70s

The Story of The Who - 1971

1971

January/March

The Who appear intermittently at London’s Young Vic Theatre during preparations for Pete’s aborted Lifehouse project.

March

The Who record the Lifehouse songs in New York with Kit Lambert, but the sessions are abandoned, along with the Lifehouse concept. Deeply frustrated, desperately overworked and at odds with Lambert, Pete suffers his first nervous breakdown.

April 26

Final Lifehouse concert which is recorded on the Rolling Stones Mobile and later released (in part) on the Deluxe Edition of Who’s Next in 2001.

May/June

The Who re-record most of the Lifehouse songs at Olympic Studios in Barnes with Glyn Johns producing. The songs will now make up an album to be titled Who’s Next and at seven unpublicised UK college gigs The Who preview material from the forthcoming LP.

June 25

‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ released. It reaches number nine in the UK charts and number 10 in the US.

July 19

Roger marries long standing girlfriend Heather Taylor.

August

Who’s Next released to rave reviews. It becomes the only Who album ever to reach number one in the UK, but stalls at four in the US. Despite the circumstances under which it was recorded, Who’s Next is now widely regarded as one of the greatest rock albums ever made.

July 29

The Who open their biggest US tour to date with two shows at the New York Forest Hills Tennis stadium. With no little justification, they are now unofficially dubbed ‘The World’s Greatest Live Rock’n’Roll Band’.

September 18

The Who headline at London’s Oval Cricket Ground in front of 35,000 fans, at a day-long concert to raise funds for Bangla Desh.

October

The Who tour the UK including November 4-6  when they play three consecutive nights at the newly opened Rainbow Theatre in Finsbury Park. Support band were the Sutherland Brothers & Quiver.

November/December

Yet another long US arena tour.