White City: A Novel – Pete Townshend

The MARK’S VINTAGE VINYL page features something from Mark’s collection of recordings from over the years. Most of it is on vinyl – hence the name – though there will be a few entries from his CDs (remember those?).

White City: A Novel, by Pete Townshend

  • Eighth studio album by Pete Townshend released in 1985.
  • The record is a concept album that takes place in a low income housing district in London called White City. It tells a story of a conflict of culture, racial tension, and the dreams of youth in the 60s.
  • David Gilmour of Pink Floyd contributed to the album, playing guitar on 2 tracks, and co-writing the song White City Fighting. 
  • The album peaked at #26 on the Billboard 200 album chart. Three singles charted on the Mainstream Rock chart – Give Blood reached #5, Face the Face reached #3 (it also hit #26 on the Hot 100 chart), and Second Hand Love peaked at #32.
  • As a fan of the band The Who, I was curious how Townshend’s solo efforts would sound, so I bought the record without any knowledge of the songs. I was not disappointed – the album is excellent, surprisingly “pop-ish.” I really like all the songs – I guess if I have to pick a favorite, I’ll go with Face the Face. Here’s the video of a live version. Funny to watch Townshend just as a frontman, without the windmill guitar playing. This is a kick-ass song!

 

 

1 thought on “White City: A Novel – Pete Townshend”

  1. Loved The Who. Listened to the all the time back in High School. Never really followed him as a single artist. Pinball Wizard, Behind Blue Eyes, My Generation, Bargain, the list goes on and on! Roger Daultry💕

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