Empty Glass
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| Empty Glass | ||
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| Studio album by Pete Townshend | ||
| Released | April 21, 1980 | |
| Recorded | 1978-1980 | |
| Genre | Rock | |
| Length | 39:39 | |
| Label | Atco | |
| Producer(s) | Pete Townshend | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pete Townshend chronology | ||
| Who Came First (1972) |
Empty Glass (1980) |
All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes (1982) |
Empty Glass was released as the first proper Pete Townshend solo album (Who Came First was a collection of demo recordings and Meher Baba-inspired songs, while Rough Mix was written and recorded with Ronnie Lane) and was his most successful. Dealing with a plethora of issues that Townshend was struggling with, including alcoholism, drug abuse, and deceased friends, Empty Glass also contained the devotional love song, 'Let My Love Open The Door', which became a successful single, along with the other (modestly successful) singles, 'Rough Boys' and 'A Little Is Enough'.
The album was written and recorded between 1978 and 1980, when activity with The Who had started to pick up again, and Townshend found himself having to write for both his solo projects and his band. As a result, Empty Glass, when compared with The Who's 1981 album Face Dances, was considered the superior album, with many critics calling it a Who album that never was. Roger Daltrey later commented that he felt let down by Townshend, and that many of the songs from the album would have worked well for The Who, among them 'Rough Boys' and 'Empty Glass'; Townshend countered by saying that he felt 'Rough Boys' was the one song Daltrey would have wanted clarified and toned down if he were to sing it, thus defeating its message, while 'Empty Glass' had been recorded during sessions for Who Are You in 1978, with a version featuring Keith Moon on drums and John Entwistle on bass released on the 1996 reissue of that album.
The album's title is an allusion to a poem by the Sufi poet Hafez.[citation needed]
Contents |
[edit] Track listing
All songs were composed by Pete Townshend.
- "Rough Boys" – 4:01
- "I Am an Animal" – 3:50
- "And I Moved" – 3:21
- "Let My Love Open the Door" – 2:44
- "Jools and Jim" – 2:36
- "Keep on Working" – 3:23
- "Cat's in the Cupboard" – 3:34
- "A Little Is Enough" – 4:41
- "Empty Glass" – 5:25
- "Gonna Get Ya" – 6:24
[edit] Bonus Tracks from the 2006- Imperial Japan CD
- I Am an Animal (Demo Alternate Vocal Version) – 3:48
- Keep on Working (Demo Alternate Vocal Version) – 3:32
- And I Moved (Demo Alternate Vocal Version) – 3:06
- Gonna Get Ya (Work-in-Progress Long Version) – 11:24
[edit] Non-album Tracks
- Classified (Demo Recorded in 1970 Released as a B-side on several 1980 European single releases of "Let My Love Open the Door".)
- Greyhound Girl (B-side to "Let My Love Open the Door" EP in Europe.)
- Let My Love Open the Door (Alternative Mix from the 1996 UK CD Single.)
[edit] Personnel
- Pete Townshend: vocals, guitars, keyboards, synths
- John "Rabbit" Bundrick: "straight" keyboards
- Mark Brzezicki: drums
- James Asher: drums
- Simon Phillips: drums
- Tony Butler: bass guitar
- Kenney Jones: drums on 'Rough Boys'
- Raphael Rudd: brass arrangements on 'Rough Boys'
- Peter Hope-Evans: harmonica on 'Cat's In The Cupboard'
