Maximum R&B: The 'Orrible 'Oo

[nosferatu42]

I'm enjoying these song breakdowns more than most i guess, Sell out is my favourite actual Who album i think, i love Tommy and quadrophenia but i would class them as concept albums, I realise it's a concept album in terms of design i guess, but it doesn't tell an actual story. so i guess what i'm trying to say is Sell out is probably my favourite actual album, the stupid ads add to the charm i feel.
What's for tea?

[Susan Foreman]

12/13: Pretty much a Pete solo song - the first of many that would appear throughout the rest of the bands catalogue - 'Sunrise' finds him in a romantic mood, picking on an acoustic guitar, using jazzy chords and singing a beautiful high-pitched melody which would have been beyond Roger's range

"You take away the breath I was keeping for sunrise
You appear and the morning looks drab in my eyes
And then again I'll turn down love
Having seen you again
Once more you'll disappear
My morning put to shame

You take away the breath I was keeping for sunrise
You appear and the morning looks drab in my eyes
And then again I'll turn down love
Having seen you again
Once more you'll disappear
My morning put to shame

Sometimes I fear that this will go on my life through
Each day I spend in an echoed vision of you
And then again I'll turn down love
Remembering your smile
My every day is spent
Thinking of you all the while

The times I've let myself down
My head's spinning 'round
My eyes see only you
The chances I've lost
Opportunities tossed
Away and into the blue

You take away the breath I was keeping for sunrise
You appear and the morning looks drab in my eyes
And then again I'll turn down love
Having seen you again
Then again you'll disappear
My morning put to shame"

13/13: The chord progression for the second half of 'Rael 1' would be later used as a central theme on the 'Tommy' album! On its first outing here, however, it forms the climax to Pete's second mini-opera. 'Rael' is a much more balanced affair than 'A Quick One' and, it is an ethereal, unearthly song

It's been suggested that it is a political song, with 'Rael' being a shortened form of 'Israel', and the Red Chins mentioned in the lyrics being the Red Chinese. I don't know if this is a factual reading or not, but it seems certain that Rael is meant to be a place...

"The Red Chins in their millions
Will overspill their borders
And chaos then will reign in our Rael

Rael, the home of my religion
To me the center of the Earth

The Red Chins in their millions
Will overspill their borders
And chaos then will reign in our Rael

My heritage is threatened
My roots are torn and cornered
And so to do my best I'll homeward sail
And so to do my best I'll homeward sail

Now Captain, listen to my instructions
Return to this spot on Christmas Day
Look toward the shore for my signal
And then you'll know if in Rael I'll stay

If a yellow flag is fluttering
Sickly herald against the morn
Then you'll know my courage has ended
And you'll send your boat ashore

But if a red flag is flying
Brazen bold against the blue
Then you'll know that I am staying
And my yacht belongs to you

Now Captain, listen to my instructions
Return to this spot on Christmas Day
Look toward the shore for my signal
And then you'll know if in Rael I'll stay

He's crazy if he thinks we're coming back again
He's crazy if he thinks we're coming back again
He's crazy if he thinks we're coming back again
He's crazy, anyway

If a yellow flag is fluttering
Sickly herald against the morn
Then you'll know my courage has ended
And you'll send your boat ashore"

...which the coda, 'Rael 2' makes clear. This short song was edited out of the song, and wasn't released until the 1994 box set 'Thirty Years Of Maximum R&B'. What Pete *has* said about the song is that the plot concerns the Chinese "crushing established religion as their expanding population takes over the whole world". But interpretations are meaningless as Pete himself has admitted "No one will ever know what it means. It has been squeezed up too tightly to make sense!"

"What I see is all I've seen,
In my sweetest sleep in dreams,
What I feel is all I've felt,
When by newborn babes I've knelt,
What I know now is all I've known,
That has been good while I have grown,
Bless the thoughts that made me sail
And the God who made Rael."

[Susan Foreman]

Following the original release, 'The Who Sell Out' has been reissued twice with additional tracks

In 1995, an expanded version of the album was released. Containing all the songs and adverts from the 1967 one, it also contained:

'Rael 2', which has already been mentioned
'Glittering Girl'
'Melancholia' - a slower song when compared to the other tracks the band were producing at the time
'Someone's Coming' - a lightweight pop song, the first time Roger sang something written by John. Originally released as the 'B'-side to 'i Can See For miles'
'Jaguar' - one of the heaviest songs ever recorded by the band
'Early Morning cold Taxi - a straightforward pop song, written by Who roadie Dave Langston
'The Hall Of The Mountain King' - Instrumental, based on Grieg's 'Peer Gynt' Suite
'Girl's Eyes' - A sweet 1960's pop song, written and sang by Keith
An alternate version of 'Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand'
'Glow Girl' - A rock and roll airplane crash song with a real Pop Art plane crash and a happy reincarnation ending. like 'Rael', some themes from the song (and the last line) reappear in 'Tommy'!

Then, in 2005, the album was released in a double CD deluxe edition. This contained all the songs from the original 1967 album in stereo mix on disc one, and mono mix on disc two. Bonus tracks were also added to both discs

Disc one has:
'Rael Naive' was a retitled version of 'Rael 2'
Someone's Coming / Early Morning Cold Taxi / Jaguar had been released as extra tracks on the 1995 edition
'Coke After Coke' was another joke advert
Glittering Girl was on the 1995 edition
'Summertime Blues' was a hard rocking version of the Eddie Cochran classic - proof positive that the band had moved away from their Mod beginnings! The song, which was already a staple part of their live shows, was released as a single in 1970
'John Mason Cars was another joke advert
Girl's Eyes was on the 1995 edition
'Sodding About' is the band jamming on a very heavy instrumental
'Premier Drums' is a joke advert where Keith gets free reign!
Odorono (final verse) / Mary Anne with the Shaky Hand (Alternate Version) have already been mentioned
'Things Go Better With Coke' is another advert
In the Hall of the Mountain King was on the 1995 edition
'Top Gear'
'Rael 1 & 2' is both parts of the song joined together

Disc 2 has demos, alternate versions and / or mixes of:
Mary Anne with the Shaky Hand / Someone's Coming / Relax / Jaguar / Glittering Girl / Tattoo / Our Love Was / I Can See for Miles / Rael
also on the disc is
'Rotosound Strings' is another advert, but this version includes a 'final note'!

There are also a couple of very interesting hidden tracks on side 2. Both appear after the 'Rael' (early mono mix):
'Armenia City in the Sky' is an unusual backward instrumental version of the song. Very acid rock!
'Great Shakes' is a previously unreleased American only advert

[Susan Foreman]

If the bands debut single 'I Can't Explain' was Pete channeling his inner Kinks, then 'Dogs', released as a single in June 1968, must have Pete paying homage to The Small Faces!

The song is performed in a Cocker-nee rock style, similar to that used by Steve Marriott in 'Lazy Sunday'!

A complex song about the British working class males love of greyhound racing, beer and meat pies, it is almost comic, but with just the right amount of Who-like influences and performance to suggest that they actually mean it

The vocal 'armonies are quite luvverly, guv'nor!

The song references two actually dogs that had who raced in the 1968 English Greyhound Derby - 'Camira Flash' and 'Yellow Printer'

Roger:

"The song was a tribute to Ronnie Lane. It'd been better if Pete had just given the song to Ronnie in the first place. As a Who record, it was all a bit frivolous for me"

"The first time we met you were a kennel maid,
You gave me a tip I got me forecast paid,
You were holding a greyhound in trap number one,
Your white coat was shining in the afternoon sun.

Now we're both together,
We're never gonna break apart, no no,
'Cause we're a happy couple you and me,
With a greyhound at either knee.

I'll have ten shillings to win on Camera Flash, young man,
What dog's that, it's a deuce, look at it.

There was nothing in my life bigger than beer,
There was nothing in my life bigger than beer,
'Ceptin' you, little darling,
'Ceptin' you, little darling,
We're a happy couple you and me,
With a greyhound at either knee.

We go to the dog track on Saturday night,
We put all our money on a dog that we like,
A kiss and a cuddle, a hot meat pie,
Two dollar tickets and a starry sky.

There was nothing in my life bigger than beer,
There was nothing in my life bigger than beer,
'Ceptin' you, little darling,
'Ceptin' you, little darling,
We're a happy couple you and me,
With a baby on either knee.

Yes it's you little darling,
Yes it's you little darling,
Now it's you little darling,
Now it's you.

Girl, where's me wage packet ?????,
Ah I'll put twenty-five knicker please on Gallop Printer,
Oh, I hope the wife don't find out,
Yes, it's sure to win, isn't it,
Yes, I know, it's a good dog, I saw it run at White City,
Just last week, broke the record, Gallop Printer,
Nice dog, yes, lovely form, lovely buttocks."

The 'B'-side to the UK release was 'Call Me Lightning'. This was one of the first songs Pete wrote around the time of 'I Can't Explain' in 1965 and it was even considered for release as the first single. The song has a mildly funky R&B feel, complete with doo-wop backing vocals.

Roger emotes as best he can, singing lyrics that only Pete could probably understand, and John gets a nice bass solo towards the end

"See that girl who's smiling so brightly,
Well I reckon she's cool and I reckon rightly,
She's good looking and I ain't frightened,
I'm gonna show you why they call me lightning.

Hey little girl who's dancing so lightly,
My XKE is shining so brightly,
The noose around us is slowly tightening,
I'm gonna show you why they call me lightning.

Hey little girl who's dancing so lightly,
My XKE is shining so brightly,
The noose around us is slowly tightening,
I'm gonna show you why they call me lightning.

You can't catch me, I'm as fast as can be,
Call me lightning, I'm as fast as can be,
No you can't catch me, no you can't catch me."

'Dogs' was ignored in the US - maybe it was too-British - so 'Call Me Lightning' was released as the 'A'-side in America. The 'B'-side they got was a song called 'Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde' which was written by John about Keith's drinking

Attempting to translate Hammer Horror into Who music succeeds with a typical macabre tune with a sinister opening, menacing bass guitar and a spooky French horn. John's bass carries the song, and at the end he manages to produce both a wicked scream and a chilling growl

"Hyde, Hyde.

Someone is spending my money for me,
The money I earn I never see,
In all things I do he interferes,
All I know is trouble as soon as he appears.

Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Hyde.

When I drink my potion my character changes,
My whole mind and body rearranges,
This strange transformation takes place in me,
Instead of myself everybody can see...

Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Hyde.

Whenever you're with me make sure it's still me,
I've got to the stage I can't tell which I'll be,
The loveable fellow who'll buy you a drink,
Then when he's drunk his he'll change in a wink into...

Hyde, Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Mister Hyde, Hyde."

[Susan Foreman]

Although it was written in 1965, and touted as a follow up single to 'My Generation', 'Magic Bus' was not actually recorded and released until October 1968

With its Bo Diddley beat and room for guitar improvisation, Pete loved the song. John, however, anchored to a chugging 'A' chord, hated it. There wasn't a lot of opportunity for Keith either, tapping away on his little wooden clave blocks while Pete and Roger traded lines about buying the magic bus for 'one hundred of your English pounds'!

The 'B'-side of the single had already been released - the UK had 'Dr Jekyl And Mr. Hyde', which had been released as the flip to 'Dogs' in the US, while the US had 'Someones Coming' which the UK had on the 'I Can See For Miles' single release

At the same time as the single, the band also released their first compilation albums. In September 1968, 'Magic Bus: The Who On Tour' was released in the US and Canada

Members of the group, and Pete in particular, have frequently expressed their dislike of this release

The somewhat deceptive title implied that the songs had been recorded live, but all the recordings were from the studio. The track list duplicates a few songs from the second and third US albums, but also contains single and EP tracks that were previously unavailable on a US album

Track listing:
Side 1:
Disguises
Run Run Run
Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
I Can't Reach You
Our Love Was, Is
Call Me Lightning

Side 2:
Magic Bus
Someone's Coming
Doctor, Doctor
Bucket T.
Pictures Of Lily

In the UK, the compilation album 'Direct Hits' was released in October 1968.

It contains singles, 'B'-sides, and album tracks that were originally recorded for Reaction Records and Track Records between 1966 and 1968. Earlier recordings, such as 'My Generation', were released on the Brunswick label and were therefore not available for inclusion on the record making 'Direct Hits' very unrepresentative of The Who's work up to that point!

Track listing:

Side 1:
Bucket 'T'
I'm A Boy
Pictures Of Lily
Doctor! Doctor!
I Can See For Miles
Substitute

Side 2:
Happy Jack
The Last Time
In The City
Call Me Lightning
Mary Anne With The Shaky Hand
Dogs

[Susan Foreman]

Album #4:
Tommy

The Who might have made 'Tommy', but 'Tommy' certainly made The Who! That's the popular conception of the rock opera that took the band and made them into both global superstars and millionaires within the space of 12 months. There is no doubt that 'Tommy' saved the band from financial ruin, but it also proved to be a weighty albatross around their necks which continues to this day. Although the later 'Quadrophenia' album might be a more adult and complex piece, with superior writing, playing, singing and production, it is 'Tommy' for which The Who will be remembered for, apart from maybe the 'My Generation' single

Recorded with Kit Lambert in the producers chair at London's IBC Studios during the early months of 1969, 'Tommy' brought together all of Pete's influences and aspirations in one great rag-bag of ideas and ideals. The character of Tommy is a messiah figure who is elevated despite enormous disabilities to an other-worldly loftiness before being being brought down to reality and ultimately being turned into a rock superstar deity. That is one view, which explains why Meher Baba, the Indian spiritual figure who Pete had recently become attracted to, is credited as avatar. Another view is that 'Tommy' is just 90 minutes of bloody great rock music with the form being explored every which way with extraordinary precision and timing and thus becoming a text book on riffing, rock harmonies, interlocking rhythms, electric and acoustic guitar backing, bass fluidity, vocal harmonies and pretty much every other skill that a premier league rock band needs to be equipped with

There is an almost mathematical precision to 'Tommy' in which the musical motifs are introduced into 'The Overture' then repeated at various moments throughout, Because these motifs crop up repeatedly in this manner, 'Tommy' becomes much easier to listen to and understand on first hearing than a double album of non-interconnected songs

On stage, 'Tommy' took on a whole new dimension and anyone who saw it live in the late 60's saw The Who at the top of their game. Roger *became* Tommy, and the image of him bare chested in a tasselled jacket with long blonde curly hair is the perfect dictionary definition of what a 'rock god' is.

It's no wonder that Robert Plant emulated the look when he was in Zeppelin!

The original album release was opulently packaged in a beautifully designed triple gatefold sleeve, complete with booklet containing the song lyrics. The outer cover was used to show the experience of being in a world without conventional senses - it is limitless and unbounded yet trapped in an environment made for people who have all their senses. The cover used the form of the globe to represent both the Earth and Self floating in an endless infinite black universe like space. A space that can never be touched, only imagined, while the inner cover depicts a wall with wall lights as a symbol of domestic space. It is a space we can all touch and a room we all live in, but the light from the lamps does not behave as in *our* sighted world - it does not anchor objects to surfaces but appears to shift and change under Tommy’s searching fingers

Despite the perfect timing of the album – the mystical themes were perfect for the late 60's 'Age of Aquarius' – 'Tommy' stalled at #2 in the UK and #4 in the US, but in America it stayed on the charts for 126 weeks which was far longer than any other of their album releases

A proper opera needs a proper 'Overture', and 'Tommy' is no exception. Like all overtures, this one contains a well aranged, mixed bag of of instrumental versions of snatches of songs that will follow, most of them linked by the rumbling, bass-heavy riff from 'Go To The Mirror'. The guitar parts, played on an acoustic Gibson J200, set the mood for what is to come, but John's French horn adds interesting melodic touches and (as ever) the choral work and drums are superb. The best moment in the overturn comes near the end, when an organ arrives to pound out the 'Listening To You' medley

'It's A Boy' details Tommy's birth. This is a short piece, sang in a high register by Pete. This song was adapted from the ending of the then-unreleased song 'Glow Girl'

[Susan Foreman]

For all the lightness of the tune, '1921' is a dark song. Tommy's father shoots his wife's lover. Tommy's father was assumed missing ['Captain Walker didn't come home, his unborn child will never know him. Believed to be missing with a number of men, Don't expect to see him again'] before Tommy was born. We then move forward three years after the war to 1921, and we find that the mother is involved with someone else. For the two of them, '1921 is going to be a good year.' Then Tommy's father bursts through the door, and shoots the lover. [Note - There was a gunshot effect that was removed from the record]. Tommy sees this traumatic event in the mirror - this is not obvious, but the key is that in the background vocals of '1921' you get reflections -- 'You didn't hear it (I heard it)' and so forth

This was changed by Ken Russell in the movie so that it was the father who was killed

An early version of the song contained the line 'I had no reason to be over-optimistic, but I dreamed that you'd be faithful and wait for me forever.'

The song raises a number of problems, both with the narrative of the story - Tommy being born after the first world war makes no sense. In the film version, this was sensibly altered to the second world war, which makes the use of pinball machines and holiday camps much more believable

More worrying is the fact that Tommy (as we would now know) was the victim of being bullied and child abuse - 'You didn't hear it, You didn't see it, You won't say nothing to no one ever in your life What you know is the truth'

On the US release, the title was changed to 'You Didn't Hear It.'

"Lover:

I've got a feeling twenty one
Is going to be a good year.
Especially if you and me
See it in together.

Father:

So you think 21 is going to be a good year.
It could be for me and her,
But you and her - no never!
I had no reason to be over optimistic,
But somehow when you smiled
I could brave bad weather

Mother:

What about the boy?
What about the boy?
What about the boy?
He saw it all!

Mother and Father:

You didn't hear it (I heard it)
You didn't see it. (I saw it)
You won't say nothing to no one
ever in your life.
You never heard it
Oh how absurd it
All seems without any proof.
You didn't hear it (I heard it)
You didn't see it (I saw it)
You never heard it not a word of it.
You won't say nothing to no one
Never tell a soul
What you know is the Truth.

I've got a feeling twenty-one
Is going to be a good year
Especially if you and me
See it in together

I've got a feeling twenty-one
Is going to be a good year
Especially if you and me
See it in together

I had no reason
To be over optimistic
But somehow when you smiled
I can brave bad weather

What about the boy?"

'Amazing Journey' is the first great rock song on the album and a song which was the cornerstone for the entire 'Tommy' project. Keith leads the way with some incredible drums. On the record, backward tapes are used to emphasize the state of Tommy's unbalanced mind. 'Amazing Journey' is one of the many songs on the album that come to life on the stage, and it segues directly into the instrumental 'Sparks', which contains a deep rooted, rumbling riff that slides into the melody that was previously used in the song 'Rael'

Unfortunately, because the two songs are joined, there is a nasty and disjointed cut when the two individual tracks are played on You Tube, so I have included a live version from the 2004 Isle of Wight festival

Amazing Journey
"Deaf Dumb and blind boy
He's in a quiet vibration land
Strange as it seems his musical dreams
Ain't quite so bad.

Ten years old
With thoughts as bold as thought can be
Loving life and becoming wise
In simplicity.

Sickness will surely take the mind
Where minds can't usually go.
Come on the amazing journey
And learn all you should know.

A vague haze of delerium
creeps up on me.
All at once a tall stranger I suddenly see.
He's dressed in a silver sparked
Glittering gown
And His golden beard flows
Nearly down to the ground.

Nothing to say and nothing to hear
And nothing to see.
Each sensation makes a note in my symphony.

Sickness will surely take the mind
Where minds can't usually go.
Come on the amazing journey
And learn all you should know.

His eyes are the eyes that
Transmit all they know.
Sparkle warm crystalline glances to show
That he is your leader
And he is your guide
On the amazing journey together you'll ride."

[Susan Foreman]

Closing the first side of the first record is 'Eyesight To The Blind'. This is the only cover to be included on the album, and was recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson in 1951. Originally a 12-bar blues song, Pete re-wrote some of the lyrics and beefed up the tune but the track is still credited to Sonny Boy Williamson as the writer

There's some confusion about the actual title of the song. On the original 1969 Track Records album cover, the title used is 'The Hawker', but on the record label it is listed as 'Eyesight to the Blind'. Later re-issues call the song wither 'Eyesight to the Blind (The Hawker)' or 'The Hawker (Eyesight to the Blind)'

"You talk about your woman
I wish you could see mine,
You talk about your woman
I wish you could see mine,
Every time she starts to lovin'
She brings eyesight to the blind.

You know her daddy gave her magic
I can tell by the way she walks.
You know her daddy gave her magic
I can tell by the way she walks.
Everytime we start shakin'
The dumb begin to talk.

She's got the power to heal you never fear
She's got the power to heal you never fear
Just a word from her lips
And the deaf begin to hear."

Opening the second side of 'Tommy' is the festive 'Christmas', and we have the first real Who-like song of the album. An upbeat song, with some nagging and slightly off-key backing vocals, it ends up being slightly unnerving. At it's heart is the first reference to the 'See Me, Feel Me' motif that is the albums most dramatic feature

In the early demos for the album, this song would have come immediately after 'Amazing Journey'. Also the lyrics were slightly altered when the concept of pinball was introduced into the storyline. The more familiar words run: "Surrounded by his friends he sits so silently, / And unaware of everything. / Playing poxy pin ball / picks his nose and smiles and / Pokes his tongue at everything", but the original line was "Surrounded by his friends he sits so silently, / And unaware of everything. / playing with himself he sits and smiles and / Pokes his tongue at everything"

"Did you ever see the faces of children
They get so excited.
Waking up on Christmas morning
Hours before the winter suns ignited.
They believe in dreams and all they mean
Including heavens generosity.
Peeping round the door
to see what parcels are for free
In curiosity.

And Tommy doesn't know what day it is.
Doesn't know who Jesus was or what praying is.
How can he be saved?
From the eternal grave.

Surrounded by his friends he sits so silently,
And unaware of anything.
Playing poxy pin ball
picks his nose and smiles and
Pokes his tongue at everything.
I believe in love
but how can men who've never seen
Light be enlightened.
Only if he's cured
will his spirits future level ever heighten.

And Tommy doesn't know what day it is.
Doesn't know who Jesus was or what praying is.
How can he be saved?
From the eternal grave.
Tommy can you hear me?
Tommy can you hear me?
Tommy can you hear me?
How can he be saved?

Tommy:

See me, feel me
Touch me, heal me.
See me, feel me
Touch me, heal me!

Tommy can you hear me?
Tommy can you hear me?
Tommy can you hear me?
How can he be saved?"

[Susan Foreman]

John's first song for the album, 'Cousin Kevin', is a typically offbeat and macabre one, telling the tale of Tommy's encounter with his cousin Kevin, who is a sadistic bully

John:

"I was sent off the write something horrible. I actually based Cousin Kevin on a boy who lived across the street. Our parents thought we should play together, and he was completely sadistic. Musically, I wanted the piece to sound both sinister and childish, so I came up with a kind of 'Chopsticks' theme on the piano to make it sound like a simple children's song."

"Were on our own cousin,
all alone cousin.
Let's think of a game to play
Now the grownups have all gone away.
You won't be much fun
being blind deaf and dumb
But I've no one to play with today.
D'you know how to play hide and seek?
To find me it would take you a week,
But tied to that chair you won't go anywhere
There's a lot I can do to a freak.

How would you feel if I turned on the bath,
Ducked your head under and started to laugh.
What would you do if I shut you outside,
To stand in the rain
and catch cold so you died?

I'm the school bully,
The classroom cheat.
The nastiest playfriend,
You ever could meet.
I'll stick pins in your fingers
And tread on your feet...

Were on our own cousin,
all alone cousin.
Let's think of a game to play
Now the grownups have all gone away.
You won't be much fun
being blind deaf and dumb
But I've no one to play with today.
D'you know how to play hide and seek?
To find me it would take you a week,
But tied to that chair you won't go anywhere
There's a lot I can do to a freak.

Maybe a cigarette burn on your arm
Would change your expression to one of alarm,
I'll drag you around by a lock of your hair
Or give you a push at the top of the stairs...

I'm the school bully !
The classroom cheat.
The nastiest playfriend,
You ever could meet.
I'll put glass in your dinner
And spikes in your seat..."

'The Acid Queen', originally entitled 'Gypsy Song', features Pete on vocals for what appears to be an overtly drug oriented song with strong rock melodies and an infectious hook. But there's more to it than that. The song is not just about LSD, it's about the whole drug culture, alcohol culture; sex culture wrapped into one song

Pete:

It's about how you get it laid onto you that if you haven't f**ked forty birds, taken sixty acid trips, drank one hundred pints or whatever...society - people - force it on you. The Acid Queen represents that force

"If your child ain't all he should be now
This girl will put him right.
I'll show him what he could be now
Just give me one night.
I'm the Gypsy - the acid Queen.
Pay before we start.
I'm the Gypsy - The acid queen.
I'll tear your soul apart.

Give us a room and close the door
Leave us for a while.
Your boy won't be a boy no more
Young, but not a child.
I'm the Gypsy - the acid queen.
Pay before we start.
I'm the Gypsy the acid queen.
I'll tear your soul apart.

Gather your wits and hold on fast,
Your mind must learn to roam.
Just as the Gypsy Queen must do
You're gonna hit the road.

My work is done now look at him
He's never been more alive.
His head it shakes his fingers clutch.
Watch his body writhe
I'm the Gypsy - the acid queen.
Pay before we start.
I'm the Gypsy - I'm guaranteed.
To break your little heart."

[Susan Foreman]

Clocking in at just over 10 minutes, and closing the second side of the first album, 'Underture' is the longest studio track the band ever recorded. It's a lengthy instrumental, based around the 'Rael' / 'Sparks' melody showing Tommy's acid trip after his encounter with the gypsy

When played live, it became a piece de resistance of ensemble playing, with Pete, John, Keith and Roger (on tambourine) each pushing one another higher and higher until the tune exploded at the climax

An early version of the track was called 'Dream (Psychedelic)'

The second album opens with the short vocal link 'Do You Think It's Alright' which leads into another song by John - the hideous 'Fiddle About' - which tells of Tommy's dreadful experiences at the hands of the perverted Uncle Ernie, who was presumably father to Cousin Kevin!

Although it's an idea vehicle for John's warped sense of humour, the depraved and mildly amusing comic song sounds very out of place when compared the the more serious numbers that Pete was coming up with for the album

Initially, when the song was performed live, John would take the role of Ernie, but during later shows, Keith took over and reveled in the malevolence!

"I'm your wicked Uncle Ernie
I'm glad you won't see or hear me
As I fiddle about
Fiddle about
Fiddle about !

Your mother left me here to mind you
Now I'm doing what I want to
Fiddling about
Fiddling about
Fiddle about!

Down with the bedclothes
Up with the nightshirt!
Fiddle about
Fiddle about
Fiddle about !

You won't shout as I fiddle about
Fiddle about
Fiddle about
Fiddle about !
Fiddle, fiddle, fiddle."