Rough Mix
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Rolling Stone |  [2] |
| Robert Christgau | A–[3] |
Rough Mix is an album by The Who's guitarist Pete Townshend and The Faces bassist Ronnie Lane.
The album was released in September 1977 as Polydor 2442 in the UK and MCA 2295 in the US.[4]
The album peaked at number 44 on the UK album chart,[5] and at number 45 on the Billboard 200.
Content
On 21 October 1976, The Who closed a brief North American tour in Toronto at Maple Leaf Gardens, a show that would be the last with Keith Moon before a paying audience.[6]
The Who's band members then took a hiatus to pursue various individual interests.
Pete Townshend had been initially contacted by Ronnie Lane to produce his next album, the project instead turning into a full-blown collaboration between the pair.[7] Lane expressed an interest in a songwriting collaboration but Townshend, who has very rarely co-written songs, was unwilling.[8] The instrumental title track is credited to both musicians, however.
During the recording of Rough Mix, Lane's multiple sclerosis was diagnosed (in one instance, during a session Lane had a meltdown related to his MS that caused him and an unaware Townshend to get into a fight). Nonetheless Lane toured, wrote and recorded (with Eric Clapton among others) and in 1979 released another album, See Me, which features several songs written by Lane and Clapton. Around this time Lane travelled the highways and byways of England and lived a 'passing show' modern nomadic life in full Gypsy traveller costume and accommodation.
The album featured songs written by both principals in a vein less like that of The Who or The Faces but instead close to the folk-rock vogue of the early 1970s among various English bands.
A number of famous colleagues appeared on the recording, among them Eric Clapton, fellow member of The Who, John Entwistle, Ian Stewart, and Charlie Watts. Orchestral arrangements for the track "Street in the City" were provided by Townshend's father-in-law, noted British film and television theme composer Edwin Astley.
Rough Mix was remastered in 2006 and released by Hip-O Records, the reissue label for the Universal Music Group, in both 5.1 surround sound format on Dualdisc and standard stereo compact disc. The reissue featured three outtakes as bonus tracks.
Track listing
Side one
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "My Baby Gives It Away" | Pete Townshend | 4:02 |
| 2. | "Nowhere to Run" | Ronnie Lane | 3:17 |
| 3. | "Rough Mix" | Ronnie Lane, Pete Townshend | 3:12 |
| 4. | "Annie" | Eric Clapton, Kate Lambert, Ronnie Lane | 2:56 |
| 5. | "Keep Me Turning" | Pete Townshend | 3:46 |
| 6. | "Catmelody" | Ronnie Lane, Kate Lambert | 3:12 |
Side two
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Misunderstood" | Pete Townshend | 3:01 |
| 2. | "April Fool" | Ronnie Lane | 3:34 |
| 3. | "Street in the City" | Pete Townshend | 6:07 |
| 4. | "Heart to Hang Onto" | Pete Townshend | 4:29 |
| 5. | "Till the Rivers All Run Dry" | Wayland Holyfield, Don Williams | 3:54 |
2006 reissue bonus tracks
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Only You" | Lane | 4:29 |
| 13. | "Good Question" | Townshend | 3:34 |
| 14. | "Silly Little Man" | Lane | 3:44 |
Personnel
- Ronnie Lane and Pete Townshend — vocals, guitars, electric guitars, mandolins, bass guitars, banjos, ukuleles
- Edwin Astley — orchestrations on "Street in the City"
- John "Rabbit" Bundrick — organ, Fender Rhodes on "Nowhere to Run," "Rough Mix," "Keep Me Turning," "Heart to Hang Onto"
- Boz Burrell — bass guitar on "Heart to Hang Onto" and "Till the Rivers All Run Dry"
- Mel Collins — saxophones on "Catmelody"
- Eric Clapton — guitars, dobro on "Rough Mix," "Annie," "April Fool," "Till the Rivers All Run Dry"
- Julian Diggle – percussion on "Misunderstood"
- John Entwistle — horns, vocals on "Heart to Hang Onto" and "Till the Rivers All Run Dry"
- Peter Hope Evans — harmonica on "Nowhere to Run," "Misunderstood"
- Benny Gallagher — accordion on "Annie"
- Tony Gilbert — orchestral leader on "Street in the City"
- Chris Green — principal cello on "Street in the City"
- Charlie Hart – violin on "Annie"
- Chris Laurence — principal bass on "Street in the City"
- Graham Lyle — twelve-string guitar on "Annie"
- Dave Markee[9] — double bass on "Annie" and "April Fool"
- Billy Nicholls — vocal on "Till the Rivers All Run Dry"
- Steve Shingles — principal viola on "Street in the City"
- Henry Spinetti — drums on "Nowhere to Run," "Rough Mix," "Keep Me Turning," "Heart to Hang Onto," "Till the Rivers All Run Dry"
- Ian Stewart — piano on "Catmelody"
- Charles Vorsanger — principal second violin on "Street in the City"
- Charlie Watts — drums on "My Baby Gives It Away" and "Catmelody"
References
- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ "Rough Mix". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (31 October 1977). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
- ^ Neill, Andy, and Kent, Matt. Anyway Anyhow Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of The Who 1958–1978. 2009, ISBN 978-1-4027-6691-6, p. 299.
- ^ UK Chart Stats
- ^ The Who. Thirty Years of Maximum R&B. 1994, MCA Records CD-207146, liner notes booklet.
- ^ Heinz Rudolf Kunze. Rough Mix. 2006, SPV 304852, liner notes.
- ^ http://www.the-faces.com/lane/plonkdisk1.htm
- ^ Markee's surname is incorrectly listed as "Marquee" on most editions of the album.