Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 08/27/1996
Run Time: 75:57
The Who have issued more greatest-hits collections than any other major artist, releasing a vast array of compilations while they were together and in the years following their breakup. Released in 1996,
My Generation: The Very Best of the Who was intended to be the definitive single-disc collection, replacing all the others that preceded it. While it is a very good collection, it just misses being a definitive sampler. Essentially,
My Generation is a replica of
Who's Better, Who's Best that adds four tracks that were missing from the previous compilation, including the seminal post-
Tommy single
"The Seeker" and the original single mix of
"Magic Bus." My Generation isn't strictly a singles collection, since it contains such
album rock staples as
"Baba O'Riley" and the full-length version of
"Won't Get Fooled Again." It also spans the group's entire career, so it has a bit of a scattershot feel to it --
"You Better You Bet" sounds a little odd next to tense early singles like
"Substitute" and
"I Can See for Miles." The career-spanning approach doesn't make for as cohesive a collection as
Meaty Beaty Big and Bouncy, but it does mean that
My Generation is an excellent -- even necessary -- introduction. There's a lot more in
the Who's catalog that needs to be heard, but
My Generation does boil down the most essential items (even though the abominable
"Squeeze Box" is included) to a fine single-disc set.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide