Won't Get Fooled Again by The Who

In 1971 the Who was the most ambitious band in the world. They’d just put out the first major rock opera “Tommy”; and for a followup they were planning something called “Lifehouse”—a massive multimedia project that would involve a concept album, live performances with actors, and a fantasy computer system that sounded a whole lot like the Internet.

Guitarist/composer Pete Townshend spent months developing the project, which got more grandiose as it went along: He even planned a series of Who concerts where the personalities of the audience members would be fed into a computer to generate music. Finally Townshend buckled under pressure and scrapped the project, using many of the songs on the album Who’s Next.

Originally planned as a big moment in Lifehouse, “Won’t Get Fooled Again” held up just fine as an epic album track—Apparently, the keyboard break at the end is a stand-in for the planned computer music. Tell us if you can solve the mystery of the lyrics: Is Townshend endorsing revolutionary politics or denouncing them?

The phrase “won’t get fooled again” is never in the song. Instead Roger Daltrey sings “We don’t get fooled again,” conveying a tougher attitude.

The drum entrance at the song’s end still throws most people off. We’re sure Keith Moon wouldn’t have it any other way.

Drummer Keith Moon and bassist John Entwistle are no longer around, but Townshend and Daltrey are still flying the flag. We loved ‘em even before they played our Rock Band 2 announcement party in 2008.