You Better, You Bet (The Who)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Huntigula, Jan 25, 2016.

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  1. Huntigula

    Huntigula Idiot Savant Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brighton, MI
    I had been reading through the "Emminence Front" thread, and got inspired to start one regarding my favorite Who song from the same period, "You Better, You Bet".

    Of course I knew of the Who staples...Baba O'Riley, My Generation, Who Are You, etc...but I first got into THIS song in a very special time in my life. It was early 2004, I was 19, things were going well for me at the time. I was seeing the girl that would eventually become my first "real" girlfriend (you veteran beings used to call it "going steady"), and rose-colored glasses aside, my life was truly phenomenal. After spending a fine evening with this lovely girl, I got into my car to head home, just as it was starting on our local classic rock station. I felt an instant connection to it, given my relationship status at the time. Since I wasn't there in 1981 to experience it, I didn't really think about the state of rock music (were the Who dinosaurs?) Or the state of the Who post Moon...anything like that. All I had was my knowledge of music history (which, at 19, was pretty impressive, but I still had a LOT to learn). To this day, I believe the opening lines "I call you on the telephone/My voice too rough with cigarettes/I sometimes feel I should just go home/But I'm dealing with a memory that never forgets" is/was not only a great opening, but is a terrific PUNK lyric no less.

    I stated earlier that this is my number one Who song, but boy oh boy...when I started working at WCSX (the classic rock station I spoke of earlier) a year or so later, and discussed this being my favorite Who track with all of the jocks, PD and MD, none of whom got into the business after 1980...ooh did I catch some heat!

    One last side note...it wasn't long after I got into this song that my mother gave me all of her records and 45's upon moving into her new apartment (my folks split in 2001) that she owned Face Dances, and the album became my first needledrop, and I still own both to this day.

    Now I'm asking for your opinion...be it good, bad or indifferent. And since I asked for and welcome all thoughts, the criteria for a threadcrap is pretty lax.

    I'm looking for you, @Baba Oh Really !
     
    Last edited: Jan 25, 2016
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  2. landerstnkb

    landerstnkb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    WOW, I was listening to this song when I came onto the forum and saw your post. I've always liked Face Dances because it was the first Who album released after I got into them (after seeing The Kids Are Alright which was the first Who album I bought). I'm currently enjoying the 2015 Geffen remastered re release...hearing things I didn't notice before. And You Better You Bet is definitely one of their best as they have continued playing it live after all these years.
     
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  3. DrBeatle

    DrBeatle The Rock and Roll Chemist

    Location:
    Midwest via Boston
    This is the only post-Moon Who song I like...it's damn good and would've fit right in with what they'd done pre-1979.
    As a related aside, I've never understood all of the love for "Eminence Front." To me, it's a boring, plodding song that Pete could write in his sleep. Decent, but certainly not deserving of its status as a Who classic, at least in my view.
     
  4. Sandinista

    Sandinista Forum Resident

    I thought this song was one of Roger's stronger moments during the recent tour - at least the night I saw (Jacksonville.)

    As far as where it fits in my Who world... I like it- but I like most Who songs - don't love it. Not my favorite from the album.
     
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  5. beatleswho

    beatleswho Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chile
    Hi! Great thread and great story! I love You Better You Bet, good lyrics and good music. Roger sounds amazing in this song, he really got himself into the lyrics that Pete wrote. I love the part of T. Rex and Who's Next, but my favorite part is when Roger sings "I don't really mind how much you love me, a little is alright". There's some influence on Pete solo song A Little is enough.
    Is not my favorite Who song because The Who have so many great songs but i love this one.
     
  6. Groggy

    Groggy Forum Resident

    "and i drunk myself blind to the sound of old T.Rex......."
     
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  7. landerstnkb

    landerstnkb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    I read somewhere that the "but I drunk myself blind to the sound of old T. Rex...oh, and Who's Next" line wasn't a reference to The Who's classic album but to the untimely death of Marc Bolan in an auto accident and the writer asking of "who's next" to die young.
     
  8. recordhead

    recordhead Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kentucky
    Love the song, love the album. The post Moon era was my WHO. I was 13 when that album came out and while I knew well the WHO material that came before it, this was the 1st WHO album I bought in a store. Same goes for Its Hard and all Pete solo material in the years around those two albums.
     
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  9. reb

    reb Money Beats Soul

    Location:
    Long Island
    Another Tricky Day is just as good. Both are great songs.
     
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  10. bare trees

    bare trees Senior Member

    I know exactly where Huntigula is coming from. I was introduced to The Who via hearing "You Better, You Bet" when it was a top 40 hit in 1981. Being 9 at the time, I was totally unaware of the band's history. It didn't occur to me that the song was a step down from "Baba O'Reilly" or "Won't Get Fooled Again"(songs that I wouldn't hear for another two years.) It was just one of many songs that I loved hearing on the radio throughout the spring and summer of 1981.
     
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  11. RayS

    RayS A Little Bit Older and a Little Bit Slower

    Location:
    Out of My Element
    The Who might have been dinosaurs by the time this song came out, but they were HUGE dinosaurs. The "Face Dances" album came out in March of '81 and MTV launched in August. The three black and white videos from the album were absolute staples for what seemed like years.

    I always liked this song, but got fresh insight from Pete's comments about the song being triumphant when Roger sings it but rather pathetic when he sings it. If you take the studly bravado of Roger's vocal out of the discussion for a moment and look at the lyrics, you can see what Pete meant. The narrator says "I love you", she doesn't say "I love you" BACK ... she says "You BETTER love me". It appears, even, that she is using him for sex (yes, I know guys, a terrible fate but someone's got to do it) - Her loving him "a little is alright" (not that she even says THAT). Reverse the gender roles for a moment (make the narrator a woman), and Pete's claim of "pathetic" begins to really add up. The emotional desperation that pervades most of Pete's 1978-1982 lyrics can be clearly seen. Apart from having a great hook, I find the lyric to be multi-layered, and one that keeps on giving after decades of listens. And yes, Pete was right, when Roger sings it, it almost sounds like an upbeat love song.
     
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  12. overdrivethree

    overdrivethree Forum Resident

    Kind of a weird song, if you think about it.

    It's basically Pete shamelessly reveling in his own wayward behavior - he wrote it for the girl he was seeing when he was separated from his wife and kids, while on a steady diet of booze and blow.

    I consider this one of the first "grown up" songs I really heard. Despite the chorus, it's not so much a song about love as it is about a very fast mid-life crisis fling.
     
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  13. landerstnkb

    landerstnkb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Massachusetts
    Which would kind of lend credence to the "who's next" line not being about The Who's album.
     
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  14. jeffd7030

    jeffd7030 I can't complain, but sometimes I still do.

    Location:
    Hampden, ME
    Good song, good album. Like others here, this was my first real exposure to The Who in early 80s

    I remember cranking this on last day of sophmore college year and blowing a speaker...it was a fun day (year)!
     
  15. Purplefowler

    Purplefowler Forum Resident

    Location:
    Bedfordshire, uk
    Cracking song and corking album. I know it is a contentious word round here at the moment but it is very under rated imho. It is a very honest record and Roger's vocals are just brimming with power and passion, especially on you better, you bet. I also love the quiet one, one of the ox's finest moments.
     
  16. Well, the line can be taken either way, which I imagine was the point.
     
  17. Huntigula

    Huntigula Idiot Savant Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brighton, MI
    Suddenly I'm finding myself walking around doing laundry singing "Don't Let Go the Coat".
     
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  18. reb

    reb Money Beats Soul

    Location:
    Long Island
    It's hard, keep on working. How can you do it alone ?
     
  19. PacificOceanBlue

    PacificOceanBlue Senior Member

    Location:
    The Southwest
    You Better, You Bet is a classic Who track regardless if it is from the post-Moon era. It has all the many components of the classic Who formula; great lyrics, great lead vocal, great melody, great harmonies, memorable keyboard riff, great hooks. To this fan, YBYB can stand alongside all great Who tracks.
     
  20. pool_of_tears

    pool_of_tears Searching For Simplicity

    Location:
    Midwest
    I'm with all of those whom like the song and the album Face Dances.

    To the OP, the 1981 Rockpalast gig I worth watching/hearing, if you want to hear the band during this period, along with 4 Face Dances songs played "live".
     
  21. pool_of_tears

    pool_of_tears Searching For Simplicity

    Location:
    Midwest
     
  22. marc with a c

    marc with a c Forum Resident

    Location:
    Orlando, FL
    I'll agree. Felt like Rog's voice didn't really "wake up" on that night until YBYB, which was a real highlight in Jax!
     
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  23. Sandinista

    Sandinista Forum Resident

    Not to go too far off topic, and not to bash because I enjoyed the show and love the Who but I thought Who Are You was particularly bad vocally - did you? I thought the earlier material, being a little easier to sing (can't explain, kids are alright or whatev) is more forgiving for where his voice is now.
     
  24. reb

    reb Money Beats Soul

    Location:
    Long Island
    Great clip, I'm a big fan of 1979-1981 Who. That video proves two things -IMO. The Who did not die with the passing of Keith Moon. The Who died when John Entwistle died.
     
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  25. beatleswho

    beatleswho Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chile
    Another song i really love from this album is the underated Daily Records. What a great song!
     
    dee, wavethatflag, WhoTapes1 and 3 others like this.
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