Yeh, I think The Who's innovation and relative sophistication gives them the edge greatness wise.

They were different eras. The Who was formed while Jimmy Page was still in The Yardbirds (i think). The first Led Zeppelin album was released four years after The Who famously released My Generation. To declare one writer to be better than a whole band is an insult to what they - and the sole writer - accomplished. Plus, however great a songwriter Townshend was, he was no match to the Lennon/McCartney duo. (But then again, noone was). And I do disagree that "The Who sold out and became hacks." They lost creative energy, maybe, but so do all good bands (unless they die when they were popular).

Haha, I "forgot". (The last time I used that misnomer, I was being hassled by a drunk friend. Guess I never really remembered.) Fair enough. I will concede Entwistle to be great, but JPJ was a good keyboardist (have you heard Rock and Roll, No Quarter, or Kashmir? - the last two are on synth but whatev), and he was a top notch bassist (see The Crunge, and again, Bron-Yr-Aur Stomp) Maybe Entwhistle was better. But JPJ was no Ringo Starr; he was very talented. Although I agree with everything else, I have trouble believing too many drummers can even compete with Bonham (and certainly there aren't too many great bands that respected their drummers like Zeppelin respected Bonham). Moon was great; he was one of the greats, but he wasn't Bonham. Not even close. In the words of another venerated drummer, Dave Grohl:

"No one has come close to that since, and I don't think anybody ever will. I think he will forever be the greatest drummer of all time."

Well, maybe Meg White.

I know they used keyboards/synths but JPJ isn't that good...Regardless Entwhistle is a better bassist (See The Real Me) . Drummers who can compare to Bonham off the top of my head (I'm guessing the Meg White thing was a joke):
Moon
Bruford
Miles
Giles
Carey
Pert
Devendorf
Portnoy (sp?)

This statement shows extreme bias and partiality. For a start, they weren't even writing the same type of music. Lennon/McCartney were obviously better at what THEY did, that goes without saying and nobody would be so stupid as to deny that except, well, a total idiot. Townshend though was the more ambitious artist and would continuously try to expand the art of rock music far, far beyond wherever it had gone previously, often into the realms of the outright ridiculous. Townshend had had stabs at the operetta as early as 1966 with "A Quick One While He's Away", the closing track of their 2nd album, in all its 9 minutes and 10 seconds. He came closer to a real full-blown concept album with Sell Out in 1967, the first side of which perfectly simulates a pirate radio station (the second side ends in another mini-opera). Then finally, in 1969, Townshend pulls out the first ever full-blown start-to-finish rock opera with Tommy in 1969.

The Beatles were undoubtedly better melodists and wrote a far more substantial array of memorable songs. Townshend though was the most artistically ambitious (and probably over-ambitious) rock songwriter in the British 1960s.

Oh, and Townshend was significantly more profound and skillful as a lyricist.

Half of it? The whole thing was.

Wrong. He's no Wakeman or Manzerek but he is a pretty damn good keyboardist, he showed himself to be a very capable pianist during live performances of No Quarter. He also knew his way around a Mellotron, as demonstrated in Kashmir and The Rain Song.

Granted he's a bass player first, but his keyboard playing, string arangements and his overall talents as a multi-instrumentalist were an important part of Zeppelins sound in the latter years. JPJ was by no means lacking behind the rest of the band. Thats a common misconception.

Hey, all I said is he wasn't that good...

I agree with all of this, Townshend is a very underrated lyricist. Proof is in See Me Feel Me.

If he's not that good then why was he one of the most highly regarded session musicians of the 60s.

And i'm guessing you've not heard any of his non Zeppelin stuff.

I seem to remember that it was given up on on the second side? All of a sudden the commercials etc stop and it's just consecutive songs, no?