has claimed that the band recorded practically every song he had written for The Who by Numbers, partially due to a writer's block that he was experiencing at the time. The songs on the album were, for the most part, more introspective and personal than many other songs that the band had released. Townshend had his 30th birthday in May 1975 and was struggling with the idea of being too old to play rock and roll and that the band was losing its relevance. He began to feel disenchanted with the music industry, a feeling that he carried into his songs. He said of the songs on the album: After concluding the album tour for Quadrophenia in June 1974, the Who took an extended hiatus and did not perform live for more than a year. John Entwistle kept himself occupied by playing solo gigs. In addition, the band spent this time filming a movie based on the Tommy rock opera. This was their first album on Polydor. The sessions for The Who by Numbers began in April 1975 and lasted through early June. The album was released in October and the band supported it with a tour, which spanned some 70 concerts before concluding in the fall of 1976. For the album's recording, the band recruited producer Glyn Johns. The band had previously worked with Johns during the 1971 album Who's Next. Compared to previous Who albums, The Who By Numbers took an unusually long time to complete and was marred by numerous breaks and interruptions due to the band members' growing boredom and lack of interest. Only four of the ten songs on The Who By Numbers were performed live, two of which became concert staples. Townshend said of the album's recording sessions:
Album cover
The album cover was drawn by John Entwistle. In 1996, when asked about the cover, he replied: "The first release is The Who By Numbers cover, which I never got paid for, so now I'm going to get paid. We were taking it in turns to do the covers. It was Pete's turn before me and we did the Quadrophenia cover, which cost about the same as a small house back then, about £16,000. My cover cost £32."
Release and reception
The Who by Numbers peaked at the number 7 on the UK Albums Chart and number 8 on the Billboard 200 album chart in the US. "Squeeze Box" was also a Top 20 hit in both Britain and America, although the US follow-up, "Slip Kid," failed to chart. The Rolling Stone review of The Who by Numbers stated: "They may have made their greatest album in the face of . But only time will tell." In an interview from Thirty Years of Maximum R&B, Townshend declared "Dreaming from the Waist" and "Sister Disco" as his least favorite songs to play on stage. In contrast, Entwistle declared in the same series of interviews that "Dreaming from the Waist" was one of his favorite songs to perform live. Daltrey referred to the album as his favourite in his memoir.
Remasters and reissues
The 1996 remaster was remixed by Jon Astley. On the remaster, the end of "They Are All in Love" is cross-faded with "Blue, Red and Grey." The original album did not feature this cross-fade. On 24 December 2011 the album was remastered and reissued in Japan using the original mix. The live bonus tracks from the previous edition were included on the reissue. The packaging replicated the original vinyl release of the album.
Track listing
All songs written by Pete Townshend, except where noted.
