Writer: Pete Townshend
Producers: The Who and Glyn Johns
Recorded: June 8th, 1973, at Olympic Studios in London
Released: October 1973
| Players: | Roger Daltrey — vocals Pete Townshend — piano, guitar, synthesizer John Entwistle — bass Keith Moon — drums |
| Album: | Quadrophenia (MCA, 1973) |
The closing track of the Who's second album-length opera, Quadrophenia, “Love Reign O'er Me (Pete's Theme)” was released as a single in the U.S. about a month before the album. It peaked at Number 76 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Coming at the end of the Quadrophenia story, “Love Reign O'er Me” offers an emotional plea for peace, serenity, and shelter from the confusion, alienation, and conformity themes of much of the rest of the album.
The subtitle “Pete's Theme” reflects the album's system of assigning a musical theme to each of the bandmembers.
Some consider the song one of Roger Daltrey's best recorded performances, while Pete Townshend's guitar work has become among the most familiar in the Who's repertoire.
The strength of “Love Reign O'er Me” as a stand-alone song was reinforced by its inclusion in every Who tour after the band stopped performing Quadrophenia in its entirety.
The Quadrophenia album peaked at Number Two in both the U.S. and the U.K. It was also the group's fifth consecutive million-seller.
