"Trick of the Light" is a song written by bassist

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

for

the Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

's eighth studio album, ''

Who Are You ''Who Are You'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released on 18 August 1978 by Polydor Records in the United Kingdom and on 21 August 1978 by MCA Records in the United States. Although the album received mixed revie ...

'' (1978). It was released as the second single from the album, atypically with another Entwistle song, "905" on the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

, but did not chart. The lyrics describe fear of being sexually inadequate in the face of a prostitute. The singer wants to have an emotional connection with the prostitute but she only sees him as dehumanized and recognizes his sexual insecurity. He is concerned that he didn't bring her "to the height of ecstasy." It features a guitar-like assault throughout the song, described by

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

as sounding like "a musical Mack truck" and is actually Entwistle's heavily distorted eight-string

Alembic An alembic (from , originating from , 'cup, beaker') is an alchemical still consisting of two vessels connected by a tube, used for distillation of liquids. Description The complete distilling apparatus consists of three parts: * the "" ...

bass guitar.

Chris Charlesworth Chris Charlesworth is a British-based music journalist and author; and, between 1983 and 2016, managing editor of Omnibus Press. He is particularly noted for his work about, and with, The Who, for whom he has worked as an executive producer. Char ...

feels that the bass dominates the song to an extent that none of the other elements of the song matter. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' described the guitar riff as "furious" and "unrelenting," and also praises drummer

Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 1946 – 7 September 1978) was an English musician who was the drummer for the rock band the Who. Regarded as one of the greatest drummers in the history of rock music, he was noted for his unique style of playing and ...

's ability to " ustainrhythmic tension." '' Cashbox'' said that the song is "driven by powerful guitar work by Pete Townshend and aggressive drumming from Keith Moon." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said that the song "features the group's familiar song structure carried by wall-of-sound instrumentation." Who biographer John Atkins says the song has a "muscular texture" and is "fully realized" but that it represents an "orthodox heavy rock format" that the band usually shunned. The Who FAQ author Mike Segretto considers it one of Entwistle's "catchier songs," attributing its lack of chart success to its being "too heavy" and "too mean" for the 1977 singles chart. Segretto considers the song to be underrated, finding humor in the situation but stating that "genuine vulnerability makes the song more than a good giggle and undercuts the performance's cock-rock attitude." But it was not a favorite of Who lead vocalist

Roger Daltrey Sir Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Who, known for his powerful voice and charismatic stage presence. His stage persona ear ...

, who complained that it went "on and on and on and on." It was performed occasionally on the Who's 1979 tour, with Entwistle on eight-string bass and Townshend playing one of the Alembic basses Entwistle used on the 1975–1976 tours. It made its return to the setlist in

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

, with Townshend on electric guitar for the two

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

dates in June, and on acoustic guitar for the rest of the tour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trick Of The Light (The Who Song) Songs written by John Entwistle 1978 songs The Who songs Song recordings produced by Glyn Johns 1978 singles Songs about prostitutes MCA Records singles