The High Numbers--Their Greatest Hits

The High Numbers? What, you're telling me you've never heard of The High Numbers? Well, if it's any consolation, I've never heard of them either--that is, until I picked up Thirty Years Of Maximum R & B--The Who. The 64-page booklet that accompanies this boxed set is packed with information, and from there is where I learned that The High Numbers was one of the earliest incarnations of The Who, one of the most legendary and enduring bands of our time. If my title made you think, scratch your head and read this far, I've accomplished my purpose.

Thirty Years Of Maximum R & B--The Who is a definitive collection of the music of The Who. This was a band that evolved over time--anyone who reads my music reviews knows that I believe that the trademark of a good band is its' ability to evolve and reach uncharted musical territory with each successive album. This boxed set captures the evolution of The Who perfectly, from their mod-rock beginnings through their later, and some say disappointing, work.

Thirty Years Of Maximum R & B--The Who covers the period from 1964 through 1991. It's a four-disc set with probably close to a hundred tracks--I haven't bothered to count them, and as they say when drinking beer, who's counting anyway? This compilation contains many previously unreleased tracks, as well as several live cuts, including some from the mythical Live At Leeds album. To top off the package, the library-quality booklet contains a thorough history of The Who, as well as a discography, track listing with song data, and some absolutely priceless photographs of The High Numbers--er, uh, The Who.

Disc One one chronicles the humble beginnings of The Who, with mod-rock songs like I Can't Explain and Pictures Of Lily. Big hits like Substitute and The Kids Are Alright show up here, and songs like the quirky Happy Jack and the dark Boris The Spider hint at the future direction that this band would take.

Disc Two illustrates The Who's experiment with conceptual rock (a la Sgt. Pepper) with cuts taken from The Who Sell Out like I Can See For Miles, Jaguar, and Tattoo, as well as live versions of Summertime Blues, Young Man Blues, and See Me, Feel Me from the sizzling Leeds University concert. The band's foray into the progressive area of rock opera is documented with Pinball Wizard and Acid Queen.

Disc Three features The Who at their creative peak--songs taken from Who's Next, arguably their finest album, include Baba O'Riley, Behind Blue Eyes, and the politically accurate Won't Get Fooled Again. Many cuts from Quadrophenia appear here also--many might argue that this album represents the summit of this band's career, and they might be right, but I much prefer the earlier stuff.

Disc Four compiles some of the the later post-Keith Moon work of The Who--although Kenney Jones was and is a great drummer, no one could energize The Who like Moon. This disc offers several rare live tracks like My Wife, Dreaming From The Waist, and Naked Eye that capture the feel of a live performance by The Who. All in all, this is the least satisfying disc in the set, partially because of Moon's absence on several of the tracks, as well as the weakness of some of the later material.

Thirty Years Of Maximum R & B--The Who is a must-own for any fan of The Who. The rare live and unreleased tracks make it well worth the price of admission, and the set as a whole memorializes the evolution of one of the greatest rock 'n roll bands of our time.

Thanks for reading.