The Who by Numbers functions as Pete Townshend's confessional singer/songwriter album, as he chronicles his problems with alcohol ("However Much I Booze"), women ("Dreaming From the Waist" and "They Are All in Love"), and life in general. However, his introspective musings are rendered ineffective by Roger Daltrey's bluster and the cloying, lightweight filler of "Squeeze Box." In addition, Townshend's songs tend to be underdeveloped, relying on verbosity instead of melodicism, with only the simple power of "Slip Kid," the grace of "Blue Red and Grey," and John Entwistle's heavy rocker "Success Story" making much of an impact. [The 1996 CD reissue adds three live tracks from a 1976 concert.] ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Yes, our friend Stephen has a beef with good bands. Hey, I don't spell out my middle name - maybe it's an "indie-rock" thing. But this album has been my favorite WHO studio album for many years. Such nice pictures of where they were, different styles, acoustic, hard rock - Slip Kid could carry the album by itself, but there's so much more. I made 10 CD's for my son's Christening party, and I used every song on this album, with a few thrown in from "The Kids Are Alright." It's a fantastic album.
I don't know why-maybe because the fluffy Squeeze Box was the single-this album gets overlooked. It's one of my favorites. It's kind of an oasis in a sea of increasing synthesizers of the previous two albums and the rest the Who did. I like those records, too, but I think this one is quite simple and good yet I don't know anyone who likes it as much as I do. Some tracks like Slip Kid are a symphony of guitars. The content focuses on a rocker aging and it seems ironic now - Pete was turning 30
Stephen Thomas Erlewine (which I suspect is an anagram for TERRIBLE MUSIC CRITIC) seems to enjoy giving bad marks to Who albums, or Cream albums, or other legendary bands. If only there were critic critics, he'd be given an endless amount of thumbs down.
Such a unique Who album. Looking back, it seems like the band was taking an emotional break before the hurricane that was around the corner. (Who are You, Keith's death, Cincinnati, etc)