The Who: Ranking Their Albums From Worst To Best

4. Quadrophenia (1973)

Townshend's second rock opera for The Who, this one tells the tale of a young mod Jimmy and his struggles with four distinct personalities, each based on the band members. A personal, almost heartbreaking tale it managed to spawn the 1979 cult film of the same name and various tours, most recently in 2013. With some of the finest songwriting from Pete and some superb musicianship, it makes it a magnificent album. It kicks off with 'The Real Me', a cracking rock tune with a beat that really makes you want to get up and dance. The first half is slightly weaker than the second; there's some great songs such as 'The Punk and the Godfather' and the moving 'Cut my Hair', but a couple of others while still pretty good do feel a bit like filler. The second half kicks off in absolutely cracking fashion with the manic '5.15', one the group's most popular songs, helped along by some of Keith's best drumming as he mimics a train thundering on. Keith gets center stage again in 'Bellboy', with his Cockney tones being a perfect fit for the song's character and again shows off his magnificent drumming in 'Dr Jimmy'- the highlight of that song being the wonderful, moving 'Is it me? ' section delivered beautifully by Daltrey, The final song on the album is one of the Who's most famous and it's not hard to say. Combining some beautiful lyrics, great drumming and Daltrey's finest vocal performance, 'Love Reign O'er Me' is a crashing, brilliant end to a superb album. Best Song: Love Reign O'er Me