The Who, "Live at Leeds" (MCA, 1970)

The Who's fall from grace has been sad to see. Here's a band that once was spoken in the same breath with the really, really big boys: The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin These days, revisionists have seemed to have turned their backs on the creators of "Tommy," "Quadrophenia" and some of the most enduring material of the "classic rock" era.

The change in attitude apparently has come about because the surviving members have failed to put The Who to rest. That hardly seems fair, considering that the Stones, an even older band, continue to soldier on despite the loss of some original members. Then again, Mick & Keith never embarked on a heavily publicized "farewell tour," as The Who did in 1982. Critics scoffed when Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle came out of "retirement" to tour again seven years later. And they've been scoffing ever since, especially with John now gone and the surviving duo still billing themselves as The Who.

Another reason for the diminished stature is the supposition that the band should have folded after the death of drummer Keith Moon at age 32 in September 1978. True, replacing the world's greatest drummer was an impossible task, although former Small Faces/Faces stickman Kenney Jones filled in admirably, in the opinion of many fans. He wasn't Keith, though. And The Who's post-Moon albums, "Face Dances" and "It's Hard," are generally regarded as the weakest in the band's catalog.

Infinitely far more revered are the four albums released from 1969 through '73: "Tommy," "Live at Leeds," "Who's Next" and "Quadrophenia." The two rock operas on either end are fan favorites for different reasons: "Tommy" because of its groundbreaking presentation and overall popularity, "Quadrophenia" because of its overall stronger set of tunes. And "Who's Next" shows up on many a list as the greatest rock album ever. With it boasting songs like "Baba O'Riley," "Bargain," "My Wife," "Behind Blue Eyes" and especially "Won't Get Fooled Again," you'll get no argument here.

"Live at Leeds" is the anomaly in the band's streak of concept albums ("Who's Next" originally was going to be a rock opera called "Lifehouse") during that period. The Who was one of those split-personality groups that had distinctively different studio and live sounds. The performing side was loud, raucous and incendiary (sometimes literally) - with its power-trio basis and ear-splitting volume, The Who is considered one of the early practitioners of what became heavy metal.

In its original six-song incarnation, "Live at Leeds" paints a picture of The Who that's at odds with the finely crafted approach of its immediate LP predecessors, "Tommy" and the singles collection "Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bouncy." Townshend, Entwistle and Moon positively roar their way through the Leeds University set, even on an ostensibly easier-listening track like "Substitute" (a superior, though shorter, version compared with the 1966 single). Daltrey, too, shows why he's regarded as one of rock's most powerful vocalists, his bellowing on Mose Allison's "Young Man Blues" rivaling his legendary scream toward the end of "Won't Get Fooled Again."

The cover version of Eddie Cochran's "Summertime Blues" is a masterpiece, and shows how far the band has progressed in just a few years; listen to it side-by-side with the tentative versions on the "Monterey Pop" boxed set or the studio version on the updated "Odds and Sods." And the interpretation of Johnny Kidd & the Pirates' "Shakin' All Over" features some playing by Townshend that shows why he's still regarded as one of rock's top guitarists.

The second side of the original LP contains elongated versions of the two of the band's most popular singles, "My Generation" and "Magic Bus." The former actually is a medley that contains some snippets from "Tommy," as well as plenty of improvisation. It sets the table for the album's highlight.

The live "Magic Bus" transforms a rather lightweight song into a monster, especially when Moon's drums kick in with a truly ferocious display of what he was all about: When talk turns to power drumming, you need to listen no further. With Daltrey wailing away on harmonica, the quartet jells in a way that can be appreciated fully with the volume turned up as far as it will go.

Latter-day releases of "Live at Leeds" on CD have added a wealth of material to the original, beefing up to a pair of discs for the latest iteration. The real treat comes right off the bat with the set opener, John's "Heaven and Hell," a gem that was buried on a Who B-side for decades before emerging fully in the days of boxed sets and expanded reissues. (A darker-toned, slower-tempo version also appears on John's debut solo album, the exceptional "Smash Your Head Against the Wall.")

If you want to hear three of rock's greatest musicians - they don't come any better than Entwistle on bass, either - and one of its greatest singers together at their peak, this is the place to listen.