The Who, The Who/CA, USA 1971 Master Analogue Tape Upgrade Edition

“CLOSER TO QUEEN MARY” was released by a legendary label, and as a masterpiece that conveyed the state of The Who’s latest 1971 US tour, it has not only been reissued repeatedly, but also many copies have been produced. As with previous audience recordings, Dub Taylor of the same label used the usual setup of a Sennheiser shotgun microphone on a woofer deck to release this record. The characteristic of this recording was that the sound image was far away. This is because Dub, who does not usually do drugs, took cocaine shared with him by a friend who attended the live show that day (it was America in 1971), and it has now been revealed that this was because he was literally high and could not decide the direction of the microphone. However, this is a disclaimer that it is only among TMOQ recordings, and it is certainly one of the top audience recordings produced from The Who’s 1971 tour. This is why it has been resold and copied many times since its release in early 1972. The aforementioned “CLOSER TO QUEEN MARY” was released based on such a dub mono audience recording, but in order to fit it on one LP, only the first half of the live performance was recorded. However, the dub recording was recorded all the way to the end. However, in the late 1990s, a full-length version of such a dub recording was also unearthed, and the nostalgic Killing Floor version “CLOSER TO QUEEN MARY” was released with a design that imitated the old TMOQ stamp cover. For enthusiasts, the impact of finally being able to hear the complete version of the nostalgic TMOQ recording was enough. However, after the Killing Floor version, the actual recording was never released. Rather, it fell into oblivion, and there is no other sound source that enthusiasts have been waiting for as long as this one to be released. In the midst of all this, an overseas enthusiast provided the master of the sound source that Dub recorded for “CLOSER TO~”! The Killing Floor version was released in the cassette trade era, so it sounds obviously rougher and thinner than this version. It is likely that it was based on the trade version that was dubbed two or three times on cassette. In that respect, this version was recorded directly from the dub master, and the depth and clarity of the sound is completely different. This is a quality that can only be achieved by a master. The Killing Floor version, which has been a long-term successor and has been loved by enthusiasts, including the package, has finally become obsolete. On this day, the audience was noisy right after the start of the live performance, and Roger could not hide his confusion in front of such an audience. Pete, who was fed up with this situation, finally shouted at the audience, “Shut up, whether you’re standing, sitting, or lying down! This is what a rock concert is all about!” This scene of Pete screaming was the opening scene of the official box set “MAXIMUM R&B”, but it was dropped from the TMOQ LP, and even included scratch noise. This scene was one of the happenings that made “CLOSER TO QUEEN MARY” a masterpiece, but ironically, the Who’s performance only got more exciting rather than rotten. The Pete-centered improvisation of “Bargain”, and “Baby Don’t You Do It”, which was revived for the first time since the 1960s on this tour, are also impressive long and high-tension performances. And the highlight is “Magic Bus”. Currently, the show just before San Francisco, which is recorded on the super deluxe edition of the official “WHO’S NEXT”, is this Long Beach, but the performance is so explosive that it’s not even worth talking about. Especially Pete’s repeated strange voices are amazing! I see… It can only be said that this spectacular performance was not recorded on the LP. There is no doubt that the high tension of this day will be overwhelming again, and the upgrade from the master has finally been realized! Master Analogue Tape Upgrade Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA, USA 10th December 1971 TRULY AMAZING/PERFECT SOUND(from Original Masters) Disc:1 (64:33) 1. I Can’t Explain 2. Substitute 3. Summertime Blues 4. My Wife 5. Baba O’Riley 6. Bargain 7. Behind Blue Eyes 8. Won’t Get Fooled Again 9. Baby Don’t You Do It Disc:2 (59:48) 1. Magic Bus 2. Overture 3. Amazing Journey 4. Sparks 5. Pinball Wizard 6. See Me, Feel Me 7. My Generation 8. Naked Eye