Pete Townshend - Empty Glass

This Japanese pressing is part of a Pete Townsend miniature LP sleeve CD release series that has been fully remastered. Imperial. 2006. Album Description

 Pete's solo classic!
Though it's often downplayed thanks to his experimental leanings, Townshend had a knack for writing the perfect pop-rocker that stretched from "I Can't Explain" and "The Kids Are All RighT" to "You Better You Bet" and "Athena". Empty Glass is, basically, an album full of those perfect pop-rockers. It doesn't make any significant advances past the Who's hard-rocking, synthesizer-driven, intelligent sound, which is my only complaint, and a small one at that. The whole album is just filled with some of the best melodies I've heard - top 5 "Let My Love Open the Door" is only the best known example; the ambiguous "And Then I Moved" (which casts Townshend's sexuality in a questioning light - not that I mind); rock critic insult "Jooles and Jim"; "I Am an Animal" and "Rough Boys" are similar: solid melodies, hard-to-forget refrains, lots of fun synthesizer parts. The hard-rocking side of Townshend's still here too: check the slide-and-harp blues "Cat's in the Cupboard" or the guitar-heavy title track and "I'm Gonna Get You". And every song is at about that level, which makes Empty Glass a must-have for Who fans. Interestingly, Townshend's voice has dropped an octave or so - no longer high and clear, so you can't expect him to hit the same notes as he did on "The Song Is Over" - instead, he's more at "Eminence Front" level. While I prefer the high-pitched Townshend (it just sounds so different! And I like different!), he's still a fine singer on this album. June 28, 2007

 one of the best
If you want buy only one cd of Pete from the discography, this is the one, the best! June 21, 2007

 Pete Townshend's Best Solo Album
EMPTY GLASS is Pete Townshend's best solo CD. The opener, "Rough Boys", is about a 35-year-old rocker coming to terms with the punks he helped inspire, as is "Gonna Get Ya", "Jools And Jim" attacks critics who don't give artists a fair shake, and many other songs on this CD are the work of a person reflecting on past missteps, and have inspired me to hang up pictures of pretty actresses as a deterrent to repeating these errors of behavior myself. Get this album in any form you can. April 22, 2007

 A Great Album
This is the very first LP I ever listened to back in 2002. It was my favorite. Then I went to Amazon.com and bought the CD. My favorites are
5. Rough Boys
4. A Little Is Enough
3. Jools And Jim
2. Empty Glass
1. Let My Love Open The Door March 9, 2007

 Great music, mediocre remasters!!
I don't like most modern remastered discs. They sound harsh, flat , two dimensional, in other words they sound more like an average cd and less like the master tape or the original LP. When a remaster is done correctly, it can be superb, so I'm not against all remasters. I am a huge Townshend fan, but I find the original releases of these cd's to be much less fatiguing, more musical!! Why?, because they are exact dupes of the LP"S. They just sound more anologue-like!! The other little trick they pull with new remasters is to pump up the level so the it sounds louder than the original at the same volume setting, but louder is not better!!!! Turn the volume up on the original and you'll find the sonics are acutually better. They play much louder without compession or harshness! It's a shame, glad I held onto my original cd's and LP"s. Just an analogue lover's viewpoint.
Five stars for music, 3 stars for sound. December 12, 2006

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