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Who were those guys, anyway? Did you like 'em?
Sleeping on it didn't help.
I still don't know how I feel about The Who's performance during the Super Bowl halftime show last night in Miami.
I didn't hate it. Based on a glance at Twitter and Facebook, many of my friends did. I didn't.
Then again, it was probably impossible for me to have hated it, because I spent so many hours in my early teens listening to "Live at Leeds," watching "The Kids Are Alright" and devouring every book and magazine article I could find about The Who.
Like many red-blooded boys of the time, I fell for the power, the bombast and the testosterone of the music, and while many of my peers used those traits as a gateway to heavy metal, I was seduced by Pete Townshend's honest, angst-filled lyrics and sought out songwriters capable of more than "Cum on Feel the Noize."
One of the first concerts I attended was The Who's "farewell tour" show at the Milwaukee Arena on Dec. 7, 1982. I still have the T-shirt from that night in my closet. It was worn once -- the day after the show -- and retired immediately afterward.
After attending that show -- and watching the actual "final" show from Toronto weeks later on HBO -- I figured that The Who had gone out on top.
After last night, I'm not sure I can say that.
The laser light show was cool and, again, the music wasn't horrible. Roger Daltrey's voice isn't what it was and Townshend apparently has forgotten how to button his shirts. Infrequent touring and the "smashing" of a couple songs into a medley probably didn't help tighten the performance.
I thought that recent halftime stars Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band did a pretty solid job letting the uninitiated know what their bands were about.
The Who didn't accomplish that.
If your only previous association with the band was hearing the "CSI" intro, you probably weren't impressed. You might even have taken to the Twitterverse to ask for "fresher" acts in the future.
I still consider myself a Who fan, but I don't think I'll be rewinding the Super Bowl performance on the DVR.
I'll prefer to remember them this way:
Talkbacks
Poeartemer | Feb. 9, 2010 at 2:11 p.m. (report)
I loved it!!! These guys can still ROCK!!!!!
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milROCKeeguy | Feb. 8, 2010 at 3:07 p.m. (report)
'talentless likes of Carrie Underwood' ok? are you kidding me? I'm am not a fan of anyone to come out of American Idol because that show is pretty terrible...but even I can admit that Carrie Underwood is anything but 'talentless.' The Who sounded...umm..ok, but for how old they are, as everyone else has stated, they've been around forever, and it's good that they could celebrate their longevity as a band.
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Hainer | Feb. 8, 2010 at 12:58 p.m. (report)
Reminded me of when my dad would take us down to Comisky to see Micky Mantle after his legs were gone. The electricity would build and he'd blast one deep....and foul...before popping up or striking out. Glad I saw him. Better late than never. Feel that way, pulling for The 2K10 Semi-Who on national TV. Zak Starkey's a skilled technician but a far cry from the chaotic storm that (pre-drugged-up) Keith Moon brought, nor could anyone replicate The Ox's flying-picking finger style on "lead" bass, so to speak. WHO dat too. Quadraphenia was crucial go-to vinyl in high school for me, and it'll always have a place on my iPod. Granted, Daltrey and Townsend weren't great -- but there were game.
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mghanson25 | Feb. 8, 2010 at 11:44 a.m. (report)
I just thought it was interesting that since the show was broadcast on CBS all the songs except for the first song where from the 3 CSI shows which are also on CBS. So Who prompt Who to sing those songs???
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devidia | Feb. 8, 2010 at 11:42 a.m. (report)
I agree with Stoli, I'm not the biggest Who fan in the world but I'll take them any day over the talentless likes of Carrie Underwood or those American Idol twinks. Still, I opted not to watch their Super Bowl show, as I hate halftime shows period. Just play the damn game and eliminate the BS please!!
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