Lifehouse Elements

The story of Lifehouse is legendary. Sandwiched between Tommy and Quadrophenia this is Pete's magnum opus. I wanted this disc to familiarize myself with it before I purchased the 6 disc boxed set. The songs are recognizable yet totally different than The Who versions. Well worth having.

If you are a Who fan you need this.good cd

some good pete

This whole CD is awesome and some of the songs eventually ended up on Who albums. This is a somewhat rare CD, I found this used, throught one of the Amazon sellers and the disc and case where in excellent condition.

I heard a cut from this CD on the radio and was interested in hearing more. The low price made it possible. Shipped fast.

If you are very familiar with Pete Townshend's career and The Who, you'll recognize many of the demo tracks on here, which have filtered out in one form or another onto various earlier releases. However, the recording of "Who Are You" is entirely new and COMPLETELY WORTH THIS PURCHASE ALONE. Over the years, I had read more than once in Pete Townshend interviews that The Who's version of "Who Are You" was a different song than he had intended--while not really understanding what Pete could have meant by that. While Pete's interviews indicated he wasn't unhappy with what the song had become, and certainly understood it was a fan favorite, he lamented that his original song had been lost. This recording, make at the time of this release, is the version he wanted the song to be, and wow--it's not only a completely different "Who Are You", but it's moving in a way that The Who's version is not. The Who's version, as interpreted by Roger Daltrey, is an extroverted song of defiance. Pete Townshend's version, on this CD, is an introverted song of self-loathing, vulnerability, and inadequacy. While this version uses many of the same "building blocks" of The Who's version, it has been completely re-arranged. The synth harmonies, specifically the elongated chords that run through each of the first two verses, I find to be beautiful beyond words and transformative. The last verse, with Pete's clear enunciation of the lyrics against a hushed and minimalist background, is crushingly powerful and tremendously moving. I like to keep reviews short and there is much more to say about this CD, but overall I would suggest that this disc is more likely to be meaningful to hardcore Who fans rather than casual listeners.

Lifehouse Elements disc is a sampler of the huge five disc set of music that you can get from the man himself. These demos and alternate versions were supposed to be on the Life House album. The album was supposed to take place in a post-apocalyptic world were people cannot leave their homes because of the deadly enviroment. They are issued life suits and they're connect to an information super highway. The suits give the wearer their entertainment and a virtual landscape they can play in. But a hacker breaks into the system telling it's wearers to come to a place called the Life house were the ultimate concert will be held. The attendees will become one with themselves and with the music. The band is The Who of course. But that project never left the planning stages. So years later, Pete Townshend completed the project (sort of) and the BBC made the music into a radio play. the sucess of the play got Pete to take the Lifehouse project on the road and performed it live. He also played around with orchestra arrangements. The tracks on the disc are taken from different disc on the set. Most of the tracks are demos that Pete Townshend recorded himself. He plays all the instrument and sings on all of them. The heart and soul he poured intot his project is amusing. They're even better than the finished product (in my opinion). If you enjoyed this disc them by all means get the box set. It's pricey but it's worth it. Highly recommended!

Many people who buy this record will make a mistake; they are buying into a WHO legend that simply doesn't exist. Pete Townshend was the voice of the Who. It was his concept, his work, his songs, his anxiety, his conflict that gave the other members of the band their greatest moments, not the reverse. By the early 1970's Pete Townshend was hampered by the Who. Daltrey's low-brow taste, Moon's decaying mental capacity, Entwhistle's sullen realization that two musical artists couldn't exist happily in an organization as frail as a rock band all fed into Townshend's own personality conflict. Lifehouse was the result; the greatest failure of rock music. Lifehouse is typical of rock projects of that time, too much dope, not enough structure. Decadent in the truest meaning of the word, the Who could not fulfill Townshend's dream anymore than Townshend could realize it himself. Now, thirty long years later, we have Lifehouse Elements, a collection of old and new material, reworkings and rethinkings of the project that Pete Townshend has returned to again and again. And it's magnificent. If you take this CD as a collection of songs, or as a Who rarities album, you're missing the point; this is a complete work of art, holistic and unified under the aegis of Pete Townshend's vivid imagination. The orchestral Baba O'Riley is a full-blown minimalist masterpiece. Compare it to Terry Riley's (for whom the song is named) "In C" or anything by Philip Glass. The new version of "Who Are You," is as direct a statement as Townshend has ever made; powerful, mean, and accusatory. This is music about revolution, dispassion, interconnectedness, and transcendance, not an attempt to sell a collection of greatest hits. Townshend, finally, is free to bare himself, and to come to musical terms with his past, with the part of himself subverted to the Who. The Who is gone. Townshend remains in his house of life.

I make no apology, I am a lifelong fan of The Who as a group and of individual members. I bought this album (sorry, CD) because I'd missed the Radio 3 broadcast of Lifehouse. I love it as it just adds another dimension to The Who. I know this sounds double Dutch but I'll try to explain (as opposed to "I Can't Explain"). Ouch! Sorry, I couldn't resist that! When you have a band that you like or know, you never can quite accept covers, can you? I'd even go so far as to say that the covers of the two Rolling Stones tracks that The Who did as a benefit when Jagger and Richards got busted sounded dreadful (even though I'm not a great Stones fan) so, as you can see, I'm not too biased! Ok, back to the point. Lifehouse is a wonderful concept and I'm fairly sure that I get the point of what Pete was trying to get across. I would give twenty years of my life to have been at the Young Vic when the band were there trying out the tracks on the general public. I grasped the concept straight away when Pete was explaining it and I find it hard to believe that the rest of the band didn't, especially Roger as he was always clean, and should have been more receptive to Petes ideas. Anyhow, you want to know about the music. Don't think of this as a Pete Townshend album, think of it as Petes demo's for Who's Next and you won't go far wrong. I'm sure that if you're reading this, you must be a bit of a Who fan so you will know the tracks. If you watch the Classic Albums film about the making of Who's Next and listen to Glynn Johns, you will understand. What I will say is this; If money's no object, don't buy this cd, buy Lifehouse. If money's tight, buy this as a start but start saving for Lifehouse because you will want more. You have been warned!

This is an edited down version of a 6 CD "Lifehouse Chronicles" where most of the "Elements" tracks would end up on Who's Next album. Townshend had started the project in the early 1970s but never did complete the project with smatterings of the Chronicles set appearing on various other Who albums and solo work into the 1990s. The tracks on this CD can be considered more of demos or alternate versions.

ピートのヴォーカルオンリーじゃ弱いかな?と思いながらも購入 ♪…とんでもない! 【New Song】はロジャーのよりいいし(アルバム:WHO ARE YOUヴァージョンは音がモコモコしてて嫌) 【Who Are You】に至っては、途中ラップに入るわ‥サイケデリックな感じに驚愕!!! ヘビィー・ローテーションで聴いてます。 Listen♪

As far as the product is concerned, this will appeal to fans of the who - defo! The seller delivered in terms of description of quality and delivery.

トミーの次のコンセプトアルバム、ロックオペラとなるはずだったLifehouse。映画"マトリックス"に似たストーリーで、２０年以上早すぎて周囲の理解を得られず挫折した（副産物として、名作Who's Nextを生）。 このLifehouse Elementsは、ライフハウスの曲のデモや１９９９年にBBCで放送したラジオショー等を収録した6CDのBOXセットLifehouse Chroniclesの縮小版です。この４０ポンドのBOXセットまでは手が出ないが、ライフハウスの世界に触れてみたいという人のための商品です。 なお、Lifehouse Chroniclesに収録されなかった"New Song"（トラック4）が収録されています。