The Who’s golden age has long passed, but this release is nothing short of a miracle. The London group’s magic was shattered upon the death of Keith Moon in 1978; their two 1981 and 1982 albums incidentally drew little interest. Their 2006 album, which came four years after the death of bassist John Entwistle barely raised the bar. It was difficult to expect anything great to come from the remaining duo but then, in 2019, Who was released. The tireless efforts of Pete Townshend, the band’s determined guitarist and composer was ready to do anything to make another album after many long years out of the studio. Produced by Dave Sardy (who we know more for his work with bands like Helmet, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Marilyn Manson and System of a Down), this record goes back to a true and honest form of rock that some more experimental additions (such as some electronic sounds) do not tarnish. Townshend, conscience of his age like his associate Roger Daltrey, recognises the futility of trying to chase after a lost youth. On the contrary, many of the songs seem to articulate the image of inevitability, the aging rocker. Are rockers destined for long-lasting careers? Perhaps not. But they have weathered the winds and here they are. The foundation to many of the songs is his novel Age of Anxiety which was intended to be converted into a musical before Townshend turned his interest onto making a veritable Who album. Who is a not the most full-on rock album and is less energetic than what we are used to. But it is incredibly well written (Rockin’ Rage, Detour), containing beautiful, unifying choruses (Street Song) and some forthright messages as heard on the first words to All This Music Must Fade: “I don’t care, I know you’re gonna hate this song, and that’s fair, we never really got along.” It’s a somewhat indirect way of talking about the relationship between Townshend and Daltrey who don’t compose together. The guitarist writes, the singer performs. After years of a love-hate relationship and recurrent feuds, one might imagine that this bad chemistry would show on the album, especially considering the separate recording sessions. However, the result is clear. It works! The rockers who sang of dying before getting old in 1965 now sing of not wanting to get wise (I Don’t Wanna Get Wise). If getting wise means recording songs like these ones, we won’t complain. The Deluxe version offers a remix by Townshend of Beads on One String and also a live acoustic taken from their unique concert given on Valentine’s Day 2020 at Kingston-on-Thames, 50 years day for day after the recording of the famous Live at Leeds. While it lacks some songs played on this day (notably Pinball Wizard and Behind Blue Eyes), simply listening to classics like Substitute and Won’t Get Fooled Again in this new format is enchanting and hard-hitting despite the lack of saturation. Our old rockers are still going strong and know how to interpret tracks that balance the band’s identity without ever making themselves appear old and frail. A real mark of wisdom despite their refusal to accept so. Rock’n’roll still lives. © Chief Brody/Qobuz