The leaping, sliding powerhouse–whose frenzied antics were only matched by Moon's–complains a tour involves too much responsibility.

One of rock's most ebullient guitarists, Townshend seems to be losing some of the youthful drive that catapulted The Who to fame in the 60s. Recently, he's been very reluctant to go on tour.

In a sense, Townshend is going through the process of settling into mid-life. In recent interviews he talks about a newly found and highly-valued relationship with his wife, Karen, and two daughters, Aminta and Emma.

"The last three years (since "Quadrophenia," a relatively inactive period for the group) have been the happiest of my life as far as my family goes," Townshend said.

Expressing the desire to avoid a concert tour because of the commitment rock demands, he added, "The problem with rock and roll is it's the kind of thing that when you become involved with it, you become obsessed."

The problem with that, Townshend said, is that he feels he owes it to his children to be at home as their father. And, he is devoted to his wife.

"If my old lady's jealous of anything, it's not the people that share my life when I'm on the road–that's my problem. To some extent, she's jealous of rock."

Also, too many years of screeching feedback and raucous chords reverberatingly belted out at full volume have left him with hearing problems. "Electric guitar's hurt my ears. It's bad to the extent that if I'm subjected to really loud noise for a long time, I get a lot of pain. And, apparently, pain is the indication of further damage.

"To some extent, the thing about that sound is the pain of it. The thing I used to adore was the fact that it hurt."

Daltrey also complains about hearing loss. "When it's noisy, I have to lip-read."

The Who knows it was concert tours that made them famous. In 15 years they've only made as many albums as the Beatles made between 1964 and 1969. Even "Tommy" was only at its best when performed live. So, in 1979 it was back to the road, although reluctantly.

Surprisingly, however, reviews of The Who's latest tours have been enthusiastic. Although most reviews had eulogistic undertones, and words like relevance, age, survival and limits weren't uncommon, sheer determinism made the concerts successful.

Townshend had once written, "the song is over."

Before the recent concerts, a fatalistic hopelessness had pervaded the minds of many that the guitarist's words would turn out to be, in the case of The Who, prophetic. Afterwards, fans realized The Who had outlasted the trendy 70s, and now, despite advancing age, were on their way towards transcending to another plateau.

Since the 60s The Who have walked rock's razor edge that cut and killed Jimi Hendrix and Buddy Holly, and survived.

Denver's concert won't lack exuberance. Dedicated hoards of fans probably won't leave unsatisfied.

After all, The Who are, as they've frequently said, the fans. And you won't let them down.