The Ultimate Collection (The Who album)
| The Ultimate Collection | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 British edition cover | ||||
| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | 11 June 2002 | |||
| Genre | Rock | |||
| Length | 155:14 | |||
| Label | Polydor, MCA, Geffen | |||
| Producer | Bill Levenson, Andy McKaie | |||
| The Who chronology | ||||
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| American edition cover | ||||
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The Ultimate Collection is a 2002 two-disc greatest hits set by the Who with both singles and top hits from albums, all of which have been remastered.[1] The compilation was released by Polydor Records internationally and on MCA Records in the U.S. The first 150,000 copies added a third disk with rare tracks and music videos.[2][1] The album debuted on the Billboard 200 album chart on 29 June 2002, at No. 31[3] and hit No. 17 on the British charts.[4] It was certified gold by the RIAA on 15 July 2002[5] and platinum on 13 March 2008.[5]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [6] |
| BBC | Positive[7] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [8] |
| PopMatters | Mixed[2] |
Track listing
All songs written by Pete Townshend except where noted.
British edition
Disc one
| No. | Title | Place of Origin | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Can't Explain" | Non-album single, 1964 | 2:04 |
| 2. | "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" (Townshend, Roger Daltrey) | Non-album single, 1965 | 2:40 |
| 3. | "My Generation" | My Generation, 1965 | 3:17 |
| 4. | "The Kids Are Alright" (Single version) | My Generation | 2:45 |
| 5. | "A Legal Matter" | My Generation | 2:47 |
| 6. | "Substitute" | Non-album single, 1966 | 3:47 |
| 7. | "I'm a Boy" | Non-album single | 2:36 |
| 8. | "Boris the Spider" (John Entwistle) | A Quick One, 1966 | 2:27 |
| 9. | "Happy Jack" | Non-album single (UK) Happy Jack (U.S.), 1966 | 2:10 |
| 10. | "Pictures of Lily" | Non-album single, 1967 | 2:44 |
| 11. | "I Can See for Miles" (Single version) | The Who Sell Out, 1967 | 4:06 |
| 12. | "Call Me Lightning" | Non-album single (U.S.) Non-album B-side to "Dogs" (UK), 1968 | 2:19 |
| 13. | "Magic Bus" | Non-album single (UK) Magic Bus: The Who on Tour (U.S.), 1968 | 3:20 |
| 14. | "Pinball Wizard" | Tommy, 1969 | 3:01 |
| 15. | "I'm Free" | Tommy | 2:39 |
| 16. | "See Me, Feel Me" | Tommy (taken from "We're Not Gonna Take It!") | 3:23 |
| 17. | "The Seeker" | Non-album single, 1970 | 3:11 |
| 18. | "Summertime Blues" (Live; Eddie Cochran, Jerry Capehart) | Live at Leeds, 1970 | 3:22 |
| 19. | "My Wife" (Entwistle) | Who's Next, 1971 | 3:34 |
| 20. | "Baba O'Riley" | Who's Next | 4.59 |
| 21. | "Bargain" | Who's Next | 5:33 |
| 22. | "Behind Blue Eyes" | Who's Next | 3:41 |
| 23. | "Won't Get Fooled Again" | Who's Next | 8:31 |
Disc two
| No. | Title | Place of Origin | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Let's See Action (Nothing Is Everything)" | Non-album single, 1971 | 3:57 |
| 2. | "Pure And Easy" | Odds & Sods, 1974; recorded in 1971 for Lifehouse/Who's Next | 5:21 |
| 3. | "Join Together" | Non-album single, 1972 | 4:21 |
| 4. | "Long Live Rock" | Odds & Sods, 1974; recorded in 1972 for Rock Is Dead—Long Live Rock!, the precursor to Quadrophenia, 1973 | 3:54 |
| 5. | "The Real Me" | Quadrophenia | 3:30 |
| 6. | "5:15" (Single version) | Quadrophenia | 4:53 |
| 7. | "Love, Reign o'er Me" | Quadrophenia | 5:50 |
| 8. | "Squeeze Box" | The Who by Numbers, 1975 | 2:40 |
| 9. | "Who Are You" | Who Are You, 1978 | 6:21 |
| 10. | "Had Enough" (Entwistle) | Who Are You | 4:28 |
| 11. | "Sister Disco" | Who Are You | 4:20 |
| 12. | "You Better You Bet" | Face Dances, 1981 | 5:36 |
| 13. | "Don't Let Go the Coat" | Face Dances | 3:42 |
| 14. | "The Quiet One" (Entwistle) | Face Dances | 3:07 |
| 15. | "Another Tricky Day" | Face Dances | 4:53 |
| 16. | "Athena" | It's Hard, 1982 | 3:46 |
| 17. | "Eminence Front" | It's Hard | 5:39 |
American edition
Disc one
| No. | Title | Place of Origin | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Can't Explain" | Non-album single | |
| 2. | "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" (Townshend, Daltrey) | Non-album single | |
| 3. | "My Generation" | My Generation | |
| 4. | "The Kids Are Alright" (Single version) | My Generation | |
| 5. | "A Legal Matter" | My Generation | |
| 6. | "Substitute" | Non-album single | |
| 7. | "I'm a Boy" | Non-album single | |
| 8. | "Boris the Spider" (Entwistle) | A Quick One | |
| 9. | "Happy Jack" | Non-album single (UK) Happy Jack (U.S.) | |
| 10. | "Pictures of Lily" | Non-album single | |
| 11. | "I Can See for Miles" (Single version) | The Who Sell Out | |
| 12. | "Call Me Lightning" | Non-album single (U.S.) Non-album B-side to "Dogs" (UK) | |
| 13. | "Magic Bus" | Non-album single (UK) Magic Bus: The Who on Tour (U.S.) | |
| 14. | "Pinball Wizard" | Tommy | |
| 15. | "I'm Free" | Tommy | |
| 16. | "See Me, Feel Me" | Tommy | |
| 17. | "The Seeker" | Non-album single | |
| 18. | "Summertime Blues (Live)" (Cochran, Capehart) | Live at Leeds | |
| 19. | "My Wife" (Entwistle) | Who's Next | |
| 20. | "Baba O'Riley" | Who's Next | |
| 21. | "Bargain" | Who's Next |
Disc two
| No. | Title | Place of Origin | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Behind Blue Eyes" | Who's Next | |
| 2. | "Won't Get Fooled Again" | Who's Next | |
| 3. | "Let's See Action (Nothing Is Everything)" | Non-album single | |
| 4. | "Pure and Easy" | Odds and Sods | |
| 5. | "Join Together" | Non-album single | |
| 6. | "Long Live Rock" | Odds and Sods | |
| 7. | "The Real Me" | Quadrophenia | |
| 8. | "5:15" (Single version) | Quadrophenia | |
| 9. | "Love, Reign o'er Me" | Quadrophenia | |
| 10. | "Squeeze Box" | The Who by Numbers | |
| 11. | "Who Are You" | Who Are You | |
| 12. | "Sister Disco" | Who Are You | |
| 13. | "You Better You Bet" | Face Dances | |
| 14. | "Eminence Front" | It's Hard |
Disc three (Limited edition only)
| No. | Title | Place of Origin | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Substitute" (U.S. single version) | Non-album single (U.S.), 1966 | 2:58 |
| 2. | "I'm a Boy" (Early version) | Previously unissued, 2002 | 3:17 |
| 3. | "Happy Jack" (Acoustic version) | Previously unissued | 2:50 |
| 4. | "Magic Bus" (UK single version) | Non-album single, 1968 | 3:15 |
Personnel
- The Who
- Roger Daltrey – lead vocals
- John Entwistle – bass guitar, horn, lead vocals on "Boris the Spider", "My Wife" and "The Quiet One", backing vocals
- Pete Townshend – guitar, vocals, synthesizer, keyboards
- Keith Moon – drums, percussion (UK: disc 1 & disc 2 tracks 1-11/US: disc 1 & disc 2 tracks 1–12), backing vocals on "Pictures of Lily"
- Kenney Jones – drums (UK: disc 2 tracks 12-17/US: disc 2 tracks 13 & 14)
- Additional musicians
- The Ivy League - backing vocals on "I Can't Explain"
- Jimmy Page - rhythm guitar on "I Can't Explain"
- Nicky Hopkins - piano on "Let's See Action" and "Long Live Rock"
- Dave Arbus – violin on "Baba O'Riley"
- Rod Argent – piano on "Who Are You"
- Andy Fairweather Low – backing vocals on "Who Are You"
- Chris Stainton – piano on "5:15"
- Production
- Jon Astley – mastering
- Glyn Johns – associate production on "Behind Blue Eyes," "Won't Get Fooled Again" and "Baba O'Riley", production on "Squeeze Box", "Who Are You", "Athena" and "Eminence Front"
- Matt Kent – liner notes
- Kit Lambert – production on "I'm a Boy", "Happy Jack", "I Can See for Miles", "Magic Bus", and "See Me Feel Me"
- Shel Talmy – production on "I Can't Explain", "My Generation", and "The Kids Are Alright"
- Bill Szymczyk – production on "You Better You Bet", "Don't Let Go The Coat", "The Quiet One" and "Another Tricky Day"
- The Who – production on "Summertime Blues", "Behind Blue Eyes", "Won't Get Fooled Again", "5:15", and "Love Reign o'er Me"
- Design & Art Direction by Richard Evans
Chart performance
| Chart (2002) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart[4] | 17 |
| US Billboard 200[3] | 31 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[9] | Platinum | 300,000* |
| United States (RIAA)[10] | Platinum | 1,000,000^ |
|
* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
- ^ a b "Official Band Website – Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, John Entwistle, and Keith Moon | | The Who – The Ultimate Collection". The Who. 1 October 2002. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
- ^ a b Choi, Tom. "The Who: The Ultimate Collection < PopMatters". Popmatters.com. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
- ^ a b The Who chart history, Billboard
- ^ a b "The Who at". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
- ^ a b "RIAA". RIAA. Retrieved 4 December 2011.
- ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "The Who – The Ultimate Collection (American Edition)". AllMusic.
- ^ The Who – The Ultimate Collection (Album Review) at BBC Music
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
- ^ "British album certifications – Who – The Ultimate Collection". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 December 2022.
- ^ "American album certifications – The Who – The Ultimate Collection". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
