"Trick of the Light" is a song written by bassist John Entwistle for

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 ...

's eighth studio album, ''

Who Are You ''Who Are You'' is the eighth studio album by English rock band the Who, released on 18 August 1978 by Polydor Records in the United Kingdom and MCA Records in the United States. Although the album received mixed reviews from critics, it was a ...

''. It was released as the second single from the album, atypically with another Entwistle song, "905" on the B-side, 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 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 ...

as sounding like "a musical Mack truck" and is actually Entwistle's heavily distorted eight-string Alembic bass. Chris Charlesworth feels that the bass dominates the song to an extent that none of the other elements of the song matter. '' Billboard'' described the guitar riff as "furious" and "unrelenting," and also praises drummer Keith Moon's ability to " ustainrhythmic tension." '' Cash Box'' said that the song is "driven by powerful guitar work by

and aggressive drumming from Keith Moon." '' Record World'' 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 singer

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 band The Who. Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include " My Generation", " Pinball Wizard", " Won't Get Fooled ...

, 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 and Townshend playing one of Entwistle's Alembic basses used on the

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

–

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

tours. It made its return to the setlist in

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker runs ...

, with Townshend originally on electric guitar on the two

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

dates in June and acoustic guitar for the rest of the tour. It was disliked by

, who thought that although it had clever lyrics, it was too long. On the original recording and in its 1979–1980 performances, Daltrey sang the lead vocal; in 1989 Entwistle sang it. "Trick of the Light" was included in the two-disc edition of ''The Who Hits 50!''.

References

{{The Who singles Songs written by John Entwistle 1978 songs The Who songs Song recordings produced by Glyn Johns 1978 singles Songs about prostitutes MCA Records singles