Quick One, While He's Away

The Who

About Quick One, While He's Away

"A Quick One, While He's Away" is a 1966 song in six movements written by Pete Townshend and recorded by the Who for their second album A Quick One. The song also appears on the album BBC Sessions. In the performance on their Live at Leeds album Townshend calls the nine-minute "epic" track a "mini-opera" and introduces it as "Tommy's parents". The song tells the story of an unnamed girl whose lover has been gone "for nearly a year". Her friends inform her that they "have a remedy"; the remedy comes in the form of Ivor the Engine Driver. When the lover returns, the girl confesses her infidelity, and she is ultimately forgiven. more »

Year:: 1966
: 9:13
: 77 Views
Playlists:: #1

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The Who

The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey (lead vocals, guitar, harmonica), Pete Townshend (vocals, guitar, keyboards), John Entwistle (vocals, bass) and Keith Moon, (drums, vocals). They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction. The Who have sold about 100 million records, and have charted 27 top forty singles in the United Kingdom and United States, as well as 17 top ten albums, with 18 Gold, 12 Platinum and 5 Multi-Platinum album awards in the United States alone. more »

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Genre »

Rock

Style »

Classic Rock

11 facts about this song

Song Origin "A Quick One, While He's Away" is a 1966 song by The Who, a popular English rock band known for their influential contributions to the music industry.
Album It is the final track on their studio album "A Quick One", which is their second album.
Composition This 9-minute song is a medley of six short songs strung together. It is considered as a mini-opera, making it one of the first examples of rock operas.
Pioneer The song marked Pete Townshend's first foray into long form story-telling in music which later influenced his magnum opus, "Tommy".
Inspiration The song was written due to a demand of their record company that required a certain amount of original songs on the album. Pete Townshend, the chief songwriter, was out of ideas so he decided to join short parts of songs together.
Theme The song follows a narrative about a girl whose lover has been gone 'for nigh on a year'. Tempted by a man called Ivor, she ends up betraying her partner but is later forgiven.
Performance It was a staple in The Who's live act during the late 1960s and was revived in 1989 for their 25th anniversary tour.
Rolling Stones Concert The song gained fame when it was performed at The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus in December 1968, which was later released as a film.
Featured Green Day, an American rock band, used parts of this song in their song "Jesus of Suburbia”.
Parody The song was also parodied by the Rutles, a Beatles parody band, with their song "Get Up and Go".
Legacy The song's format of separate musical movements stitched together laid groundwork for subsequent progressive rock bands like Genesis, Yes and Pink Floyd.

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"Quick One, While He's Away Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 12 May 2024. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/19348765/The+Who/Quick+One%2C+While+He%27s+Away>.

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