The Who Albums Ranked: Where Rock n’ Roll Became an Art Form

The Who was, in many ways, a band comprised of extremists. They were louder, artsier, and more creatively ambitious than the vast majority of their peers. And they knew it too! That’s the reason why their music has survived so well, and their albums are ranked as some of the best in the rock world.

Yet, for many, The Who took some adjusting to. Their music wasn’t as melodically pleasant as that of The Beatles. They did not create the mystique of The Rolling Stones. And, they weren’t as enamored with ol’ Britain as The Kinks. Quite frankly, it wasn’t always easy to like The Who, some of its members in particular.

But, nonetheless, The Who achieved tremendous things. That’s why today I’m practicing my windmill, getting ready to break everything in sight and ranking The Who’s discography, from their worst album to their very best.

The Who Albums Ranked

12. “It’s Hard” (1982)

An album title has rarely been more fitting. The Who confidently approaches the 80s pop-rock starting blocks but finds out they’re ill-equipped to participate in the charts race.

A good reason for that is that The Who’s sound was, even at best, abrasive. Hard-rock fans, in particular, love them. But neither Daltrey’s vocals nor Townshend’s distorted chord playing lend themselves easily to pop hooks.

The other problem is that The Who, with or without Keith Moon, had been floating around rather aimlessly for a while.

Still, “Eminence Front,” the melodic “Athena,” and the introspective “It’s Hard” save this from being a total waste of time.

The band announced a farewell tour in 1984. It was so well attended that their farewell tours have taken place until very recently.

11. “Endless Wire” (2006)

Turns out fans were delighted to have The Who return to the live stage. They were less excited about the new album, “Endless Wire,” which is a shame. At its best, it achieves what it sets out to – it’s a nice continuation of The Who’s best moments. No, it’s not an embarrassment as “It’s Hard” was perceived to be by many.

The fact is that by this stage, Pete Townshend had carved out a nice solo career (as did the other members of The Who), and his songwriting skills remain intact, albeit make a powerful impact less often. Furthermore, Daltrey remains the best interpreter of the guitarist’s songs.

“Mike Post Theme” and “Pick Up the Peace” are great. The six-song suite dubbed by Townshend to be a mini-opera shows that the artist’s ambition never diminished. Still, there’s no word on whether “Endless Wire” will ever get plundered by Wes Anderson.

10. “Face Dances” (1981)

Fans of The Who remain divided over the group’s non-Keith Moon albums. “Face Dances” is the first and features a rock sound that could’ve only belonged to the 1980s. It’s not as terrible as reputation would have you believe, containing a few of the band’s best songs in some time.

The fact is that Kenney Jones is a cracking drummer, and a former member of the legendary The Faces. Drunk or (rarely) sober, few bands rocked as hard as they did!

But it’s just as true that Keith Moon was not just a musician. He was the band’s mascot and pacemaker.

Finally, while Townshend produced marvelous work in the past, great songs weren’t coming as easily or as quickly.

Still, “You Better You Bet” is one of The Who’s most palatable pop singles. And “How Can You Do It Alone” shows that for Townshend, the road from the pub to the ashram was always a short one.

9. “The Who by Numbers” (1975)

The album title and artwork may indicate that the band is finally ready to poke fun at itself. But, let loose and unconstrained by hefty concepts, “The Who by Numbers” delivers some of the band’s best 1970s pub rock.

The boozer is prominently represented, of course. All of the songs allude to alcohol use and other vices. Pete Townshend veers from cheeky stories to tales of outright despair.

“How Many Friends” and “However Much I Booze” are popish cries for help. But “Squeeze Box” is the song for which the album is best known. Cheeky, cheeky stuff!

8. “WHO” (2019)

The Who pay tribute to themselves and to their generation on “WHO,” what many believe may be their final album.

While there’s more than a hint of nostalgia to the record, Townshend has remained ever restless, asking difficult questions of the world around him.

“Ball and Chain,” “All This Music Must Fade,” and “Hero Ground Zero” are fine songs. They help to make “WHO,” against the odds, one of the finer entries into their lengthy discography.

7. “Who Are You” (1978)

Like many bands of their generation, The Who’s musicians became victims of their own success. “Who Are You” is a hazy constructed affair and the sad closing chapter of Keith Moon’s career and life.

Of course, the title track, “Who Are You,” finds the band at its best, mixing hard-rock and experimental tendencies.

The rest of the songs on “Who Are You,” however, show a relatively tired and morose group not knowing whether to pivot toward disco or go back to rock.

It’s not a terrible record, sure. But it’s remembered mainly as the end of an era, with Keith Moon tragically passing away in 1978, succumbing to the temptations offered by the rockstar lifestyle.

6. “A Quick One” (1966)

The Who’s musicians were known to destroy their musical instruments on stage burdened by so much nervous energy. In the studio, they took a similar approach. “A Quick One” restates the group’s creative restlessness.

John Entwistle’s “Boris the Spider” is cheerfully entertaining. But the absolute highlight is “A Quick One While He’s Away.” Here, Pete Townshend begins his exploration of what would become the rock opera format.

In a time when most bands who weren’t The Beatles or The Rolling Stones, were happy to just follow their lead, The Who used “A Quick One” to show that they had a unique vision and were confident in it.

5. “My Generation” (1965)

Hearing The Who’s debut, “My Generation,” it’s easy to understand why the punk took a shine to the band more than a decade later. British Invasion music had never sounded more muscular.

In fact, almost everything is dialed to its extreme. The guitars are distorted, the bass and drums play solos in the middle of songs, and Roger Daltrey often wails over songs.

Your appreciation of this will depend on your love or dislike of early garage rock. But regardless, songs like “My Generation” and “The Kids Are Alright” came to define an era.

4. “Tommy” (1969)

The Who used the British Invasion to carve a unique path. “Tommy” was the culmination of the band’s ideas, a rock opera that was immediately embraced by the public and transformed the members into some of the most marketable artists of their generation.

Is it any good? A lot of it is. Does the entire story make sense? No, exactly, but then again it’s a more cohesive concept record than most.

What I can admit is that “Tommy” does capture the ambitious “anything is achievable” spirit of 1960s rock. What I can’t claim is that I listen to the thing in its entirety often and have my doubts about most other rock listeners as well.

There are even a couple of tracks on here that can easily stand on their own. “Pinball Wizard” and “I’m Free” became mainstays of The Who’s famous live shows.

These concerts were experiences. The band had worked their garage-rock presentation into an art form. Furthermore, gear destruction or drum sets filled with explosives could at any time become part of the experience.

The pioneering work of “Tommy” was immediately acknowledged. The Who showcased the show for royalty and turned it into a film starring Daltrey and directed by Ken Russell, and are still known to bust out “Pinball Wizard” whenever live crowds demand it.

3. “The Who Sell Out” (1967)

In the year that “Sgt. Pepper’s” came out, The Who produced their own concept record. “The Who Sell Out” is devised as a pirate radio station broadcast and delivers some of the band’s best songs.

The Who shines especially bright when toying around with psychedelic-pop such as on “Armenia City in the Sky,” “I Can See for Miles,” and “Pictures of Lily.”

Townshend writes great songs. The band is creatively ambitious. And in Keith Moon and John Entwistle they have two of the most competent musicians in rock. But, no, The Who doesn’t sound pretty. This makes for a take-it-or-leave-it factor. There are harmonies, but rarely do they resemble The Zombies or The Turtles.

As always, Townshend’s songwriting reveals a distrust of the pop star role. This is overall ironic, considering that The Who produced their best pop songs for “The Who Sell Out.”

2. “Quadrophenia” (1973)

It was inevitable that The Who would write another rock opera one day. “Quadrophenia” builds on the ideas used in “Tommy.” But this time around, the band has fully embraced hard rock, and the storyline makes much more sense.

“Quadrophenia” romanticizes the story of the 1960s youth wars between the mods and the rockers. It’s a tale of youthful rebellion, fashion, and trendy vehicles.

Like “Tommy,” “Quadrophenia” is best appreciated when heard as a whole. But, also like “Tommy,” a few of the tracks can easily get by on their own.

“Quadrophenia” was also turned into a movie that’s become something of a cult classic. Check out Sting as Ace Face. More recently it became a Broadway production.

Of these, “The Real Me” and “Love, Reign o’er Me” have survived best and have been covered by groups as diverse as W.A.S.P. or Pearl Jam. In fact, although I’m surprised, The Who may well be one of the most influential rock bands of all time.

1. “Who’s Next” (1971)

Say what you will about The Who, but the band certainly fought hard against self-imitation. “Who’s Next” started out as a new rock opera but degenerated into an unlinked set of songs. Luckily, it’s the best song that The Who ever laid to tape.

At their best, The Who was a positively monstrous live group. That’s why the group has put out so many concert recordings.

Getting the sound down in the studio proved trickier. “Who’s Next” comes closest to fulfilling that mission.

The songs themselves are muscular and anthemic. “Baba O’Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again” set up The Who for a lifetime of arena rock triumphs.

And to think that it could’ve all been ruined if Pete Townshend had managed to complete “Lifehouse,” the quasi-spiritual concept album that forced him into a nervous breakdown.