"The Seeker" is a song written by Pete Townshend and performed by English rock band the Who. First released as a non-album single in March 1970, it is included on their 1971 compilation album Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy and other compilations.
Around the time of the song's release, Townshend explained its meaning in an interview with Rolling Stone:
Quite loosely, "The Seeker" was just a thing about what I call Divine Desperation, or just Desperation. And what it does to people. It just kind of covers a whole area where the guy's being fantastically tough and ruthlessly nasty and he's being incredibly selfish and he's hurting people, wrecking people's homes, abusing his heroes, he's accusing everyone of doing nothing for him and yet at the same time he's making a fairly valid statement, he's getting nowhere, he's doing nothing and the only thing he really can't be sure of is his death, and that at least dead, he's going to get what he wants. He thinks![3]
"I suppose I like this least of all the stuff", wrote Townshend the following year. "It suffered from being the first thing we did after Tommy, and also from being recorded a few too many times. We did it once at my home studio, then at IBC where we normally worked then with Kit Lambert producing. Then Kit had a tooth pulled, breaking his jaw, and we did it ourselves. The results are impressive. It sounded great in the mosquito-ridden swamp I made it up in—Florida at three in the morning drunk out of my brain with Tom Wright and John Wolff. But that's always where the trouble starts, in the swamp. The alligator turned into an elephant and finally stampeded itself to death on stages around England. I don't think we even got to play it in the States."[4] However, the Who performed "The Seeker" for about two weeks on their 1970 American tour.[citation needed] The Who revived the song briefly in 2000 and then extensively starting on the 2006–2007 tour for Endless Wire.
The lyrics name-check several people who had high profiles in contemporary pop culture: musicians Bob Dylan (as "Bobby Dylan") and the Beatles, and advocate of psychedelic drugs Timothy Leary. Townshend was a devotee of the teachings of Meher Baba, a Persian-Indian mystic whose 1966 treatise/pamphletGod in a Pill? famously lambasted drug use as a means of consciousness expansion. Similarly, Townshend was an opponent of drug abuse throughout this period.
Released in the UK as Track 604036 on 21 March 1970, "The Seeker" reached number 19 in the charts. Released in the US as Decca 7-32670, it hit the Billboard charts on 11 April 1970, eventually peaking at number 44.[5] The B-side, "Here for More", is one of the few Who songs written by lead singer Roger Daltrey.[5]
Cash Box described it as showing "the Who still operating with blistering instrumental thrust, but turning to lyrics more meaningful than before."[6]Record World said that the single "was worth the wait and the group is still a real powerhouse."[7]
^Atkins, John (1 February 2000). The Who on Record: A Critical History, 1963–1998. McFarland. p. 128. ISBN978-0-7864-4097-9.
^Janovitz, Bill. "The Seeker – Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 August 2016.
^Cott, Jonathan (14 May 1970). "A Talk with Pete Townshend". Rolling Stone. No. 58. Straight Arrow Publishers. p. 33.
^Townshend, Pete (9 December 1971). "Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy: Pete Townshend on 'Tommy'". Rolling Stone. No. 97. Straight Arrow Publishers. p. 72.
^ ab"The Seeker". TheWho.com. The Who. 2018. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
^"CashBox Record Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 11 April 1970. p. 20. Retrieved 8 December 2021 – via worldradiohistory.com.
^"Single Picks of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 4 April 1970. p. 1. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
^"The Who". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
seeker, song, seeker, song, written, pete, townshend, performed, english, rock, band, first, released, album, single, march, 1970, included, their, 1971, compilation, album, meaty, beaty, bouncy, other, compilations, seeker, polydor, picture, sleevesingle, who. The Seeker is a song written by Pete Townshend and performed by English rock band the Who First released as a non album single in March 1970 it is included on their 1971 compilation album Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy and other compilations The Seeker Polydor picture sleeveSingle by the WhoB side Here for More Released20 March 1970 1970 03 20 RecordedJanuary 1970StudioIBC LondonGenreHard rock 1 power pop 2 Length3 12LabelTrack UK Decca US Songwriter s Pete TownshendProducer s Kit Lambert The WhoThe Who UK singles chronology Pinball Wizard 1969 The Seeker 1970 Summertime Blues 1970 The Who US singles chronology I m Free 1969 The Seeker 1970 Summertime Blues 1970 Official audio The Seeker BBC Session on YouTube Contents 1 Background 2 Release 3 Charts 4 ReferencesBackground editAround the time of the song s release Townshend explained its meaning in an interview with Rolling Stone Quite loosely The Seeker was just a thing about what I call Divine Desperation or just Desperation And what it does to people It just kind of covers a whole area where the guy s being fantastically tough and ruthlessly nasty and he s being incredibly selfish and he s hurting people wrecking people s homes abusing his heroes he s accusing everyone of doing nothing for him and yet at the same time he s making a fairly valid statement he s getting nowhere he s doing nothing and the only thing he really can t be sure of is his death and that at least dead he s going to get what he wants He thinks 3 I suppose I like this least of all the stuff wrote Townshend the following year It suffered from being the first thing we did after Tommy and also from being recorded a few too many times We did it once at my home studio then at IBC where we normally worked then with Kit Lambert producing Then Kit had a tooth pulled breaking his jaw and we did it ourselves The results are impressive It sounded great in the mosquito ridden swamp I made it up in Florida at three in the morning drunk out of my brain with Tom Wright and John Wolff But that s always where the trouble starts in the swamp The alligator turned into an elephant and finally stampeded itself to death on stages around England I don t think we even got to play it in the States 4 However the Who performed The Seeker for about two weeks on their 1970 American tour citation needed The Who revived the song briefly in 2000 and then extensively starting on the 2006 2007 tour for Endless Wire The lyrics name check several people who had high profiles in contemporary pop culture musicians Bob Dylan as Bobby Dylan and the Beatles and advocate of psychedelic drugs Timothy Leary Townshend was a devotee of the teachings of Meher Baba a Persian Indian mystic whose 1966 treatise pamphlet God in a Pill famously lambasted drug use as a means of consciousness expansion Similarly Townshend was an opponent of drug abuse throughout this period Nicky Hopkins plays piano on The Seeker Release editReleased in the UK as Track 604036 on 21 March 1970 The Seeker reached number 19 in the charts Released in the US as Decca 7 32670 it hit the Billboard charts on 11 April 1970 eventually peaking at number 44 5 The B side Here for More is one of the few Who songs written by lead singer Roger Daltrey 5 Cash Box described it as showing the Who still operating with blistering instrumental thrust but turning to lyrics more meaningful than before 6 Record World said that the single was worth the wait and the group is still a real powerhouse 7 Charts editChart 1970 Peak position Canadian RPM Top Singles 21 UK Singles Chart 8 19 U S Billboard Hot 100 44 German Singles Chart 9 18 Austrian Singles Chart 9 15 Dutch Singles Chart 9 15 Belgian Wallonia Singles Chart 9 29References edit Atkins John 1 February 2000 The Who on Record A Critical History 1963 1998 McFarland p 128 ISBN 978 0 7864 4097 9 Janovitz Bill The Seeker Song Review AllMusic Retrieved 6 August 2016 Cott Jonathan 14 May 1970 A Talk with Pete Townshend Rolling Stone No 58 Straight Arrow Publishers p 33 Townshend Pete 9 December 1971 Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy Pete Townshend on Tommy Rolling Stone No 97 Straight Arrow Publishers p 72 a b The Seeker TheWho com The Who 2018 Retrieved 2 February 2023 CashBox Record Reviews PDF Cash Box 11 April 1970 p 20 Retrieved 8 December 2021 via worldradiohistory com Single Picks of the Week PDF Record World 4 April 1970 p 1 Retrieved 28 April 2023 The Who officialcharts com Retrieved 14 September 2022 a b c d The Who The Seeker SwedishCharts com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Seeker The Who song amp oldid 1190532700, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
