“Entwistle’s contemporary and fellow bassist, the former Rolling Stone, Bill Wyman, once dubbed him ‘the Jimi Hendrix of the bass guitar’. This was meant as the highest compliment but, with it, Wyman also inadvertently conjured the very demon that would haunt Entwistle throughout his professional life. Indisputably, he was a virtuoso musician, easily the most accomplished player in The Who. He was also a trailblazer on the bass, playing it with a kind of boundless invention that no one else had done before, and precious few have managed since. The problem for him was that his chosen instrument was the bass guitar.”
-Paul Rees (from The Ox: The Authorized Biography of The Who’s John Entwistle, pages 4 & 5)
In the hierarchy of a rock ‘n’ roll band, the bass player has always been the nerd. The geek. The outcast. The lovable loser. They guy that never got the girls. All that despite the fact that U2 was founded by Adam Clayton and Iron Maiden was founded and led by Steve Harris, who was in the beginning the chief songwriter. (Sure, the likes of Paul McCartney and Geddy Lee are renowned frontmen bassists, but they sang lead as well.)
Take for example The Who: Keith Moon was the wild and flamboyant drummer who flamed-out early, the diminutive Roger Daltrey was the lead lung and was front-and-center in the filmed version of Tommy, and Pete Townshend was the band’s principle composer, lyricist, artist, and creative & directional force (and in my opinion the most overrated guitarist in rock history). But where does that leave the John Entwistle? What was his role in The Who’s longevity and legendary status in the pantheon of rock?
That is the subject of The Ox: The Authorized Biography of The Who’s John Entwistle, the latest book by British author and rock journalist Paul Rees.
The book gets its title from Entwistle’s nickname, a reference to the subject’s amazing ability to consume monstrous amounts of alcohol and drugs and show no obvious signs of intoxication. But is there enough about him to warrant an entire book?
Although professional and competent, nothing about the structure or writing style of The Ox is original or unique; Rees begins the story at a point late in Entwistle’s life, then goes back to the beginning with a brief overview of his parent’s history and his birth, and follows his life in a linear path through until his death in 2002, bringing us back full circle to where we started. We’ve all seen that before.
However the book is thoroughly researched, pieced together from interviews, other books and various source material, never spins its wheels with unnecessary details, and moves at a smooth and enjoyable pace. And it also mentions the infamous incident at Montreal’s Chateau Champlain Hotel in 1973. (I personally never tire of hearing different versions of that December night.)
The Ox taught me quite a bit about Entwistle’s role within The Who, much larger that I realized (although to be honest The Who were never among my top favourites so I never really read all their liner notes), and that he had quite a prolific solo career. His personal life was fairly interesting, but nothing atypical for a 60’s and 70’s British rock star born during or post World War II. The only surprise was that he did not manage to die sooner. Another aspect I found interesting is how The Who were plagued with endless in-fighting, making me wonder how they managed to have such a good run. (We always assume all the members of a big-time bands are friends and they like each other, having fun all the time. But then we realize what they do is their job; it is how they make a living, and although they seem to live fantasy lives, it is really not all that different from our own daily grind.)
So back to my earlier question: Is there enough about John Entwistle to warrant an entire book? I would say yes. And I recommend The Ox: The Authorized Biography of The Who’s John Entwistle for any fan of The Who or classic rock in general.
*PLEASE NOTE: The preceding review is based on and advance reading copy, uncorrected proof of the book The Ox.*
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