A long-overdue tribute album, given The Who's stature as one of the most influential bands in rock history, and one that has attracted a stellar line-up keen to pay their respects.
Proceedings begin brightly with Cast's version of the 1970 single 'The Seeker'. Recorded with the aid of The Who's long-suffering sound engineer Bob Pridden (who also co-ordinated the album), it's a suitably meaty production, with the mysticism of the lyrics perfectly in tune with John Power's own spiritual ideals.
However, things take a rapid turn for the worse as Ocean Colour Scene sleepwalk through the previously explosive 'Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere'. Considering their mod credentials, it's baffling how they came up with such a pedestrian version, with Simon Fowler sounding like he's on sleeping tablets instead of leapers.
The Modfather, Paul Weller, restores some parity with a strident 'Circles', which serves to hammer home the flaws of OCS's track even further. A lifelong Who fan, Weller clearly relishes the chance to sink his teeth into one of their tracks again.
Then we come to arguably the most interesting cover on the album, as David Bowie reinvents 'Pictures Of Lily' as a trippy, cod-psychedelic track in his own image circa the track's original release date of 1967. Bowie's track is a rare example on this album of an artist actually reinterpreting the original, instead of merely tracing it.
Elsewhere, Pearl Jam's live take of 'The Kids Are Alright' is ruined by Eddie Vedder's mewling, mumbling vocals while fellow American alt-rockers Fastball do pretty good justice to 'Quadrophenia's 'The Real Me', complete with a passable imitation of Keith Moon's splenetic drumming.
Young Brit rockers Unamerican also show they spent their time supporting The Who wisely - not only because they chose to tackle neglected gem 'Naked Eye' but they also display some of the dynamics of their heroes.
Stereophonics' rumbustious 'Who Are You' is worth the price of admission, with Kelly Jones' snarling vocals distracting attention from the fact that musically it's a note-for-note remake. Phish's '5.15' is another accurate facsimile, complete with mid-section noodling (something they're more than capable of) but lacking the power of John Entwistle's thunderous bass runs.
It's left to Sheryl Crow's winsomely acoustic 'Behind Blue Eyes' to divert proceedings away from the copyists, suggesting an acoustic album from her could be something of a revelation. A live version of 'Substitute', recorded at The Who's Royal Albert Hall charity gig last November and featuring Kelly Jones on guest vocals, closes the album on a relatively high note.
The problem with this album isn't that it's bad, the standard of musicianship (barring Ocean Colour Scene) is actually uniformly high. It's just that The Who seem to have cast too long a shadow over the artists involved, resulting in mainly straight but inferior copies. Only Bowie and Crow attempt to deconstruct their songs in any way.
Given that Pete Townshend has radically overhauled Who classics in his solo live shows in recent years, one gets the impression he will be disappointed rather than flattered by the homage shown here. Unfortunately, much of this album just goes to show there still really is no substitute for The Who's originals.
