The Who - Song by Song

Christian Suchatzki

• Publisher: Fonthill Media
• Year: 2026
• eBook ISBN:
  9781036152598
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Pop Music

A detailed analysis of The Who's sixty-year career, examining every song, influence, and recording insight.

The Who is one of the most energetic and influential bands in rock history. Beginning as a mod band in London’s Shepherd’s Bush, they were shaped in character and style by the Pop Art movement of the Swinging Sixties. They pioneered the rock opera genre with Tommy (1969) and Quadrophenia (1973) before becoming a key influence for the punk revolution of the 1970s, establishing an energy and attitude that has resonated ever since.

During a career spanning sixty years, The Who have released nearly 300 tracks, most during the period of their classic lineup (1964–1978) with lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townsend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. On the one hand their songs are about sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, while on the other they reach much deeper, holding society to account on contemporary subjects, and in one example, the 1972 song ‘Relay’, imagining a futuristic network that has been credited as a prophesy of the internet.

The Who: Song By Song is a forensic examination of every song in the band’s totemic discography, including different versions and background facts. Find out what inspired the songs, how they developed, and what happened during the recording sessions of one of the greatest rock bands of all time.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• 1 The Detours Recording Sessions
• 2 The High Numbers Recording Sessions
• 3 Songs from 1965 Recording Sessions
• 4 My Generation (1965)
• 5 Songs from 1966 Recording Sessions
• 6 A Quick One (1966)
• 7 Songs from 1967 Recording Sessions
• 8 The Who Sell Out (1967)
• 9 Songs from 1968–1969 Recording Sessions
• 10 Tommy (1969)
• 11 Songs from 1970 Recording Sessions
• 12 Who’s Next (1971)
• 13 Songs from 1971 Recording Sessions
• 14 Songs from 1972–1973 Recording Sessions
• 15 Quadrophenia (1973)
• 16 Odds And Sods (1974)
• 17 The Who By Numbers (1975)
• 18 Who Are You (1978)
• 19 Face Dances (1981)
• 20 It’s Hard (1982)
• 21 Endless Wire (2006)
• 22 Who (2019)
• 23 Songs from Later Recording Sessions
• Song Index
• Plates