Giles

The Who's defining, breakthrough concept album - a full-blown rock opera about a deaf, dumb and blind boy that launched the band to international superstardom, written almost entirely by Pete Townshend is now available as a new LIMITED EDITION Super Deluxe version that that includes 4 audio discs, an 80 page hardback book and a poster.

The audio features the original album re-mastered along with a wealth of previously unheard material in the form of 20 demos from Pete Townshend's archive and also a full live performance of Tommy from 1969 taken from tapes that infamously Townshend asked the band's sound engineer to burn. 18 of the previously unheard and thought to be long lost live tracks are taken from a live show at the Capital Theatre, Ottowa, Canada on October the 15th 1969. Three others, 'I'm Free,' 'Tommy's Holiday Camp,' and 'We're Not Gonna Take It' were lost due to tape reels being changed during the show so are taken from later shows of the same era. As discussed at length in Pete Townshend's autobiography the tapes were all supposed to be destroyed but were kept by long time Who sound man Bob Pridden despite Pete's instructions.

The Super Deluxe box also features a 5.1 mix featuring the complete album remixed in surround sound on new Hi Fidelity Pure Audio Blu-ray format.

The hardback 80-page full-colour book features rare period photos, memorabilia, a 20,000-word essay by legendary Who aficionado Richard Barnes and a rare facsimile Tommy poster housed in a hard-back deluxe slip-case.

(Disc 1) The original album digitally re-matsered in HD.
(Disc 2) The demos and out-takes. Features 25 tracks (20 previously-unreleased) from Pete Townshend's archive. Tracks 1-23 - Pete Townshend original demos.
All previously unreleased except 2, 11 and 12 - released in 2003.
Track 24 - The Who studio demo/out-take.
Track 25 - The Who studio recording. (NOTE: This version was previously only available on 'The House That Track Built' vinyl sampler).
(Disc 3) The 5.1 album mix - Hi Fidelity Pure Audio Blu-ray.
(Disc 4) The live 'bootleg' album - Features 21 previously-unreleased tracks from various live shows from 1969.

~~

I am SOOOO buying this... I am a huge Who fan as well this album specifically.

Troy Stiffler

Love love love Tommy. But I'll pass.

whotony

Yikes, a 5.1 hi rez HD bluray edition.


Where's that Homer drooling gif?

Whotony approves.

whotony

Oof.
http://www.amazon.com/Tommy-Super-De...=the+who+tommy

Giles

^ yeah the price ain't peanuts ... gonna trade in a slew of CD, videos, some blurays over at CDExchange in Silver Spring, preorder it from them, and try to knock the price down... real low (if possible)

Supermallet

Ouch. Not for me. I love The Who but Tommy is not one of my favorites. Now, if they did this for The Who By Numbers, I'd be all over it.

Geofferson

Those extra discs sound very enticing, however I"ll just be satisfied with the vinyl. I see they're releasing it around the same time as the deluxe CD set. My old Decca release is in dire need of being replaced and the prior re-releases are spendy and hard to come by.

Hiro11

The Live at Leeds Deluxe CD already has an amazing full live Tommy. Not going to be buying this.

mdnitoil

^
Between the MFSL Tommy and Live at Leeds Deluxe, I've got this covered.

EddieMoney

Can't wait until next year when the Super Super Deluxe edition comes out.

Supermallet

Also Live at the Isle of Wight has an almost complete live performance of Tommy. It is my preferred version.

cungar

Already have the 5.1 SACD. It's awesome. It's enough. I already read enough about Tommy in my Who fanboy days for one lifetime.

All I want from Pete is a decent solo album with songs rather than a stupid concept. Other than that it's just more rehash.

Giles

the sad thing is that I'm one of those suckers who will buy any and all 'Tommy' releases

I already own (as other have noted)

the 5.1 SACD
the 5.1 DVD-Audio
The Who: Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 Blu-ray
Live at Leeds Deluxe

just call me gullible

Michael Corvin

$170 for "one" album?

The Who is probably my favorite classic rock artist and Tommy is my favorite album from them but, uh... no.

Giles

granted it is one album, it's similar in pricing to the Pink Floyd Immersion Box Sets but forty dollars more than the Dark Side of the Moon box set.

whotony

I have all of those too oops eXcept Wight, forgotto get it.

I have maybe a dozen lps of Tommy.

I think there was a version of Quad like this Tommy set but it did not have a bluray or a hi res version.

Hmm, now that I think about it I might have 50-60 different Who albums.
Including all the solo stuff might be close to 100.
No record player anymore tho'

Giles

I'm curious in knowing what the herz will be on the bluray version since the DVD-A is 96kHz via a DVD-Audio player - DVD-video player decode the album in 'Dolby Digital surround sound' (which I would conclude to be standard 48kHz). The SACD (to me) sounds better than the DVD-Audio mix.

Supposedly there is a separate bluray only release of this, but I have yet to see this advertised / pre-orderable as such.

PhantomStranger

I've given up on these super deluxe box sets. They are vastly overpriced and starting to enter the realms of ridiculousness.

Supermallet

And aside from the surround sound stuff, all the material will be on Spotify for free.

Toddarino

I already have the super deluxe versions of Live At Leeds and Quadrophenia. I've been hoping this was the next album to be re-released.

cungar

Every time I hear about them, I think of this story.


Man buys Pink Floyd box set, puts it on shelf, feels sad
27-09-11

A MIDDLE-AGED man is feeling oddly downhearted after buying an expensive limited edition box set of music by the favourite band of his youth.


Tom Logan, a 48 year-old systems analyst, spent around £100 on a box-type thing containing a ‘re-masticated’ vinyl edition of Dark Side of the Moon, a soiled tea towel with the lyrics to Money inscribed on it in green biro and a special bonus LP featuring unreleased recordings of Syd Barrett throwing sprouts into a tin bath.

Logan, whose unfulfilling job gives him a high disposable income, will never open the packaging on his purchase because to do so would affect the highly collectable geegaw’s online resale value.

Instead he has placed it on a tragic shelf alongside his special edition U2 retrospective vinyl set with Bono-cock-shaped data-dildo, a Brian Eno anniversary unicorn and a presentation case containing Neil Young’s smegma.

Logan said: “I’m fairly certain that this Pink Floyd box set contains a magical portal back to my youth, when I had hair on my head instead of my shoulders and had no idea what Preparation H was for.

“If only I could open the box without downgrading it from ‘near mint’ to ‘excellent’.”

He added: “I ordered it specially from my local independent record store, where I suspect the young and attractive staff all laugh at me behind my back.

“But, if nothing else, I suppose it is good to financially support ageing musicians with expensive, fucknut children.”

Giles

here's a listing of the album in bluray-only form:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00EQ25DK0?tag=bluraycom-21

whotony

interesting is it region free?

Giles

that's a good question, let me try to confirm ... hold the phone.

Giles

okay, no word on the region coding for the bluray (yet) ...

but I've discovered there's also this version coming out here in the States - which is a further stripped down version of the box set Essentially it's Disc 1 and 4 of the box set.

(so where the hell is the bluray disc?? I don't mind importing, but jeez Interscope/Geffen is certainly not supporting hi-rez blu-ray audio by any stretch by not releasing it separately)



Tommy (Super Deluxe Edition) CD