Maybe this can be a new regular feature of RTH.
I was just reading a little bit about Pete Townshend‘s latest recycling effort, a classical version of Quadrophenia to be released on 22 June:
Pete Townshend’s symphonic reimagining of The Who’s Quadrophenia will be released by classical label Deutsche Grammophon this June.
The album has been orchestrated by his partner, Rachel Fuller and includes Pete on electric guitar on the record. English tenor Alfie Boe provides most of the vocals – there is no participation from Roger Daltrey.
orchestrated by Rachel Fuller
Featuring Pete Townshend – Alfie Boe – Billy Idol · Phil Daniels
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Robert ZieglerIf you want more details/track listing you can go here: http://www.spincds.com/coming-soon/pete-townshend-s-classic-quadrophenia-cd
Now, Pete ranks up there with Bowie and Costello for most frequent reissues. Pete’s churning doesn’t need to be as expensive as Bowie’s or Costello’s because the Who catalogue really isn’t that extensive. And I stopped being tempted several years ago.
But…
Quadrophenia is probably my favorite Who album and this does tempt me. I fear, though, that the reality will be far less than the possibilities I imagine now in theory. I’d hope that it will really be something different and I fear it will be the same old Quadrophenia with some strings/brass taped over it.
I can’t say this teaser does much to make me hopeful:
How about you? Tempted? Or not tempted?
Nope. Not even a teensy bit. I mean, let’s be serious.
I can hardly get interested in most reissues these days. If it’s a record I don’t have, and the price is okay, I’ll get one if I need it. I won’t go out of my way for most of them unless it’s The Stones and there’s something genuinely interesting about it, like the Exile and Some Girls reissues with the bonus disks, I know some people didn’t like them, but I’d rather hear a finished song than just a perfect copy of some bootlegged track with no vocals. If I liked Led Zeppelin, I’d have been interested in some of the recent reissues there, but I really couldn’t care less with those.
This Quadrophenia thing sounds absolutely awful to me. Didn’t he already do something like Quadrophenia Goes Broadway? Isn’t he getting bored just rehashing his life over and over? Hell, why not go join Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings or something and at least have some fun once in awhile.
Not tempted. At all. Not with a classically trained tenor doing the singing. NFW. I’m tempted to say Pete shouldn’t be wasting his time on something like this, but maybe it’s better than him making another album as listless as Endless Wire.
I’m also not tempted to see ‘the Who’ when they play at my local arena in May. I really do love Pete, but he’s turning 70 this year, and I think he should enjoy his retirement.
I don’t like the singing either!
The jokes about “Hope I die before I get old” are just too easy, aren’t they?
Good point about Endless Wire. Some say the world will end in fire, some say in ice…
Well, then just change it to “I hope I don’t die before I get old.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvC6jDrxT-U
As BjgSteve noted, opera singing is a major deal breaker. There’s no form of singing I find more useless. I know some fine, fine people who actually love opera. I’m always tempted to chew them out and stop being their friend when the subject comes up, but I think better of it. It’s hard to control myself.
TEMPTED! Come on, Hearing that tenor guy do something with the Keith Moon parts from “Bellboy” should be worth the price of admission alone!
SO not interested in this. It’s sad to me to see Pete talking about this project and ignoring the little voice in his head that tells him how lame this is. It seems like he knows it’s lame. He seems like he’s in pain.
You know that within a week of the album’s release, all the tracks will be on YouTube. I propose a RTH pool on the topic of how the Keith Moon Bellboy spoken word bits will be handled. Possible choices:
1. Choir of angels
2. Croaking bassoon
3. Tenor guy “singing” them
4. Ignored/excised from the libretto
… any others?
Wait a minute: BILLY IDOL is involved in this fiasco?! Surely he must play the bellboy!