Live at Leeds

This article is about the live album by The Who. For the music festival, see Live at Leeds (festival). For the live DVD by Kate Rusby, see Live From Leeds. For the live album by John Martyn, see Live at Leeds (John Martyn album).

Live at Leeds
Live album by The Who
Released	16 May 1970
Recorded	14 February 1970, University of Leeds, Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom
Genre	Rock
Length	36:24
Label	Decca/MCA
Producer	Jon Astley, Kit Lambert, and The Who
The Who chronology
Live at Leeds (1970) Who's Last (1984)
Singles from Live at Leeds
"Summertime Blues" Released: June 1970

Live at Leeds is The Who's first live album, and is the only live album that was released while the group were still recording and performing regularly. Initially released in the United States on 16 May 1970, by Decca and MCA and the United Kingdom on 23 May 1970, by Track and Polydor, the album has been reissued on several occasions and in several different formats. As of 2005, the album is ranked number 170 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

It is often cited as the best live rock album of all time and is included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. It is also included in Q magazine's list of Loudest Albums of All Time.

Background

Blue plaque at the University of Leeds commemorating the album

After releasing Tommy in mid-1969 The Who went on an extended world tour to promote it, and returned to England at year's end with a desire to release a live album from the tour. However, the band balked at the prospect of listening to approximately 80 hours of accumulated recordings to decide which would make the best album and it was rumoured that the tapes were subsequently burned to prevent bootlegging. Roger Daltrey cast doubt on this rumour in a 2006 BBC interview, but it was supported by Townshend during an interview (broadcast by the radio station Planet Rock on 11 February 2010) celebrating the 40th anniversary of the original recording.

Two shows were consequently scheduled, one at the University of Leeds and the other in Hull, for the expressed purpose of recording and releasing a live album. The shows were performed on 14 and 15 February 1970 at Leeds and Hull, respectively, but technical problems with the recordings from the Hull gig — the bass guitar had not been recorded on some of the songs — made it all the more necessary for the show from the 14th to be released as the album. Regardless of great approval of the Leeds gig by many fans and critics, the band members believed the recordings at Hull sounded better, as the acoustics projected better in the more spacious venue.

Packaging

The album cover looks like the simple cover of a bootleg LP of the era: it is of plain brown cardboard with "The Who Live At Leeds" printed on it in plain blue or red block letters as if stamped on with ink (on the original first English pressing of 300, this stamp is black). The original LP's cover opened out, gatefold-style, and had a pocket on either side of the interior, with the record in a paper sleeve on one side and 12 facsimilés of various memorabilia on the other, including a photo of the band from the My Generation photoshoot, handwritten lyrics to the "Listening to You" chorus from Tommy, the typewritten lyrics to "My Generation", with hand written notes, a receipt for smoke bombs, a rejection letter from EMI, and the early black "Maximum R&B" poster showing Pete Townshend windmilling his Rickenbacker. The first 500 copies included a copy of the contract for The Who to play at the Woodstock Festival.

The label was handwritten (apparently in Townshend's hand), and included instructions to the engineers not to attempt to remove any crackling noise. This is probably a reference to the clicking and popping on the pre-remastered version (notably in "Shakin All Over") which was from John Entwistle's bass cable. Modern digital remastering techniques allowed this to be removed, and also allowed some of the worst-affected tracks from the gig to be used also.

Accolades

Live at Leeds became a critical smash, with The New York Times acclaiming it as "the best live rock album ever made." Its reputation as such continues to this day with Q magazine recently putting it at the top of its list of the greatest live albums of all time.

The album's reputation has become so lofty that the venue at which it was recorded, the University of Leeds refectory, has been named a national landmark in the UK, commemorated with a blue plaque.

Release history

The original LP was released on 16 May 1970 in stereophonic format. The album was reissued on Compact Disc in 1985 by MCA in the US, and in 1987 by Polydor in Germany.

In 1995, the album was reissued as a remixed CD including more songs than the original vinyl edition, as well as song introductions and other banter that had been edited out of the original release. For the remix, new vocal overdubs from Daltrey, Townshend and Entwistle were recorded to address occasional flaws in the original tapes or performances.

"Fortune Teller" and "Young Man Blues" are R&B tunes that were a standard part of The Who's stage repertoire at the time. "Shakin' All Over" is a cover of a hit by pioneering early 1960s British rocker Johnny Kidd and "Summertime Blues" is a cover of an Eddie Cochran song.

"My Generation" is drawn out into an almost sixteen minute medley including "See Me, Feel Me" / "Listening To You", "Underture", the instrumental riff from the end of "Naked Eye", "The Seeker," and a number of other mostly unfamiliar themes. "Magic Bus" is drawn out to seven and a half minutes (9:42 on the un-edited recording). On the originally released version, there is an 8 second segment near the beginning of "Magic Bus" (leading into the lyric I don't care how much I pay) where the music is played backwards. This was probably done to cover a glitch in the live tapes. The 1995 and 2001 CD mixes edit this section differently and do not have the backward portion. The backwards portion was retained on "Greatest Hits Live". The rest of the tracks are fairly straightforward renditions of the original songs, albeit with a consistent hard-rock power trio sound rather than any attempt to re-create the various studio sounds of their original recordings.

A similar concert from later the same year was released in 1996 as Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970, along with a film of the same event titled Listening to You: The Who at the Isle of Wight Festival.

In 2001, the album was released again as a part of the Universal Deluxe Edition series. The Deluxe Edition includes more chat between the songs, and the entirety of the band's Tommy set as performed at Leeds. Again, new overdubs from the vocalists were employed at select points.

An excerpt from this recording of "We're Not Gonna Take It"—titled "See Me Feel Me/Listening to You"—was also previously released on Thirty Years Of Maximum R&B.

During the concert, "Summertime Blues", "Shakin' All Over", "My Generation", and "Magic Bus" were played after the Tommy set, but for easier listening the Deluxe Edition devoted the entire second disc to the Tommy set, and moved "My Generation" and "Magic Bus" out of order to the end of the first disc. During 1970, the regular Who concert set was set up this way, but an album with a 1970 concert in true order wasn't available until 1996 when the official Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 album was released.

In October 2010, Universal Music announced the impending release of a 40th Anniversary edition of the album which would not only contain the full Leeds show from 14 February 1970 but also the band's complete performance from Hull which was recorded the following evening as well as a heavyweight vinyl reproduction of the original six-track album, memorabilia and a replica 7 Inch Single of 'Summertime Blues/ Heaven & Hell'.

Track listing

1970 Original LP

Side one

1. "Young Man Blues" (Mose Allison)  – 4:45
2. "Substitute" (Pete Townshend)  – 2:05
3. "Summertime Blues" (Jerry Capehart, Eddie Cochran)  – 3:22
4. "Shakin' All Over" (Johnny Kidd)  – 4:15

Side two

5. "My Generation" (Townshend)  – 14:27
6. "Magic Bus" (Townshend)  – 7:30

1995 Compact Disc reissue

1. "Heaven and Hell" (John Entwistle)  – 4:50 (bonus track on CD)
2. "I Can't Explain" (Townshend)  – 2:59 (bonus track on CD)
3. "Fortune Teller" (Naomi Neville; original by Benny Spellman)  – 2:35 (bonus track on CD)
4. "Tattoo" (Townshend)  – 3:42 (bonus track on CD)
5. "Young Man Blues" (Allison)  – 5:52
6. "Substitute" (Townshend)  – 2:07
7. "Happy Jack" (Townshend)  – 2:14 (bonus track on CD)
8. "I'm a Boy" (Townshend)  – 4:42 (bonus track on CD)
9. "A Quick One, While He's Away" (Townshend)  – 8:41 (bonus track on CD)
10. "Amazing Journey/Sparks" (Townshend)  – 7:55 (bonus track on CD)
11. "Summertime Blues" (Capehart and Cochran)  – 3:22
12. "Shakin' All Over" (Johnny Kidd)  – 4:34
13. "My Generation" (Townshend)  – 15:47
14. "Magic Bus" (Townshend)  – 7:48

2001 Deluxe Edition (complete "Leeds" performance)

Disc one

1. "Heaven and Hell" (Entwistle)  – 5:07
2. "I Can't Explain" (Townshend)  – 3:13
3. "Fortune Teller" (Neville and Spellman)  – 2:35
4. "Tattoo" (Townshend)  – 3:42
5. "Young Man Blues" (Allison)  – 6:12
6. "Substitute" (Townshend)  – 2:07
7. "Happy Jack" (Townshend)  – 2:14
8. "I'm a Boy" (Townshend)  – 7:47
9. "A Quick One, While He's Away" (Townshend)  – 8:52
10. "Summertime Blues" (Capehart and Cochran)  – 3:22
11. "Shakin' All Over" (Kidd)  – 4:35
12. "My Generation" (Townshend)  – 15:49
13. "Magic Bus" (Townshend)  – 7:56

Disc two

Tommy

1. "Overture" (Townshend)  – 6:53
2. "It's a Boy" (Townshend)  – 0:31
3. "1921" (Townshend)  – 2:26
4. "Amazing Journey" (Townshend)  – 3:18
5. "Sparks" (Townshend)  – 4:23
6. "Eyesight to the Blind" a.k.a. "Born Blind" (Sonny Boy Williamson)  – 1:58
7. "Christmas" (Townshend)  – 3:19
8. "The Acid Queen" (Townshend)  – 3:35
9. "Pinball Wizard" (Townshend)  – 2:52
10. "Do You Think It's Alright?" (Townshend)  – 0:22
11. "Fiddle About" (Entwistle)  – 1:13
12. "Tommy, Can You Hear Me?" (Townshend)  – 0:55
13. "There's a Doctor" (Townshend)  – 0:23
14. "Go to the Mirror!" (Townshend)  – 3:24
15. "Smash The Mirror" (Townshend)  – 1:19
16. "Miracle Cure" (Townshend)  – 0:13
17. "Sally Simpson" (Townshend)  – 4:01
18. "I'm Free" (Townshend)  – 2:39
19. "Tommy's Holiday Camp" (Keith Moon)  – 1:00
20. "We're Not Gonna Take It" (Townshend)  – 8:48

2010 40th Anniversary Super-Deluxe Collectors’ Edition (complete "Leeds" & "Hull" performances)

CD One – Live at Leeds

1. Heaven and Hell (Entwistle) – 5:12
2. I Can't Explain (Townshend) – 2:38
3. Fortune Teller (Neville and Spellman) – 3:13
4. Tattoo (Townshend) – 3:00
5. Young Man Blues (Allison) – 5:56
6. Substitute (Townshend) – 3:05
7. Happy Jack (Townshend) – 2:13
8. I'm a Boy (Townshend) – 2:45
9. A Quick One, While He's Away (Townshend) – 13:44
10. Summertime Blues (Capehart and Cochran) – 3:35
11. Shakin' All Over (Kidd) – 4:35
12. My Generation (Townshend) – 15:26
13. Magic Bus – 8:21

CD Two – Live at Leeds: 'Tommy'

1. Overture (Townshend) – 6:49
2. It's a Boy (Townshend) – 0:35
3. 1921 (Townshend) – 2:26
4. Amazing Journey (Townshend) – 3:18
5. Sparks (Townshend) – 4:22
6. Eyesight to the Blind a.k.a. "Born Blind" (Sonny Boy Williamson) – 1:58
7. Christmas (Townshend) – 3:18
8. The Acid Queen (Townshend) – 3:32
9. Pinball Wizard (Townshend) – 2:52
10. Do You Think It's Alright? (Townshend) – 0:22
11. Fiddle About (Entwistle) – 1:13
12. Tommy, Can You Hear Me? (Townshend) – 0:55
13. There's a Doctor (Townshend) – 0:23
14. Go to the Mirror! (Townshend) – 3:24
15. Smash The Mirror (Townshend) – 1:18
16. Miracle Cure (Townshend) – 0:13
17. Sally Simpson (Townshend) – 4:00
18. I'm Free (Townshend) – 2:39
19. Tommy's Holiday Camp (Keith Moon) – 1:00
20. We're Not Gonna Take It (Townshend) – 8:50

CD Three – Live at Hull

1. Heaven and Hell (Entwistle) – 4:04
2. I Can't Explain (Townshend) – 2:51
3. Fortune Teller (Neville and Spellman) – 2:35
4. Tattoo (Townshend) – 3:02
5. Young Man Blues (Allison) – 5:41
6. Substitute (Townshend) – 2:07
7. Happy Jack (Townshend) – 2:12
8. I'm a Boy (Townshend) – 2:48
9. A Quick One, While He's Away (Townshend) – 9:51
10. Summertime Blues (Capehart and Cochran) – 3:43
11. Shakin' All Over (Kidd) – 5:09
12. My Generation (Townshend) – 15:58

CD Four – Live at Hull: 'Tommy'

1. Overture (Townshend) – 5:30
2. It's a Boy (Townshend) – 0:43
3. 1921 (Townshend) – 2:28
4. Amazing Journey (Townshend) – 3:18
5. Sparks (Townshend) – 4:14
6. Eyesight to the Blind a.k.a. "Born Blind" (Sonny Boy Williamson) – 1:56
7. Christmas (Townshend) – 3:18
8. The Acid Queen (Townshend) – 3:33
9. Pinball Wizard (Townshend) – 2:47
10. Do You Think It's Alright? (Townshend) – 0:23
11. Fiddle About (Entwistle) – 1:14
12. Tommy, Can You Hear Me? (Townshend) – 0:57
13. There's a Doctor (Townshend) – 0:22
14. Go to the Mirror! (Townshend) – 3:32
15. Smash The Mirror (Townshend) – 1:22
16. Miracle Cure (Townshend) – 0:13
17. Sally Simpson (Townshend) – 4:08
18. I'm Free (Townshend) – 2:24
19. Tommy's Holiday Camp (Keith Moon) – 1:00
20. We're Not Gonna Take It (Townshend) – 8:19

7” single:
a. Summertime Blues
b. Heaven and Hell

Personnel

• Roger Daltrey – lead vocals, harmonica, tambourine
• John Entwistle – bass guitar, vocals
• Keith Moon – drums, vocals
• Pete Townshend – guitar, vocals

Sales chart performance

Album

Year	Chart	Position
1970	Billboard Pop Albums	4[citation needed]
	UK Chart Albums	3

Singles

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1970	"Summertime Blues"	Billboard Pop Singles	27[citation needed]
		UK Singles Charts	38

Sales certifications

Organization	Level	Date
RIAA – U.S.	Gold	6 August 1970
	Platinum	8 February 1993
	2x Multi-Platinum

External links

• The Who.com, official website.