end of The Who or at the very least, a Rod Stewart and the Faces-type situation where the singer's solo success eclipsed the parent band. To Daltrey, at the time, these fears were misplaced. "I think it will do The Who some good if it's a hit, and I think there's a market for my album", he told Chris Charlesworth. The fact that Lambert and Stamp tried to derail the album's chances for the aforementioned reasons and their increasingly erratic handling of the group's affairs meant that their days as The Who's managers were numbered in Daltrey's eyes. He entrusted his affairs to Track employee Bill Curbishley who was fast rising through the ranks, having already successfully renegotiated the terms of a European Who tour the previous year. Composition All but two of the songs were co-written by the previously unknown David Courtney and Leo Sayer, the latter of whom later became a well-known singer in his own right. At the time, Daltrey was playing in his home recording studio with Sayer, who told Daltrey about his struggles to get a record deal. Daltrey, joking, asked Sayer to write him some songs for a solo album. Sayer and Courtney came back with ten songs, which Daltrey recorded for his first solo album. Sayer enjoyed greater chart success than Daltrey did as a solo artist; the opening track on this album, "One Man Band" (also reprised at the end), became one of Sayer's biggest hits. Critical reception In a contemporary review for Creem, Robert Christgau said "by anybody else, this would be one more dumb concept album, and it still is." He found its exploration of the musician's plight pitiful and believed Daltrey lacked "the personality or the smarts to assert himself as an interpreter." In a retrospective review, AllMusic's Dave Thompson said that the album was "a sometimes horrifying shock for die-hard fans, but a pleasant surprise for anyone tired of hearing him voice the increasingly dictatorial Townshend's self-aggrandizement." Track listing All songs written by David Courtney and Leo Sayer except where noted. Non-album material Personnel Musicians Roger Daltrey – lead vocals, acoustic guitar Dave Courtney – piano Russ Ballard – guitar, piano on "The Story So Far" Bob Henrit – drums Dave Wintour – bass guitar Additional musicians Brian Cole – steel guitar Roy Young Band – brass Dave Arbus – violin on "The Way of the World" Jimmy