial British filmmaker Ken Russell would direct a feature adaptation of Tommy that would star The Who‘s Roger Daltrey in the title role (as well as a cameo from drummer Keith Moon) and would feature performances from Oliver Reed, Tina Turner, Elton John, Eric Clapton and Jack Nicholson.