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The 1969 album Steve Van Zandt crowned “the highest pinnacle” of classic rock
Steve Van Zandt has described The Who’s 1969 rock opera Tommy as “the highest pinnacle of the art form”. The article presents the praise as recognition of the album’s ambitious storytelling and its role in demonstrating that an LP could function as a unified artistic work rather than simply a collection of songs.
Tommy was The Who’s fourth studio album and helped popularise the concept-album format through its connected narrative and songs including ‘Pinball Wizard’. Van Zandt also cited the band’s live work, particularly Live at Leeds, as an example of a live record worth making when it substantially reworks or expands on studio material.
In short
- Van Zandt calls The Who’s Tommy rock’s artistic pinnacle.
- The 1969 album helped define the concept-album format.
- He also praises The Who’s inventive live recordings.
Explained simply
Tommy is a rock album by The Who, released in 1969. Unlike most rock albums of the time, which were collections of unrelated songs, Tommy tells a continuous story throughout all of its tracks.
The album demonstrated that a rock album could function as a unified artistic work rather than simply a series of individual songs. It included hits such as 'Pinball Wizard' and influenced how many artists approached making albums.
Tommy helped establish what became known as the concept album format in rock music. The album remains significant as an early and ambitious example of storytelling within the rock genre.