10 Underrated Albums By Legendary Bands
6. The Who Sell Out - The Who
As the '60s revolution got underway, it was clear that The Who weren't going to be living in the Mod scene for too much longer. Starting to outgrow the R&B combos of their early years, the band started to take their music in new and experimental directions which culminated in one of their finest conceptual works. And no, I'm not talking about Tommy.
Just before Townshend's magnum opus about the Pinball Wizard, The Who Sell Out shows the band having fun delivering their first full concept record. Made during the time of pirate radios, the entire album is meant to be like a radio broadcast, with the band contributing songs to act as jingles in between the main compositions, from the deodorant ad "Odorono" to the hilarious ad libs on "Heinz Baked Beans".
It's easy to laugh off this as the band having fun in the studio, but songs like "I Can See For Miles" and "Rael" show that Townshend was starting to bring his songwriting into sharper focus. Even if you can't get over the more episodic songs, tracks like "Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand" show that the band was more than capable of writing a catchy pop song. Tommy might be the grander musical vision, but this record is still more than worth your time.