The Who Sell Out by The Who

The Who Sell Out, the Who's third album, hit the shops on 15 December 1967, on Track in Britain and Decca in America, and it plays like an afternoon spent twirling the dial to pirate station Radio London. Pete Townshend wrote most of it, John Entwistle chipped in 3 tunes and Speedy Keen one more, with manager Kit Lambert producing. Between the songs come mock jingles and fake adverts, "Heinz Baked Beans" among them, a sly joke from a band that was cutting real commercials at the time.

The gag has teeth: psychedelic pop that swings from whimsy to wallop, Keith Moon clattering underneath and Roger Daltrey out front. "I Can See for Miles" is the monster, a roaring single that became their only American top ten hit. Al Kooper turns up on 2 tracks. The borrowed brands and jingles drew lawsuits, and critics have since ranked it among the Who's very best.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.