The Ox: The Authorized Biography of The Who's John Entwistle

by Paul Rees Narrated by Thomas Judd

Overview

Unearth a piece of music history with this definitive, no-holds-barred biography of John Entwistle, The Who's legendary bass guitarist.

It is an unequivocal fact that in terms of rock bands, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Who represent Year Zero, the beginning of all things, ground-breakers all. To that incontrovertible end, John Entwistle-The Who's beloved bassist-remains an enigmatic yet undeniably influential figure. However, unlike his fellow musicians, Entwistle has yet to be the subject of a major biography. In the years since his death, his enduring legacy has been carefully guarded by his loved ones, preventing potential biographers from writing the definitive account of his life-until now. For the first time, and with the full cooperation of the Entwistle family, The Ox shines a long overdue light on one of the most important figures in rock history.

Drawing on his own notes for his unfinished autobiography, as well as his personal archives and interviews with his family and friends, The Ox gives readers a never-before-seen glimpse into Entwistle's two very distinct poles. On the one hand, he was the rock star incarnate-larger than life, self-obsessed to a fault, and proudly and almost defiantly so. Extravagant with money, he famously shipped vintage American cars across the Atlantic without having so much as a driver's license, built progressively bigger and more grandiose bars into every home he owned, and amassed an extraordinary collection of possessions, from armor and weaponry to his trademark Cuban-heel boots. But beneath this fame and flutter, he was also a man of simple tastes and traditional opinions. He was a devoted father and family man who loved nothing more than to wake up to a full English breakfast or to have a supper of fish, chips, and a pint at his local pub.

After his untimely death, many of these stories were shuttered away into the memories of his family and friends. At long last, The Ox introduces us to the man behind the myth-the iconic and inimitable John Entwistle.

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Editorial Reviews

MAY 2020 - AudioFile

When the seminal rock band The Who burst onto the British rock-and- roll/pop scene in 1964, it was 20-year-old John Entwistle’s superb, innovative, and LOUD bass playing that drove the band’s distinctive sound. Narrating with ease and English restraint, Thomas Judd leads the listener from Entwistle’s West London childhood, where he built his first guitar out of a block of wood and an electric pickup, to the heady 1970s, when The Who vied with the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin to be the world’s biggest stadium band. There’s a tone of “what cha gonna do?” to Judd’s delivery as we follow Entwistle into alcoholism and broken marriages. It seems that, like so many of his peers, Entwistle was his true self only when he was on stage. B.P. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Publishers Weekly

02/24/2020

In this powerful biography, Rees (Robert Plant: A Life) makes a strong argument that The Who’s John Entwistle (1944–2002), the so-called “Quiet One,” was just as self-destructive as he was stoic. Sandwiched in between the towering personalities of his bandmates—guitar-windmilling Pete Townshend, strutting frontman Roger Daltry, and wild drummer Keith Moon—bassist John Entwistle was the steady hand on the tiller. Drawing on Entwistle’s unfinished memoir, Rees begins with a workmanlike march through the band’s early history in the late 1960s, but things liven up as the band gains massive popularity with its early 1970s American tours. Onstage, Entwistle was the calm “Ox,” but offstage his life was a riot of booze, cocaine, infidelity, and manic shopping sprees (he had a fleet of cars but never learned to drive), and he often paired himself with the fun but unhinged Moon, whom he considered “a little brother.” The Who broke up in 1983, and Rees describes Entwistle’s reclusiveness and decline in health that followed (“The Who had made him, and now The Who was gone”) until his death of a heart attack in a Nevada Hard Rock Hotel bedroom with a stripper by his side. Fans of The Who wanting insight into the enigmatic band member need look no further. (Apr.)

From the Publisher

VINYL, "The Top 20 New Music Books"

Best Classic Bands, "Best Music Books of the Year"

"A rollicking new biography reveals."—Daily Mail

"A must for any Who Fan, and a highly entertaining read."—Houston Press

"if you're looking for something worthwhile to read...Hachette Books has just released THE OX."—No Treble

Library Journal

03/06/2020

Bass players are the most wooden, boring, and decidedly unsexy musicians on any rock stage—at least according to common wisdom. This biography of The Who's John Entwistle demonstrates that there are sometimes germs of truth at the core of clichés. Entwistle was indeed known for playing his bass while standing stock still, stage right, and nearly expressionless while his bandmates unleashed kinetic mayhem around him. Beyond that, stereotypes fail. Rees (Robert Plant: A Life) reveals that Entwistle was an enigmatic character who led a fairly domestic married life when home, but a quintessential rock star's life while touring. Nicknamed "the Ox" for his ability to consume large amounts of alcohol—and sometimes drugs—without betraying signs of intoxication, the seemingly quiet, gentlemanly Entwistle—aided by his more sloppy and notorious partner-in-crime, drummer Keith Moon— typically engineered the legendary destructive after-parties, orgies often shunned by bandmates Pete Townsend and Roger Daltry. Entwistle was also an extremely flamboyant shopaholic and collector of curiosities such as antique weaponry and medical mannequins, all of which he loved to show off. VERDICT Solidly researched and written, and fleshed out with the recollections of Entwistle's son, Chris, this biography of one of the genre's finest bass players and most intriguing personalities will strike a chord with serious fans of classic rock.—Jeffrey Hastings, Howell Carnegie Dist. Lib, MI

MAY 2020 - AudioFile

When the seminal rock band The Who burst onto the British rock-and- roll/pop scene in 1964, it was 20-year-old John Entwistle’s superb, innovative, and LOUD bass playing that drove the band’s distinctive sound. Narrating with ease and English restraint, Thomas Judd leads the listener from Entwistle’s West London childhood, where he built his first guitar out of a block of wood and an electric pickup, to the heady 1970s, when The Who vied with the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin to be the world’s biggest stadium band. There’s a tone of “what cha gonna do?” to Judd’s delivery as we follow Entwistle into alcoholism and broken marriages. It seems that, like so many of his peers, Entwistle was his true self only when he was on stage. B.P. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940173464347
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	04/07/2020
Edition description:	Unabridged

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