The Who have released a Super Deluxe Edition box set of their 1978 album Who Are You, which hit the stores Friday, October 31.
To celebrate, there was an exclusive pre-release album playback party that took place the night before at Dolby’s London HQ in Soho. Those who were in attendance were treated to the exquisite experience of listening to Steve Wilson’s stunning new Dolby Atmos surround mix of Who Are You in the pristine audio environment of the Dolby Screening Room. The small listening room only held 60 seats, so it was an intimate gathering for those lucky enough to go.
Following the playback, there was a 45 minute Q&A session with a few of the people who worked on the box set, including Jon Astley (co-producer of the original Who Are You album), Steven Wilson (producer of the new surround tracks), Richard Evans (graphic designer for the project), and Matt Kent (writer of the liner notes). The panel was hosted by BBC Radio 6 Music presenter Matt Everitt.
The album cover of Who Are You was projected on a huge screen in the listening room, and was also setup in a large display with a mock-up of Keith Moon’s NOT TO BE TAKEN AWAY chair, where people could sit and pose for photos. There were also multiple window displays stretching across the front of the Dolby building, to help promote the release to passersby walking around Soho Square.
The playback party was a great way to kick off the release of this wonderful box set, which is chock full of awesome material!
The package contains 7 CDs and 1 Blu-ray of music, plus a lovely 100-page hard back book with lots of glossy photos and extensive liner notes.
Included in the set is a re-mastered version of the album by producer Jon Astley, the original mix of Who Are You by Glyn Johns that was rejected by The Who, John Entwistle’s demos (no demos from Pete unfortunately), out-takes from the Who Are You sessions, Shepperton studio rehearsals from 1977, and six tracks from Keith’s last show at Shepperton in 1978 that was filmed for the Kids Are Alright documentary.
There is also some post Keith Moon material from 1979 after Kenney Jones took over on drums and John ‘Rabbit’ Bundrick was added on keyboards, including rehearsals at Shepperton, and a couple of CDs of live recordings drawn from various cities during the 1979 North American tour.
The blu-ray disc contains Steven Wilson’s Dolby Atmos and DTS-HD 5.1 surround mixes of the album.
The Who Are You Super Deluxe box set does a great job of covering this transitional and often times overlooked period of The Who’s history. This package is really well put together, and would make a wonderful addition to any Who collection!
As well as the big box set, there are also Who Are You Deluxe editions with 4-LPs and 2-CDs available.
Many thanks to Gary and Melissa Hurley for all the great photos and video of the Who Are You playback party!
Photo credit: Gary and Melissa Hurley
Photo credit: Gary and Melissa Hurley
Photo credit: Gary and Melissa Hurley
Photo credit: Gary and Melissa Hurley
The Q&A panel with Matt Kent, Richard Evans, Steven Wilson, Matt Everitt, Jon Astley. Photo credit: Gary and Melissa Hurley
Video credit: Gary and Melissa Hurley
Who Are You 7CD/Blu-Ray Super Deluxe Edition Boxset
CD 1: WHO ARE YOU
The original album newly remastered by Jon Astley at Close to the Edge.
CD 2: GLYN JOHNS MIX
The Who Are You album, first mixed by Glyn Johns, rejected by the band, plus new mixes created by Steven Wilson.
CD3: SESSIONS & DEMOS
Early run-throughs, sessions and out-takes plus several demos by John Entwistle.
CD4: SHEPPERTON 1977
Previously unreleased tracks from the 1977 Shepperton studios rehearsals, including Keith Moon singing ‘I Saw Her Standing There’ and ‘Barbara Ann’ plus a very early live version of ‘Who Are You’ from Toronto, 1976.
CD5: SHEPPERTON 1978/79
Includes six tracks from the live concert at Shepperton for the filming of The Kids Are Alright documentary. Plus rehearsals with new drummer Kenney Jones for The Who’s 1979 US tour.
CDs 6 & 7: LIVE USA 1979
Live recordings from the 1979 US tour, including tracks recorded at the Pontiac Silverdome, the Spectrum in Philadelphia and the Masonic Temple, Detroit, including a rare live version of John Entwistle’s Trick of the Light.
BLU-RAY: Dolby Atmos, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, and PCM Stereo mixes created by Steven Wilson.
SUPER DELUXE EDITION BOOK
A 100-page hardback book with extensive sleeve notes by Matt Kent covering the period before and after the album’s release, plus track-by-track details, and session notes, as well as sleeve notes by Steven Wilson on his remixes for Dolby Atmos. The book is lavishly illustrated with previously unpublished photographs, memorabilia, tape boxes and original print ads.
Who Are You 4-LP Deluxe Edition
This limited-edition deluxe vinyl box set features a 4-LP set on 180-gram vinyl, including the original album newly remastered, plus live recordings from the 1979 US tour. The lift-top box includes 1 LP in a single sleeve and 3 LPs in a triple gatefold sleeve, together with a 28-page soft cover book.
Who Are You 2-CD Deluxe Edition
The Deluxe 2-CD set pairs the original album newly remastered with a CD of tracks taken from the studio sessions, demo recordings and live material. The two discs are presented in an 8-panel digipak with a 16-page booklet.
