'Who's Next,' Which Almost Broke Up the Who, Ranked Among the 'Greatest Albums of All Time'

When you think of the most influential rock acts of the 20th century, who springs to mind? The Beatles? The Rolling Stones? While the aforementioned two are undeniable influences, for the purposes of this article, the answer is the Who. The London-based rockers were innovators during their heyday, even blazing the trail for the rock opera with their fourth studio album, Tommy, which was the first to be labeled as such.

‘Who’s Next’ by the Who Was Originally ‘Lifehouse’

Their subsequent album, Who’s Next, was equally iconic. It was supposed to be a sci-fi rock opera follow-up to Tommy, titled Lifehouse. Guitarist Pete Townshend was behind its futuristic concept, in which music was banned, and fans could access it only via a form of virtual reality called “The Grid.” Townshend took inspiration from the series of articles he wrote for Melody Maker in 1970 about the importance of rock music. The plan was to have a live-recorded double concept album and a sci-fi film.

The Who performed a handful of concerts, with the goal being to have the audience help them hone the storytelling aspects for the Lifehouse film. However, the concert attendees were uninterested in collaborating with the band.

According to Ultimate Classic Rock, “no one could make sense of the damn thing.” It caused massive friction among the group. Townshend and manager Kit Lambert also butted heads, eventually leading to their falling out. Townshend himself admitted to teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown. Lead vocalist Roger Daltrey remarked that the Who “were never nearer to breaking up.”

So, the Who pivoted, shelving the Lifehouse concept. They salvaged most of Lifehouse‘s songs without the narrative elements, and eight of the nine tracks made their way to Who’s Next.

Three singles were released to promote Who’s Next: “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” “Baba O’Riley,” and “Behind Blue Eyes.” The album debuted on Aug. 14, 1971. It skyrocketed to No. 1 on the UK Albums chart and peaked at No. 4 on the US Billboard 200 chart.

One of the Greatest Albums of All Time

Who’s Next is widely regarded as one of the Who’s best records—a bona fide rock classic. It’s also frequently cited as one of the greatest albums of all time. Rolling Stone ranked it at No. 77 on the 2023 edition of its “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time” list.

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