My roving East Coast Who correspondent Lisa Seckler-Roode has excelled herself
with her report of last night’s show at the Barclays Center at Brooklyn in New
York, the penultimate concert on this first leg of the group’s US touring schedule
this year. Pete, Roger & Co now have three days off before Saturday’s final
show at Forest Hills from where Lisa will no doubt send her final communiqué and some more pictures. Sounds
like she enjoyed herself last night:
There are some nights that are pure
unadulterated rock’n’roll nirvana. Magic. Ecstasy. Brooklyn, home of the
original front-row-on-the-rail diehard we’ll-sleep-in-front-of-The-Fillmore-and-Madison-Square-Garden
gang for tickets. (I know some of these people, and they are best avoided if
you don’t know the significance of ‘I Saw Yer’ at the end of ‘Happy Jack, the name
of the store that burned down next to the Fillmore when The Who debuted Tommy there in 1969, and the serial number
of the SG that Pete lobbed to Binky at the Met in 1970 – CC.)
Barclay’s
tonight. This show was right up there with Toronto and Largo in 1976. That’s a
pretty highfalutin statement, I realize that. However, that being said, there
was the most punch, power and raw genius on that stage tonight than I’ve seen
in an eternity. On the rail: myself, Lauren, Gigi, and her darling sweet
eight-year-old Mehret, seeing them for the first time.
Peppy
opening with ‘Can’t Explain’, after which Pete told the masses it was great to
be in Brooklyn and back in NY (cue crowd roar). ‘The Kids Are Alright’ – great
guitar work by Roger, Pete & Simon; ‘I Can See For Miles’ introduced by
Pete talking about playing Detroit with 25 people at the venue[1].
Absolutely stunning! Roger growling and hissing the lyrics, Townshend playing
with the front row crew, giving a lesson on sustaining one string, harmonies and
overall vocals spot on. Pete and Roger quickly glance at each other, Pete tells
the crowd the next song was released before most of them were born, going on to
say: “If you were alive when it was released, the special bus is available post
show with wheelchairs and hot soup for after the gig”. Why did he look straight
at me and start laughing after he said that? Gee thanks Pete! They then ROARED
into ‘My Generation’, went into a jam at end of song, with Roger riffing on the
vocals.
It
only got BETTER after that: ‘Slip Kid’, ‘Join Together’, ‘Eminence Front’, which
I usually don’t like but tonight it was fantastic; edgy, jazzy and spot on. Then
‘Bargain’ and I haven’t heard such a KILLER version since the seventies, with
Roger’s voice soaring, and another great jam at the end with Pete just
shredding it, simply ripped it. I have this problem: when it’s good, REALLY
good, I cry, and ‘Bargain’ brought the first bout of tears pouring down my
face. ‘Behind Blue Eyes’: ditto, save no tears, just superb. My Achilles heel
came next: Tommy, very dear to my
heart for SO many reasons; for me, it’s always been the beauty of ‘Amazing
Journey’/’Sparks’. As soon as Pete hit the opening C chord, he and Roger looked
straight at me and nodded. They knew years ago that if I lose it, it’s beyond
great and dear lord, it was BRILLIANT. Roger throwing the mike, Pete whirling, windmilling,
lunging, and of course... the BIRDMAN, guitar suspended, Roger smashing those
tambourines. I lost it. Gigi, Mehret, Lauren and I hugging dancing. I totally
lost it, tears flowing again. ‘Baba O’Riley’... killer. “Nothing more needs to
be said.”
Roger
and I were communicating now. I want Mehret to get a tambourine. Roger acknowledges.
Roger sees me mouth “wow” and thinks I want water so he tosses the bottle he
was drinking at me; slow motion upright in air without spilling drop UNTIL I
CATCH IT, spilled but upright and we’re all hysterical as I have water dripping
into my cleavage… now THAT’s rock’n’roll!
‘I’m
One’: pure and achingly sweet; ‘Love Reign O’er Me’: one of the BEST I’ve heard
in ages, Roger’s voice just soared, Pete rocking and dancing. ‘Won’t Get Fooled
Again’: tight and thrilling, Pete pouring sweat, jamming whirling lunging, drum
break like shots fired. Pete jumps at end, Roger hands tambourines to the poor
photographer in pit... I hand it to Mehret (Gigi’s jaw drops) and the second
one to a little boy in the third row. Roger acknowledges both Mehret and other
little boy, and shouts: “The next generation is here.”
It’s
now 2:30 am as I write this and my mind is still REELING: the best rock n roll
band in the world, the best supporting players in the business, the purest
definition… that’s The Who.
[1]
Pete was probably
referring to a show at Southfield High School Gymnasium, Southfield, a suburb
of Detroit, on November 22, 1967, when he smashed an Epiphone guitar in the
finale – CC.
2 comments:
Fantastic review by Lisa, whom I've met at Who shows and gatherings in NYC in some years past. This is what it's all about! Thank you Chris for posting this to your blog so every one can read her beautiful thoughts on this show. Love hearing that Pete reference that infamous Southfield 67 gig in Detroit. Roger even mentioned this concert at his Windsor, Ontario 2011 solo gig right before he performed the final song of the night, which was "Blue,Red,and Grey"
~ Marc Starcke
Marc, shoot me an email to catch up. I took the boy to the Columbus 5/15 show so he can see the legendary band.
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