Pete Townshend Preps Half Speed Masters For Two Classic Albums

This batch of releases includes 1982’s ‘All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes’ and 1985’s ‘White City (A Novel).’

Published on

March 28, 2024

Pete Townshend, ‘White City (A Novel)’ - Photo: Courtesy of UMR

Pete Townshend is gearing up to release the second in a series of half speed mastered studio albums, All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes and White City (A Novel). Both reissues will arrive on May 17.

These limited-edition black vinyl versions have been mastered by long-time Who engineer Jon Astley and cut for vinyl by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios with a half-speed mastering technique which produces a superior vinyl cut and are packaged in original sleeves with obi strips and certificates of authenticity.

Initially released in June of 1982, All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes was Pete Townshend’s third solo album and contained two singles “Uniforms (Corp d’Esprit)” as well as “Somebody Saved Me,” a song The Who had recorded for their 1981 album Face Dances. The Who version didn’t appear until 1997.

Chris Thomas produced the album, featuring Simon Philips on drums and Jody Linscott on percussion, who would later perform with The Who. Promo videos were made for seven tracks from the album (“Prelude,” “Face Dances Pt 2,” “Communication,” “Uniforms,” “Stardom In Acton,” “Exquisitely Bored,” and an alternate version of “Slit Skirts”) by renowned photographers Davies & Starr (Chalkie Davies and his then-wife Carol Starr) and released on VHS.

Townshend didn’t get to play the album live, as three months after its release, The Who’s It’s Hard appeared, and the band undertook their farewell tour.

White City (A Novel) was Pete Townshend’s next studio album, released in the Autumn of 1985. As the title suggests, the album tells a story of cultural conflict, racial tension, and youthful hopes and dreams in the White City London housing estate in the 1960s, not far from where Pete grew up.

White City (A Novel) was again produced by Chris Thomas and features guest appearances by David Gilmour, Clem Burke, John ‘Rabbit’ Bundrick, Pete’s daughter Emma, and a young Justine Frischmann, who would later form the Brit-Pop band Elastica.

Pre-order the latest half speed masters from Pete Townshend.