Opening with one of the prettiest melodies Pete has ever written, '
Behind Blue Eyes' rightly became an instant Who classic. A crystal clear acoustic guitar, Roger at his most melodic best and a fluid bass line are used for the first verse. Velvety three part harmonies join in for the second, and then finally Keith joins in to give the song its third and final dimension. The faster central passages - a plea to the creator for confidence and assistance in times of distress - contain some of the most moving lyrics the band have ever used before the band revert back to the gentle opening lines
'Behind Blue Eyes' was intended to be the main song in the film version of 'Lifehouse'. Its origins come from an event that occurred after a concert the band played in Denver in June 1970. Pete was almost tempted by a groupie, so he went back to his room alone and wrote a prayer beginning, "
if my fist clenches, crack it open..."
The Who always had fun 'banishing' Keith from the stage for the beginning of this song. At one show, Pete said they had always had a problem doing good harmonies until they found the problem, and Keith slunk off. Of course he would sneak back on stage to take up his position at his kit ready to come in when needed for the last half of the song
"No one knows what it's like
To be the bad man
To be the sad man
Behind blue eyes
No one knows what it's like
To be hated
To be fated
To telling only lies
But my dreams
They aren't as empty
As my conscience seems to be
I have hours, only lonely
My love is vengeance
That's never free
No one knows what it's like
To feel these feelings
Like I do
And I blame you
No one bites back as hard
On their anger
None of my pain and woe
Can show through
But my dreams
They aren't as empty
As my conscience seems to be
I have hours, only lonely
My love is vengeance
That's never free
When my fist clenches, crack it open
Before I use it and lose my cool
When I smile, tell me some bad news
Before I laugh and act like a fool
If I swallow anything evil
Put your finger down my throat
If I shiver, please give me a blanket
Keep me warm, let me wear your coat
No one knows what it's like
To be the bad man
To be the sad man
Behind blue eyes"
In stark contrast to the gentleness of 'Blue Eyes', a shrill electronic synth riff opens '
Won;t Get Fooled Again'. If there is a key song on 'Whos Next', it is this lengthy call to arms which became the traditional closing song of the main set for most subsequent Who concerts. Based on a clattering synth riff that locks the group into a tight rhythmic performance, 'Fooled Again' is classic mid-period Who at their very best. Pete's block chords firmly in place, John swooping up and down his bass, Roger singing his heart out and Keith an almighty presence - albeit one that is more disciplined than normal due to the inflexibility of the song
With lyrics that address the futility of revolution when the conqueror is likely to become as corrupt as the conquered, the song inspires many a clenched fist, especially when Roger came careering in at the end of the long instrumental passage declaiming the 'bosses' and inciting the kind of scenes that left The Bastille in ruins!
The scream before the final verse is one of the most volatile vocal eruptions ever recorded!
Pete:
"It's really a bit of a weird song. The first verse sounds like a revolution song and the second is like someone getting tired of it. It's an angry anti-establishment song. It's anti people who are negative. A song against the revolution because a revolution is only a revolution and a revolution is not going to change anything at all in the long run, and a lot of people are just going to get hurt."
Released as a
single, the song was hideously edited with numerous, jarring cuts reducing the album track length of 8:33 to a pathetic 3.37, but at least the band appeared on 'Top Of The pops' to perform it
"We'll be fighting in the streets
With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone
And the men who spurred us on
Sit in judgement of all wrong
They decide and the shotgun sings the song
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
The change, it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the fold, that's all
And the world looks just the same
And history ain't changed
'Cause the banners, they are flown in the next war
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
No, no!
I'll move myself and my family aside
If we happen to be left half alive
I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky
Though I know that the hypnotized never lie
Do ya?
There's nothing in the streets
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Are now parting on the right
And the beards have all grown longer overnight
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!
Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!
Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss"