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Subject: The Who, concert review
Bart,
Wanted to help you and B in Reno out with The
Who show. I saw the show the Wednesday
before Thanksgiving in Atlanta. Now understand
I'm a lifelong fan (38yrs old), who had never
seen them before. I really thought this may be
the last chance, so I was not swayed by the
$200.00 I spent to get a really good seat.
First off, it wasn't sold out. Very close but
not completely so there were tickets available up
to the show starting which bodes well for those
not wanting to spend big bucks on tickets.
I met a scalper who was selling first ten rows
at face value, about $135.00 in Atlanta.
The Pretender's opened, and Chrissie Hynde looked
and sounded like a true Rock-n-Roll Goddess.
That woman can sing and sounded as good as she
did on her records recorded 20 years ago.
She strutted the stage, bantered with all the
"Grey" hairs in the crowd, and thoroughly got that
crowd fired up. I was watching the Mom, Dad and
19 yr old son in front of me and the looks
of pure rock excitement on their faces was just
brilliant. It made me even happier than I already
was to see those looks of joy.
Next up, The Who.
And they delivered. A 2-plus hour show with plenty
of career spanning highlights, as well as a
good amount of new stuff. I didn't personally
know any of the new album, but they squeezed it in
between the old stuff really well. And seeing
Pete live for the first time was amazing. He tore into
the new stuff with such zeal, I was amazed I
was watching a 61 year old guy. And the new stuff
sounded pretty damn good. Including the new "Mini
Opera - which is only 12 minutes long" as he
put it. "You know the Who invented the Rock Opera",
followed by much cheering.
I was also impressed with Daltrey's voice. I
mean you could hear most of the battle wounds he's
endured, but he didn't hold back at all. And
it was great to hear both of them talk to the crowd,
introducing old songs along with the new. Just
seemed like two guys who were thankful to be able
to be what they are. And they used the video
screens to showcase their careers, as well as Keith
and John's contributions along the way. Mabye
it wasn't my Dad's Who, but it was as good as
expected, if not better.
My Mom always tells the story of seeing The Who
back in the sixties with my Dad at Hara Arena
in Dayton, OH. My Mom was a little ballet dancing
pixie back in those days and straight as an arrow.
She told me how freaked out she was when they
started passing the basket of pills down the aisle,
and kids were just grabbing them and eating them
up.
So I was thinking of that scene while I watched
a Mom and Dad with their 11 or so year old son
and 14 year old daughter, sitting in the row
behind me. During one of the new songs, I noticed Dad
and Daughter singing word for word together.
It really moved me, and though 30 odd years have
passed and plenty of bad has come with the good,
it showed me that in the end "the kids are alright."
I think Keith, John, Roger and Pete would agree.
So go to the show, and don't worry about the
money.
Some things are just more important.
peace...helldog