The Face wants you to Who back to the main Dances page now ... Mace Glances Overall Album Score: 8.1 out of 10 And soooooo … Keith Moon kicked the bucket a little bit prematurely forcing The Who to recruit a new drummer … and they picked good old Kenney Jones (formerly of the Butt-Faces) to start banging on those bongos. When it was finally time for The Who to cut a new album, I guess Kenney Jones wasn’t an exciting enough of a drummer or something because the rhythm sections are relatively uniform and unexciting. But the compositions are still coo! Ummm … Wow, I’m thinking that I probably shouldn’t let the album score of Face Dances exceed the score of the band’s previous Who Are You, but … heck! That album bored me! This one doesn’t as much. Just be aware that the songs on this album sound much more straightforward, poppy, and laid back than they did on Who Are You. I’ll also venture to say that the album is more likable as a result! That doesn’t mean to say that Face Dances is a great Who album … but I think if you’ve been following The Who this far, you’d have already come to realize that Quadrophenia marked the end of their ‘great period.’ But there’s plenty of good times to be had during the band’s late period … and Face Dances is a highly entertaining album. That’s all I ever really wanted. Overall Album Score: 8.1 out of 10 (This is quite a bit better than its dismal reputation … of course, it’s no classic, either.) Average Song Score: 8.2 (This is an entertaining set of songs … I can say all sorts of things about them, but I cannot deny them that distinction!) Album Tilt: 8.0 (It’s goooooooooooood.) Artist Rating: 8.0 (Well … Certainly the Who were capable of better in their past, but this album ain’t blatantly unartistic. There are some interesting moments in here.) Track Reviews You Better You Bet 9/10 This is a catchy and cute pop song! … Aw! Who says The Who delved into poo after Keith Moon died? They’re still really awesome! This song is entertaining … the melody catchy … the arranging is good, complex, and interesting. Yes, I think this is one mightily well put-together song! Of course, it lacks the same depth and conviction of Quadrophenia, but this is good nevertheless. Don’t Let Go the Coat 8.5/10 It’s also very difficult for me to dislike this song, either. Yeah … as opposed to the grandiose dramatics of The Who’s previous albums, this one is verrrrrrrrrry lightweight. (This one is even starkly reminiscent of adult contemporary, if you please, fully equipped with a cute harmonica, a Spanish guitar, a smooth easygoing atmosphere.) Just the same, this one is likeable! If all Pete Townshend wanted to do in 1981 was to be likable, he succeeded with flying colors. Cache Cache 8/10 This song is pretty entertaining as well. The composition and arrangements here are very creative and neat. This song’s aura isn’t even lightweight here. What’s to dislike about this one? … Really, I’m wondering why there’s so much hostility toward this album. This isn’t the greatest song in the world, but it’s far from being a giant flop. The Quiet One 7/10 Well … this one is close to being a giant flop … The olde writer of “Boris the Spider” co-writes this one with Petie (and he sings it, too, with his vocals that sound too much like Paul Stanley of Kiss … and, honestly, his songwriting isn’t a whole lot better). This song is sloppy, derivative, and really not that fun. (Man … Entwistle even had the Rod Stewart thing going … just like Paul Stanley.) But … this was cowritten by Townshend, right? This song can’t be that bad, then. There’s some goodness with this, I suppose. Did You Steal My Money 8.5/10 This is a really fun, playful song that’s nothing if it’s not likeable. Bits of the instrumentation are really cute and fun. Other bits try recreating the Who from the days of Quadrophenia with only modest success. This is a good song. Yay! How Can You Do It Alone 8/10 This one is also rather lightweight, simple, and fun at times … and then it gets all loud and dramatic just like Quadrohpenia. In essence, this is the same thing as “Did You Steal My Money,” except it’s not quite as good. (I must say, though, that I enjoy the Scottish thing in this.) Daily Records 8/10 Cool! This is yet another fun, entertaining little ditty. Yeah … it’s totally and utterly insignificant, but who cares? I’m having fun. You 7.5/10 This is a sole Etwistle composition … and it doesn’t suck! That’s cool! Unfortunately, the melody is rather toneless … but at least the song itself is rather playful and sorta entertaining. Another Tricky Day 9/10 The last song on the album is a pretty effective pop-rock song. Perhaps among all the album’s attempts at redoing Quadrophenia and Who’s Next and the like, this is the most convincing. Also, this song is entertaining … but it’s not particularly more entertaining than some other songs on this album. It’s not lightweight, though. That’s a good think for The Who fans. BONUS TRACKS I Like Nightmares This song was rejected for this album! … It’s really not that awful, but I understand why it was kept off … it’s not all too exciting. I’d give it an 8, though. It’s in You This is another song that was rejected. This is one is definitely on the ‘poppy’ song … frankly, I’m wondering why this was chosen over summa those Entwistle things! I guess he was just being nice. (It is a little bit sloppy, though, isn’t it.) A 7.5. Somebody Saved Me This is a silly ballad that didn’t make the album. I think it’s alright … bits of the melody are nice. I do understand why it was kept off, though. I’d probably give this an 8. A strong 8, actually. Almost an 8.5. Maybe it’s a real 8.5. I don’t know. I don’t care, either, ‘cos this isn’t counting for anything. How Can You Do It Alone (Live) It’s alive!!! EEEEETS ALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!! I could have thought of another song or four that I would have rather hears live, but … eh … these are bonus tracks! They’re free anyway. The Quiet One (Live) It’s a live version of my least favorite song on the album! Yippe-o. Let's not dance around the bush. You want to send me a comment about this album. And you will send it here!

All reviews are copyrighted by Michael Lawrence. He's not really a creep, even though most women keep telling him so.