Quadrophenia turns 50!
To all my fellow fans of The Who…
This epic double album rock opera was released on October 26, 1973.
This is the cover art for the album Quadrophenia by the artist The Who. The cover art copyright is believed to belong to the label, Polydor/MCA, or the graphic artist(s).
The narrative centers on a young working-class mod named Jimmy. He likes drugs, beach fights and romance, and becomes a fan of the Who after a concert in Brighton, but is disillusioned by his parents' attitude towards him, dead-end jobs and an unsuccessful trip to see a psychiatrist. He clashes with his parents over his usage of amphetamines, and has difficulty finding regular work and doubts his own self-worth, quitting a job as a dustman after only two days. Though he is happy to be "one" of the mods, he struggles to keep up with his peers, and his girlfriend leaves him for his best friend.
After destroying his scooter and contemplating suicide, he decides to take a train to Brighton, where he had enjoyed earlier experiences with fellow mods. However, he discovers the "Ace Face" who led the gang now has a menial job as a bellboy in a hotel. He feels everything in his life has rejected him, steals a boat, and uses it to sail out to a rock overlooking the sea. On the rock and stuck in the rain, he contemplates his life. The ending is left ambiguous as to what happens to Jimmy.
Source: Wikipedia.org
“While my leg ultimately healed and I physically recovered, emotionally I did not. I merely went through the motions that final semester. I was disconnected, basically becoming a casual observer. My grades suffered and in turn, my interest in college and its (their) interest in me diminished. I just didn’t give a s@#%. I was lost. My own soundtrack would later reflect my perspective and outlook; bitterness mixed with elements of futility; hostility mixed with dashes of hubris. Coincidentally, the artists and music of the times reflected a similar mood.
My personal relationship with music, better yet, with sound, became ancillary, more tangential. Instead of plugging into a Marshall stack and strumming a “power chord”, I learned to design, craft, and install large carpet-covered subwoofer cabinets that emanated sound waves, which could be heard and felt blocks away; “Audio Thunder Designs” was what I called my endeavor. During that time my physical form had changed as well. Spurred along by a new found focus on my upper body, I went from a thin 165-pound frame, to a more robust 195-pound chassis, that could ultimately bench over 300 lbs. Listening to certain songs, fueled my training and my rage.
After a couple of years, while I was still lost in a mostly self-made wilderness, something began to stir inside me. I began to “hear” the music again, the guitar again…”
- Woodard, Anthony. “Lost and found… (Repost)”. Feb. 9, 2023
We will almost certainly be faced with adversity, and unfortunately in some cases, tragedy and heartbreak.
Like a ballad (or a rock opera), each of our lives tells a story, many of which share a common thread. While the details of my life were different from those of the fictional character Jimmy, we looked to have shared feelings of bitterness, hostility, and of being lost. How each of us address these situations or events is a personal journey that hopefully results in recovery and growth; Lost and found...
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