The Story of The Who by The Who, album cover
Album · Compilation · 50 years old this year

The Story of The Who

LabelPolydor
Popularity48.3

The Story of The Who is a two-LP compilation from the English rock band, released on 24 September 1976 by Polydor. It arrived in the UK that September and climbed to number two in the charts, a healthy showing for a career-spanning collection. A separate edition with a different track listing was issued in Japan.

It sits between The Who by Numbers and Who Are You in the band's story, offering a overview for anyone wanting the hits in one place. It wasn't quite the definitive survey, though: John Entwistle felt as much, since the band could only include tracks they held the rights to. The exploding pinball machine in the TV advert came from film shot to promote it. The set has never appeared on CD, but it returned on vinyl for Record Store Day on 20 April 2024.

The Story of The Who: tracklist, credits and charts

26 tracks · 1:29:06

Tracklist

  1. Disc 1
  2. 1Magic BusPete Townshend3:21
  3. 2SubstitutePete Townshend2:13
  4. 3Boris the SpiderJohn Entwistle2:32
  5. 4Run Run RunPete Townshend2:47
  6. 5I'm a BoyPete Townshend2:42
  7. 6Heat WaveDozier, Holland, Holland1:59
  8. 7My GenerationPete Townshend3:22
  9. 8Pictures of LilyPete Townshend2:47
  10. 9Happy JackPete Townshend2:16
  11. 10The SeekerPete Townshend3:26
  12. 11I Can See for MilesPete Townshend4:19
  13. 12BargainPete Townshend5:38
  14. 13Squeeze BoxPete Townshend2:41
  15. Disc 2
  16. 1Amazing JourneyPete Townshend4:28
  17. 2The Acid QueenPete Townshend3:37
  18. 3Do You Think It's Alright?Pete Townshend0:29
  19. 4Fiddle AboutJohn Entwistle1:34
  20. 5Pinball WizardPete Townshend3:05
  21. 6I'm FreePete Townshend2:41
  22. 7Tommy's Holiday CampKeith Moon0:59
  23. 8We're Not Gonna Take ItPete Townshend7:05
  24. 9Summertime BluesJerry Capehart and Eddie Cochran3:37
  25. 10Baba O'RileyPete Townshend5:01
  26. 11Behind Blue EyesPete Townshend3:41
  27. 12Slip KidPete Townshend4:13
  28. 13Won't Get Fooled AgainPete Townshend8:33
Produced by
Kit Lambert, The Who, Glyn Johns, Keith Moon
Executive producer
Chris Stamp, Pete Kameron, Kit Lambert
Recorded at
IBC Studios, Regent Sound Studios, Yasgur’s Farm, Olympic Studios
Recorded
November 1966 – May 1971
Mixed by
Glyn Johns
Engineered by
Glyn Johns
Label
Polydor
Length
1:29:06

Line-up

  • John Entwistle · brass, bass, vocals, electric bass guitar, background vocals, bass guitar · guest
  • Keith Moon · percussion, drums (drum set), background vocals · guest
  • Pete Townshend · synthesizer, organ, guitar, vocals, cello, electric guitar, background vocals, piano, lead vocals · guest
  • Roger Daltrey · vocals, lead vocals · guest
  • Dave Arbus · violin · guest

Peak chart positions

ChartPeak
UK Albums Chart · 19762
New Zealand Albums · 197619

Certifications

RegionCertification
United Kingdom · 1976Gold

From MusicBrainz and Wikipedia. Only what the sources record is shown.

48.3
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
168
ListenBrainz listeners
28k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
—
Deezer fans (all editions)

Released the same week

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Releases and pressings

How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata
SourceDateNote
MusicBrainz1976
Wikipedia infobox24 September 1976
Wikidata24 September 1976
UK / Europe release1976earliest UK or European date
1 editions
DateCountryLabelBarcodeKind
1976GBPolydororiginal
Cover art sources

coverartarchive · upscaled: major: best source 600x610, upscaled to 1500 (x2.50)

SourceSizeVerdict
coverartarchive ✓600×610upscaled: major: best source 600x610, upscaled to 1500 (x2.50)