536:, that "A Quick One While He's Away" briefly refers to his molestation as a child, but not explicitly. "Ivor The Engine Driver" is said by Townshend to be a metaphor for the possible abuser. The "Her Man's Been Gone" section refers to Townshend's separation from his parents and spending time with his grandmother, Denny. The crying in the "Crying Town" portion is his own, for his parents to pick him up and to leave Denny, who is said by Townshend to have been the person who brought in unknown men into her home. The "little girl" referred to in his song is actually a make-believe "imaginary constant friend" and "twin girl who suffered every privation I suffered." The "You Are Forgiven" presents someone coming to Townshend's rescue: his mother. The lyric about sitting on Ivor the Engine Driver's lap "and later with him had a nap" also hints at what may have happened. The song ends with the verbal chant of "you are forgiven", which Townshend states that when The Who performed the song, he would always get into a frenzy. He states that those who were being forgiven was everyone referred to in the song's lyrics, including himself.
35:
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album, contain some noticeable structural differences from the original. The second half of the "Ivor the Engine Driver" section ("better be nice to an old engine driver") was cut, and "Soon Be Home" was shortened substantially. The "You Are
Forgiven" section, on the other hand, was extended,
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The Who were not at their peak exactly, but with "the mini opera", we were just about starting to tap into something that became a complete obsession for me. Which was that when we played a hard-driving rock 'n' roll and brought in this slightly
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thing – at the end of our piece, I'm shouting, "You are forgiven, you are forgiven, you are forgiven" – that there would be a kind of spiritual rush in the audience that was obviously there to be tapped into. Rock 'n' roll had always been
370:– his only lead vocal on the album (except, on most versions of the album, a small part of "Heat Wave"). The Who wanted cellos at the final "mini"-movement, "You Are Forgiven", but producer and manager
417:. It also appears on both films' soundtrack albums. Another version recorded live at the Monterey Pop Festival can be found on the Monterey Pop Festival four-disk set and on another Who film,
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The song tell the story of an unnamed girl whose lover has been gone "for nearly a year". Her friends inform her that they "have a remedy"; the remedy comes in the form of Ivor the
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703:. They have also performed all six sections of the song at sound checks. The band performed the song in its entirety at their 28 July 2009 concert at New York City's
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for the album and "A Quick One While He's Away" for a song he started to write inspired by his childhood experiences. Townshend reveals in his 2012 autobiography,
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ranked "A Quick One, While He's Away" number seven on his list of the 20 greatest The Who songs, though a list of the 20 greatest The Who songs compiled by five
933:"Show 49 - The British are Coming! The British are Coming!: With an emphasis on Donovan, the Bee Gees and the Who. [Part 6] : UNT Digital Library"
524:", so that it could fill the remaining space in the upcoming and lead into a quick release. Taking "quickly" as the primary order, Townshend came to the title
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on 16 November 2000. That was the first time any part of the song was played live by The Who since 1970, until it was resumed in its entirety for the 2014
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385:" and "Disguises" were the result of Townshend's first delve into rock opera, entitled "Quads"), and a precursor to their later, more ambitious project
23:
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Although never released as a single, "A Quick One, While He's Away" is widely regarded as one of the band's best songs. In 2012, Brian Tremml of
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The Who performed the song often after its release, but it was largely retired after 1970. Live versions of the song, such as that heard on the
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plays "Ivor the Engine Driver" in that section. Then comes "Soon Be Home", another harmonised section. Finally, "You Are
Forgiven" is sung by
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called "Gratis Amatis". Going from that, Lambert asked about a "pop opera" played more seriously, possibly inspired in the single "
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songs, and it was prohibitively expensive to include on the soundtrack album (which is, similarly, missing the Stones' song "
67:
675:. My Morning Jacket covered the song again during the encore of night 4 of their 5-day concert series at New York City's
440:. However, because of problems with the cameras, part of the performance is lost, and was replaced by stylised footage.
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sometimes ending up as nearly half the song. Live, Townshend also frequently gave humorous introductions to the song.
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version, specifically "You Are
Forgiven", was used in the film). According to the commentary for the film, the
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tour. Pete
Townshend played the song in its entirety on several dates of his 1993 PSYCHODERELICT solo tour.
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401:. When the song was performed live, instead of "girl", Townshend and Daltrey would make a point to sing "
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in an atypical low register. Daltrey also sings "We Have a Remedy" in his more usual voice.
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It is likely that the name of "Ivor the Engine Driver" was influenced by the UK TV series
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A short tease of the final section, "You Are
Forgiven", was used to end a concert at the
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album
Townshend calls the nine-minute "epic" track a "mini-opera" and introduces it as "
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recorded a cover that was included as a bonus track on deluxe editions of their album
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As Pete
Townshend showed producer Kit Lambert the songs he had demoed, one was a mock
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33 1/3 Revolutions Per Minute: A Critical Trip
Through the Rock LP Era, 1955–1999
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in 1968 can be seen on that film (released in 1996) and on the 1979 documentary
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Kemp, Mark (2004). "The Who". In
Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.).
707:, on 25 April 2010 at New York City's Bowery Electric as their side-project
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ranked the song number four on their list of the 50 greatest The Who songs.
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intro is titled "Her Man's Been Gone". The "Crying Town" section is sung by
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421:. A mixed studio and live version can be found on The Who's four disk set
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The Who FAQ: All That's Left to Know About Fifty Years of
Maximum R&B
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822:"Karn Evil Cruise: Searching For the Heart of Prog Rock on The Ocean «"
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Anyway Anyhow Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the Who 1958–1978
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could not afford it so they ended up saying "Cello, cello, cello".
855:"A Quick One, While He's Away by The Who - Track Info | AllMusic"
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1114:"My Morning Jacket - 2010-10-22 Terminal 5 - New York City, NY"
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This song is the Who's first publicised venture into the
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and on several European dates during their stint as an
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would join them on stage. One such occasion (9/19/06,
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Another version of this song is available on the DVD,
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recorded a cover that was included on the 2014 album
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603:writers in 2023 did not include the song. In 2022,
59:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
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1147:Listen to Classic Rock! Exploring a Musical Genre
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24:A Quick One, While He's Away (BoJack Horseman)
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646:in the same year, when the latter's frontman
469:recording is owned as part of the package of
389:. In addition to the studio recording on the
16:This article is about the Who song. For the
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1143:
1059:"The Who's 20 Greatest Songs of All Time"
807:
685:song "In the Rushes" on their 2008 album
119:Learn how and when to remove this message
1216:
1202:. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Backbeat Books.
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719:I Saved Latin! A Tribute to Wes Anderson
691:includes the final section of the song.
491:The song was rehearsed for inclusion in
1504:Song recordings produced by Kit Lambert
1144:Goldsmith, Melissa Ursula Dawn (2019).
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620:performed the song in late 2004 at the
493:The Who's 2006/2007 North American Tour
408:The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus
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1023:
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433:At Kilburn 1977 + Live at the Coliseum
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820:Larson, Jeremy D. (23 January 2015).
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314:. The song also appears on the album
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449:version of the song was used in the
419:Thirty Years of Maximum R&B Live
343:
57:adding citations to reliable sources
28:
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569:stuff, and that was something else.
395:album, a live recording appears on
13:
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14:
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1024:Tremml, Brian (7 November 2012).
986:"Pete Townshend Reveals Who I Am"
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768:The New Rolling Stone Album Guide
964:. HarperCollins. pp. 93–4.
33:
1514:Songs written by Pete Townshend
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1057:Paste staff (10 October 2023).
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1014:, issue number and date unknown
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978:
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941:. Digital.library.unt.edu. 1969
908:"The official Who site article"
424:Thirty Years of Maximum R&B
248:Thirty Years of Maximum R&B
44:needs additional citations for
1026:"The 20 Best Songs by The Who"
813:
320:. In the performance on their
139:"A Quick One, While He's Away"
68:"A Quick One, While He's Away"
1:
1150:. Santa Barbara, California:
1086:"The Who's 50 Greatest Songs"
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1348:A Quick One, While He's Away
879:Sante, Luc (25 March 2018).
588:
405:". A performance filmed for
300:" is a 1966 song written by
298:A Quick One, While He's Away
7:
881:"The Kinks: Something Else"
381:genre (although the songs "
10:
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960:Townshend, Pete (2012).
634:of the song at the 2006
1509:Songs about child abuse
1217:Segretto, Mike (2022).
1196:Segretto, Mike (2014).
636:Bonnaroo Music Festival
352:. The brief harmonised
308:for their second album
246:(album version) 9:41 (
1519:Songs about infidelity
1169:Neill, Andrew (2007).
700:21st Century Breakdown
571:
477:," used in the film).
1319:"Cobwebs and Strange"
853:Unterberger, Richie.
705:Madison Square Garden
658:) is documented as a
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1223:. Lanham, Maryland:
775:. pp. 871–873.
773:Simon & Schuster
462:Rock and Roll Circus
414:The Kids Are Alright
133:1966 song by the Who
53:improve this article
1118:Mymorningjacket.com
834:on 20 December 2016
672:Immagine in Cornice
176:Early November 1966
1426:The Who by Numbers
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1369:The Who Tour 1967
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1333:"Don't Look Away"
1234:978-1-4930-6460-1
1209:978-1-4803-9253-3
1188:978-0-7535-1217-3
1161:978-1-4408-6579-4
628:My Morning Jacket
624:Christmas Party.
344:Parts to the song
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364:John Entwistle
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64:Find sources:
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42:This article
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22:episode, see
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1419:Quadrophenia
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1336:"See My Way"
1306:"I Need You"
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1179:Virgin Books
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1122:. Retrieved
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832:the original
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668:concert film
648:Eddie Vedder
630:performed a
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618:Graham Coxon
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475:I Am Waiting
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51:Please help
46:verification
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1440:Face Dances
1433:Who Are You
1391:A Quick One
1275:A Quick One
995:30 November
945:23 February
798:, chap. 15.
715:Saint Motel
660:bonus track
652:PalaIsozaki
640:opening act
554:evangelical
527:A Quick One
392:A Quick One
372:Kit Lambert
311:A Quick One
289:Kit Lambert
283:Producer(s)
158:A Quick One
109:August 2016
1489:1966 songs
1478:Categories
1412:Who's Next
1177:. London:
1070:22 January
917:9 November
912:Thewho.com
864:10 January
838:19 January
741:Neill 2007
725:References
677:Terminal 5
522:Happy Jack
512:Background
451:soundtrack
438:Keith Moon
403:Girl Guide
379:rock opera
355:a cappella
333:parents".
226:music hall
216:proto-prog
79:newspapers
1447:It's Hard
1314:Heat Wave
886:Pitchfork
827:Radio.com
695:Green Day
688:Arm's Way
679:in 2010.
644:Pearl Jam
589:Reception
562:spiritual
383:I'm a Boy
350:movements
221:power pop
1327:Side two
1290:Side one
1152:ABC-CLIO
1098:20 March
962:Who I Am
859:allmusic
539:He told
533:Who I Am
518:oratorio
497:set list
456:Rushmore
261:Reaction
250:version)
173:Recorded
165:Released
1137:Sources
1124:7 March
683:Islands
662:on the
306:the Who
149:the Who
93:scholar
1231:
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1120:. 2010
1042:20 May
968:
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656:Torino
613:Covers
467:Circus
234:Length
182:Studio
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1405:Tommy
1283:Songs
1064:Paste
1031:Paste
892:7 May
632:cover
601:Paste
596:Paste
558:hippy
387:Tommy
329:Tommy
256:Label
199:Genre
100:JSTOR
86:books
1229:ISBN
1204:ISBN
1183:ISBN
1156:ISBN
1126:2011
1100:2023
1072:2024
1044:2023
1011:Mojo
997:2012
966:ISBN
947:2011
919:2011
894:2023
866:2023
840:2019
777:ISBN
642:for
542:Mojo
443:The
206:Rock
145:Song
72:news
1461:WHO
664:DVD
211:pop
191:Pye
187:IBC
147:by
55:by
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