Ted's Take

I went to see The Who in concert last night at Verizon Center. I attended with some old friends from Brooklyn and my cousin and his girlfriend. The show and the company made me feel nostalgic for my younger long-haired days. The show was not very well attended with perhaps 12,000 people at the arena. In comparison, Coldplay had about 15,000 people attend their show last week.

Growing up, we all loved The Who. They stood for rebellion and defiance and they had a unique sound and a one of a kind on stage persona.

The band isn’t the same anymore. Losing John Entwistle and Keith Moon to drugs over the years is sad and The Who can never be as they once were: driven, pissed off, flamboyant and tight as a drum.

That being said, Pete Townsend and Roger Daltrey have nothing to be ashamed of. They played their hearts out and even though they don’t seem to like one another very much, they are still rocking even though they are 63 and 64 years old. Daltrey’s voice got better as the night wore on and I thought he was fabulous during “Love, Reign o’er Me”.

Many of the songs and the banter on stage seemed appropriate and the fans really got into “Teenage Wasteland”; “My Generation”; ”Won’t Get Fooled Again”; and “Who Are You”.

This will probably be The Who’s last tour. I first saw them in the early 70’s. They are a seminal band with a very distinct sound and are on the pantheon of great and important bands. I am glad I went to see them to say goodbye. “Won’t Get Fooled Again” as Pete Townsend said. “Are you ready for regime change?”….