chicus.com

The Who Got a Raw Deal
Feb 08, 2010
Now I'm not going to sit here and pretend it was a great show. It wasn't a good performance and judging by the general reaction most of you probably liked it much less than I. 30 seconds into Pinball Wizard it was pretty obvious they couldn't hit the high notes they once achieved. There was a muffing of the words at one point and apparently (I did not see this myself) Pete Townshend messed up the guitar playing at one point but the sound continued flawlessly, indicating there may have been some prerecording or a backup band tucked away somewhere. Oh, and then there were the multiple stomach shots...unnecessary.

However...

At some point in the planning of the Super Bowl there was this guy, we'll call him Ted. Ted's job is to plan the halftime show. Ted calls a meeting (he works for a big corporation after all) blah blah blah committee finds a variety of acts blah blah Janet Jackson blah blah blah consensus blah blah blah he calls up Pete or Roger (or their manager, really) and says we want The Who to be the act at the Super Bowl halftime show. The Who, 3 years removed from their last tour, take the opportunity because they love being in the limelight and (who are we kidding) 12 minutes of work has never paid so well. (Yes, they prep, I know, but it's simpler that way.)

My point is, somebody picked them to perform. My question is, was the steps taken to ensure they could still perform at a level the Super Bowl audience would expect? My belief is that they did not and that person, or group of people, is more responsible than The Who for a Super Bowl performance that did not meet expectations. I believe a case could be made that The Who bears a fair amount of responsibility as they should have realized they were not in peak form but it's hard to find them culpable because which aging rock group would say no to that opportunity?

On another note, I think if we slightly separate ourselves from memories of an artist at their prime and the reality of a performance past their peak we can be very pleased with the show we see. This is easier to when physically in their presence, I believe, a fortune The Who did not have with a nationally televised event. When I saw Bob Dylan a few years back he was nowhere near the Dylan of old. However, it was clear he was a different singer, it was as if he was a new artist covering Bob Dylan in a unique way. But maybe that's part of where The Who went wrong. Rather than embrace that they are no longer The Who of old and reinvent their old songs they played the part of a cover band trying to be "THE WHO" and falling short.

So yes, the show could have been better but there was someone who decided they were the right fit. Maybe The Who sold out or genuinely thought they could pull it off like the days of old but all blame should not be pinned on them.