Live At the Isle of Wight Festival 1970

It wasn’t until Live at Leeds that many Who fans heard just how ferocious the band was. Its studio albums gave listeners the suggestion that The Who might have greater reach in front of a live audience, and certainly word of mouth confirmed this. But to hear the band in action is a mighty experience. This Isle of Wight concert has often been bootlegged, but its official release ensures the finest sound possible. It’s unusual to say the drums lead the way at a concert, but here Keith Moon’s anarchic style takes the band and shakes it to the core. Live staples such as Mose Allison’s “Young Man Blues,” Eddie Cochran’s “Summertime Blues," and The Who's own “My Generation” and “Magic Bus” are here, along with arguably the band’s finest performance of its rock opera Tommy, which takes up most of the concert in slightly reshuffled and abbreviated form. While “Pinball Wizard,” “I’m Free," and “We’re Not Going to Take It” have made it into regular rotation, “Eyesight to the Blind,” “Christmas," and “Go to the Mirror,” for starters, make this a necessary edition to any Who fan’s collection.