"I'm One" is a song by

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are conside ...

. It was released on the group's

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

rock opera album ''

Quadrophenia ''Quadrophenia'' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band the Who, released as a double album on 26 October 1973 by Track Records. It is the group's third rock opera, the two previous being the "mini-opera" song "A Quick One, Whi ...

''. Written and sung by

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Towns ...

, the song has since become a fan favorite.

Background

"I'm One" is one of the main moments of introspection spread throughout the narrative and also an indication that Jimmy, the main character of the album's story, may not be as Mod as he would wish to appear, given the way he asks a fellow Mod where he got his clothes (Mods would lose face asking another Mod where he obtained his clothes from). Pete Townshend said of the song's lyrical inspiration: The song features an acoustic opening followed by the rest of the band (excluding singer Roger Daltrey) joining in. "I'm One" was one of the ten original ''Quadrophenia'' tracks to appear in remixed form on the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

to the Who's 1979 film ''Quadrophenia'', which was based on the original rock opera. This version of the song also saw single release as the B-side to the 1979 remixed single release of "5.15." The song is featured on the soundtrack for ''

Freaks and Geeks ''Freaks and Geeks'' is an American teen comedy-drama television series created by Paul Feig and executive-produced by Judd Apatow that aired on NBC during the 1999–2000 television season. The show is set in a suburban high school near ...

'' in the episode "Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers", which featured many of the Who's songs.

Live performances

This song was performed first on the band's original

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of President of the United States, United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom K ...

''Quadrophenia'' Tour, but it was never performed with Moon again afterwards. It made sporadic appearances in the

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major off ...

(only once),

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C., Un ...

(only the first verse; as an intro to "The Punk and the Godfather") and

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker ru ...

tours as well. It was then brought back for every concert on the 1996-1997 ''Quadrophenia'' Tour. Performances after that, from

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

onward, were often performed by Pete Townshend alone on stage (although some feature the full band).

Appearances

The following ''Who'' albums and DVDs feature "I'm One": *''

'' *''

'' (soundtrack) *'' Live at the Royal Albert Hall'' (with

Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and one of four guitarists of the Rock music, rock band Pearl Jam. He also appeared as a guest ...

) *'' The Who & Special Guests: Live at the Royal Albert Hall'' (with Eddie Vedder) *''

Tommy and Quadrophenia Live ''Tommy and Quadrophenia Live'' is a 3-disc DVD box set that includes performances by The Who from their 1989 (the ''Tommy'' portion) and 1996-1997 tours (the '' Quadrophenia'' portion). Whilst the ''Tommy'' part of the set had been already rel ...

'' *'' Encore Series 2002'' (certain concerts) *'' Encore Series 2004'' (one concert) *'' Encore Series 2006 and 2007'' (certain concerts) *'' Quadrophenia Live in London''

Personnel

– lead vocals, guitar, keyboards *

John Entwistle John Alec Entwistle (9 October 194427 June 2002) was an English musician who was the bassist for the rock band The Who. Entwistle's music career spanned over four decades. Nicknamed "The Ox" and "Thunderfingers", he was the band's only membe ...

– bass *

Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 19467 September 1978) was an English drummer for the rock band the Who. He was noted for his unique style of playing and his eccentric, often self-destructive behaviour and addiction to drugs and alcohol. Moon grew ...

– drums

In Popular Culture

The song is featured in the

episode "Dead Dogs and Gym Teachers", in a montage where Bill Haverchuck eats and watches TV after school.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I'm One 1973 songs The Who songs Songs written by Pete Townshend Song recordings produced by Glyn Johns Song recordings produced by Pete Townshend