Rating: 
Summary: A fun read
Review: Dave Marsh can be an arrogant, snotty,and belligerent writer. Which is fitting as The Who often shared the same faults. Marsh does everything he possibly can to don the cloak of The Who and write as though he was one of them. I agree with other reviewers in criticising the book's overall veracity. But that really is a small matter as "Before I Get Old" frequently is as entertaining as the group it documents. Pete Townsend certainly is one of the few geniuses Rock music has produced. "Before I Get Old" certainly works extremely hard at presenting Townsend as Rock's All Father, a mantel Townsend himself worked very hard to develop. As a result, Townsend often comes off a real prententious jerk. But God, what great music he and his band mates produced out of their many disputes. Marsh works hard at praising the contributions of Daltrey, Entwhistle and of course the incomparable Moon the Loon in producing some of the finest music Rock could ever hope to produce (boy, that was an arrogant statement- see the book rubs off. Marsh also never loses the fact that he is first and foremost a rabid fan. Maybe that is the book's biggest weakness, maybe it is the book's biggest strength. Marsh builds the case that The Who were the greatest Rock and Roll group of all time. An opinion I share (The Beatles are in a class all by them selves). He also makes the case that The Who really died with Keith Moon. "Before I Get Old" is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it will do until we get the definitive work. As is, this is a blast to read.
Rating: 
Summary: This book is crap, essentially, with a few gold nuggets.
Review: Dave Marsh is the most long-winded fool ever to use
a typewriter. Most of this book comes to you directly
from his anus. It is nevertheless a good reference
if you can dig through the piles and piles of rubbish.
Rating:
Summary: Ideal for the Who-Hater
Review: From my own and friends' reactions, it seems that the more you like The Who, the less you will like this book. Like Leonard Malton on films and James Michener on any subject, Marsh makes exciting things insufferable. The wheezing digressions, no-nothing judgments and constant air of self-importance smother fandom's lively flame. Lester Bangs could communicate to you the flavor, rhythm, and personal significance of a song or ouvre. Marsh has no such ear, and overwhelms this project with his own wooly-brained inanity. Even descriptions of the band member's intimate, often emotional life experiences are uninvolving. Tell you what--buy the albums and just guess what kind of lives these guys had and what their motives were. That'll be a lot more fun than this quagmire.
Rating:
Summary: Hey Guys, lighten up...
Review: Hey fellas, get a grip: the book was written 15 years ago after all. Empty Glass was a new album then, and a lot has happened since. Pete's given mucho other interviews and revealed more about his sexuality, Irish Jack has cleared up some other stuff, there's Behind Blue Eyes: The Life Of Pete Townshend by Geoffrey Giuliano, etc. Marsh's book will probably stand as the great starter on The Who, written from a close perspective. It'll be referred to and debunked as the years go by.
Rating:
Summary: Marsh kills the spirit of rock and roll
Review: I agree with the reviewer who mentioned that Dave Marsh's preachiness and know-it-all attitude really is a detriment to this book. Before I Get Old is well researched and thorough, the only problem is that it takes all the life out of what is one of the most exciting and dangerous rock groups of all time. Marsh really fails to capture the early days of the Who, because he seems to judge everything as the elitist American reviewer he is. In other words, he has no sense of humour and doesn't capture the essence of what made the Who what they were. Pete Townshend is quoted at length, and he can be a real bore, he does his best communicating with a guitar in his hand and writing great songs of angst, rebellion and rage. Marsh has done some good work here and there, but he is totally out in left field with this one, he really captured nothing of The Who.
Rating:
Summary: Marsh kills the spirit of rock and roll
Review: I agree with the reviewer who mentioned that Dave Marsh's preachiness and know-it-all attitude really is a detriment to this book. Before I Get Old is well researched and thorough, the only problem is that it takes all the life out of what is one of the most exciting and dangerous rock groups of all time. Marsh really fails to capture the early days of the Who, because he seems to judge everything as the elitist American reviewer he is. In other words, he has no sense of humour and doesn't capture the essence of what made the Who what they were. Pete Townshend is quoted at length, and he can be a real bore, he does his best communicating with a guitar in his hand and writing great songs of angst, rebellion and rage. Marsh has done some good work here and there, but he is totally out in left field with this one, he really captured nothing of The Who.
Rating:
Summary: nice try, lazy ending
Review: I think the first 3/4 of this are terrific. Too much 'tommy', not enogh 'quad'--but what's new? Good backround stuff.
However, he covers the death of Keith Moon, Empty Glass, Face Dances, Chinese Eyes, and It's Hard in 3 pages. Utterly ridiculous. I think he got bored, or ate his advance. Great Pete stories. I refer you all to 'Horse's Neck', pete's autobiography with a great version of the guitar teacher story that Marsh gets wrong.
Rating: 
Summary: Informative but...
Review: I will not put down Dave Marsh's knowledge of Rock'n'Roll. After all, he's the author of "The heart of Rock & Soul" and if you've read that one, you would agree that he's no rookie. However, my problem with "Before I get old" is that he is using a journalist's approach instead of a novelist's. Sure, we want to read the truth, but with a group like The Who, I believe that a more dramatic approach would be appropriate. Mr. Marsh is obviously an early Who fan, and he has obviously followed The Who throughout their career, but what's the point of putting down Pete Townshend because he's contradictory? Marsh seems to have fun quoting Towshend (especially during he was writing Tommy) just to comment that The Who's chief songwriter seemed confused and undecided. He seems to have forgotten that the people who are going to read his book are essentially Who fans, and that they might feel uncomfortable that the author is judging their favorite rock band so severely... I think it's normal that an author changes his mind during the conception of a piece such as Tommy. I also think it's unfair to judge people's comments twenty years later, when time has either proven them wrong or right. With all due respect, mister Marsh, "Relax".
Rating:
Summary: Informative but...
Review: I will not put down Dave Marsh's knowledge of Rock'n'Roll. After all, he's the author of "The heart of Rock & Soul" and if you've read that one, you would agree that he's no rookie. However, my problem with "Before I get old" is that he is using a journalist's approach instead of a novelist's. Sure, we want to read the truth, but with a group like The Who, I believe that a more dramatic approach would be appropriate. Mr. Marsh is obviously an early Who fan, and he has obviously followed The Who throughout their career, but what's the point of putting down Pete Townshend because he's contradictory? Marsh seems to have fun quoting Towshend (especially during he was writing Tommy) just to comment that The Who's chief songwriter seemed confused and undecided. He seems to have forgotten that the people who are going to read his book are essentially Who fans, and that they might feel uncomfortable that the author is judging their favorite rock band so severely... I think it's normal that an author changes his mind during the conception of a piece such as Tommy. I also think it's unfair to judge people's comments twenty years later, when time has either proven them wrong or right. With all due respect, mister Marsh, "Relax".
Rating: 
Summary: Clever use of the word Who here...
Review: It seems to me that if you pick up a rock bio and expect to get something even close to the reality of what really went on, you are setting yourself up for a hard fall. Dave Marsh does a really good job, however, at summing up the Who's career and belting out the facts with nice writing and concise direction. You're given behind the scenes looks at a lot of infighting, songs, albums, lives and careers and it all gels rather well together. Marsh definitely has his opinions and is not hesitant in letting loose with them. I say good. Rock journalism is not the place for objectivity, just as rock n' roll is the essential forum to spill out everything you ever thought about everything. He has his biases and likes and it's nice to see because from that you understand that you are reading a Who fan's bio of the band. A much more well-informed fan than most, but basically, a fan. The downside is also an upside. The downside being that almost all the quotes and personal asides in the book are taken from other interviews or films or whatnot, but that's also an upside. You get a collage view of the Who from their early days of snotty-punk-rock and their later days of fried-out elegance. Pound for pound, in my book, the Who were the best band to come from the whole British invasion. And this book is as good a companion piece to the music as you're apt to find. Either it's this or waiting for their respective autobiographies.... Then you really won't know who to trust.
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