"5:15" (sometimes written "5.15" or "5'15") is a song written by

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Townsh ...

of British

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

. Part of the band's second rock opera, '' Quadrophenia'' (1973), the song was also released as a single and reached No. 20 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, while the 1979 re-release (accompanying the

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

and

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs'' ...

) reached No. 45 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Although written as "5.15" on the single covers in some countries, on the back cover of ''Quadrophenia'' (the album from which the song is taken) it is written as "5:15", and some single covers also have "5:15".

Background

The lyrics of "5:15" describe ''Quadrophenias protagonist, Jimmy, travelling to

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

on a train. The song's writer,

, said of the song's lyrics: No demo recording of the song exists, as the track was written in the studio on the day the song was recorded. The whistle heard on the track was recorded after Townshend's driver bribed a British train driver with five pounds to sound the train's whistle as it pulled out, despite breaking the station rules. "5:15" was released as a single in Britain and Europe shortly before the release of ''Quadrophenia'' in October 1973. Backed with the '' Lifehouse'' outtake "Water", the single charted at #20 in Britain and #46 in Germany. The single was not released in America, where " Love, Reign o'er Me" and " The Real Me" were chosen as singles instead.

Roger Daltrey Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the Rock music, rock band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include "My Generation", "Pinball Wizard", "Won't Ge ...

later commented on the song's single release, "Really, it was the only single on ''Quadrophenia'' we could have released." The 7-inch vinyl single mix differs from the wider soundscape of the album mix and appears as a narrower ''closed'' stereo; however, the overall dynamics are just as powerful. This particular mix is not available on CD. All compilations making claim to the ''single mix'' have used the album mix version and cut to a variety of different running time lengths plus or minus a few seconds. "Water", the B-side, is a track recorded during the April–May 1970 sessions at I.B.C. and Eel Pie Studios, and was originally intended for an EP, available on ''Odds & Sods''.

Lyrics

In the song, the main character Jimmy has taken the 5:15 train to Brighton, consumed a lot of drugs, recollecting his life with the Mods, the cultural movement to which he belongs (even if he has dropped out for now), and their duels with the Rockers. Jimmy's memories are extremely disjointed, consisting mainly of anger, confusion, violence, sexual frustration, and rootlessness. "5:15", like many of the songs from ''Quadrophenia'', is self-referential - ''" M-m-m-my generation"'' is a line - and thus represents an angrily self-centred, teenage disconnection with society, family and the opposite sex. 'Jimmy' was ''"born in the war"'' (that is,

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and its aftermath) and does not understand why he should care about it (or anything) in the context of his extravagant Mod values.

Soundtrack version

In 1979, "5:15" and nine other tracks from ''Quadrophenia'' were remixed by

John Entwistle John Alec Entwistle (9 October 194427 June 2002) was an English musician who was the bassist for the rock band The Who. Entwistle's music career spanned over four decades. Nicknamed "The Ox" and "Thunderfingers", he was the band's only member ...

for the soundtrack of the film adaptation of the original rock opera. This version of "5:15" was released as a single in September 1979 to promote the album, reaching #45 on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

in America.

Live performances

Live performances of "5:15" sometimes included, in addition to the Who's four members, a full brass section and a piano. During the Who reunion tour from 1999 to 2002, bassist

played a solo in mid-song, lasting several minutes, only accompanied by drummer Zak Starkey. During The Who's 2012 Quadrophenia tour, long after Entwistle's death in 2002, his bass solo was featured by showing footage from a 2000 performance at the Royal Albert Hall while Starkey played live.

Personnel

;The Who *

– lead vocals *

– guitar, backing and lead vocals *

– bass guitar, french horn, backing vocals *

Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 19467 September 1978) was an English drummer for the rock band the Who. He was noted for his unique style of playing and his eccentric, often self-destructive behaviour and addiction to drugs and alcohol. Moon grew ...

– drums ;Featuring *

Chris Stainton Christopher Robert "Chris" Stainton (born 22 March 1944) is an English session musician, keyboard player, bassist and songwriter, who first gained recognition with Joe Cocker in the late 1960s. In addition to his collaboration with Cocker, Stai ...

– piano

References