__ 7H! HARTFORD COURANT: 5.9mm. July :1. ma_. Britain’s Who ‘t 0.](‘1‘18

—They Self-Destruct on Stage

By HENRY MCNULTY ihand K0“?! new IliCkS from amfoblem. but like many deci-| He said they enjoy playing on thirdbar ofthe last number." tcommercials are the best cut:
Last Sunday night, Peter huge cotton. ‘sions they must live with it altithe same bill win, The Small Pete says it’s ‘a gimmick, a on the record. .
TOWShend methodically 300d”. Keith used me- their “VB- tF the Bee Gees d m‘noise, a laugh but it's musically‘ Pete denied they were bemg
;smashed a $300 guitar to splin- where in the neighborhood of “Quick One" is a mini-operag aces, an legitimate.” 'tsued by the makers of the prod-
ters—while it was plugged in. two down sticks. according to Townshend. It con-nggs' They would rather Mt They said they will return to acts they satirized (Heinz
'Keith Moon tossed parts of a In one number, he placed his cerns an affair between a Githappear in concert With JlmllEngland in a few weeks to work Baked Beans, for example).'He
custom-made drum set high inltom tom 0“ top 0‘ a snare drum Guide and a railroad engineer‘Hendrix, according to Pete. ‘on a new album. They were said, however, they did get into
the air and let them crash tolmd played the side of it- Whenland consists of six differentt All four said they admired going to call it “The Who‘s some trouble with Radio Lon-
the STOUM- he "3 WWW, he casually ‘musical styles. {Tiny Tim (who appears at Oak- Greatest Flops,” they said, but don. whose station breaks and
John Entwhistle picked up attossed it over his head. It was It is during this song that dale Sunday. "He's incredi- decided to change the title. promotional ngleS they used.
sensitive in i c ro p h on e andlcaught by another stage hand. Keith Moon plays the side of his bly honest," John said. “A real Their last album, “The Who Just before they went on
banged his guitar With it. 30881" 3083' 031W. “19 lead singer, tom tom—to imitate the Clip-personality with lots of talent.” Sel10ut.” is programmed like a stage, John replied to the ques-
Daltry kicked a hole in an animating: his microphone like a clop of hoot'beats during a Gene They admit their smashing is radio station with jingles and tion: “What does The Who lack

plitier. lyoyo. The sensitive instrument Autry-style P355338- getting to be a bore. “It's stillcommercials, pla'ced back-to-‘that you Wish you had?”

It anyone else tried to do this.-flies out i nto the audience, In the end, as in many operasflspontaneous,” they say. “It’s back with the songs with the‘ “Sleep!” he said. .
[hCY'd probably be arrested, bl" around his head and between “all is forgiven. 3“ i5 fOngven.”lspontaneous right after Pete “no dead air” sound of radio. "He’s right, you know,” said
for the four members ot‘his legs. Yet when he's not The culmination of the show‘signals with his hand in mi As on radio, some of their Roger.

The Who it's all part of the act.‘

The Who are four young men
who match their wild music
with a spectacular stage show
culminating in the celebrated!
wrecking of their instruments.

in Britain, The Who are one;
of the top groups. but in Ameri-'
ca they are lost in the maze of
p0p music. Only four or five of
their records have been re-
leased this side of the Atlantic,
and their albums are not top-l
sellers.

Sunday they played at the‘

swinging it. he sings into it, and]

the results are fascinating.
Keith on drums. but most of the
time he is red-facedly singing
and dancing.

John Entwhistle, b’ a s s is t,
stands at one corner of the
stage and — just plays his bass.

He doesn't dance, twist or
jump with Peter. but John is the
one who writes all The Who's
material, so he can be forgiven
for not entertaining the eyes -—
his specialty is the ears.

Songs which drew loud ap-‘

ments. It was apparently once a
great surprise and a treat to see
such total destruction, but now‘
:it is expected and is done much‘
as Kate Smith sings “God Blessr|
America”—not for the novelty’
lot it but to satisfy the audience.

It occurred during “My Gen-
eration," and was so predicta-
Lble that a good quarter of the
audience left its chairs to crowd
around the stage.

Even though it lacked spon-
taneity. the destruction was

is the smashing of all the instru- ’-

Oakdale Summer Theater ingplause from the Oakdale audi-‘Imarvelous to watch. Pete startSt
Wallingtord. They are particu-lence Sunday night were “Happy‘by whirling the microphone’
larly well-suited to the “thea- Jack.” “Boris the Spider,”1around and around his head.
ter—in-the-round" setup at Oak- “Tattoo" and “A Quick OneiThen — smash-twang! — into
dale, since they must be seen— While He’s Away.” tan amplifier. The crowd roars.
and heard—trom all sides to bei “Boris" is typical of The: By this time, the light man
appreciated. ‘Who's style. Ostensibly, it is: has got the idea. Red-blue-l
Peter Townshend, lead guitar,‘about a small spider crawling;white-black . . . the stage hasl
coaxes, screams, whines and‘on a wall. The singer is afraid Ilbecome a giant strobe light and
somehow manages to get bothyot Boris, so he kills him with althrough the crowd the action
chords and melody from his in-lbook. can be seen. i ;
strument, tor although The Who, At the end, the singer saysr Roger Daltry swings the mi- ‘
is a four-member band there;philosophically, "He’s come to a‘crophone around and around
are only three instruments. ?sticky end.” Is the song only ‘then up in the air. Piff! no more1
Pete uses wild flailing motfiabout spiders or about the‘microphone. l
ions as he plays—he swings his‘ “sticky end” of humanity? The: Keith and John do a job on
right arm in a large circle, Who decline to answer. ‘the drums while the stage hands
striking the strings with what John’s raSpy voice is also£run frantically around the edges
must be terrific force. At the used in this song. It can brieflylpreventing souvenir h unte rs
same time, he wiggles a la be described as Everett Dirksen from carrying off mementos. i
Presley—and sings. imitating Louis Armstrong. By Finally, the lights come on.:
Keith Moon sits at the rear of the way. John must affect this John shrugs his shoulders and
the stage surrounded by his voice. His normal tones arelwith a mighty twang his bass;
drums. One is convinced that very pleasing. Ifalls on the floor. They head tort
[there must be another drummer “Tattoo” is also done in a kin- “ the exit and the concert is, with—'
hidden in the pile somewhere. dergarten style. Two young‘out a doubt, over.
lfor he is extremely fast andlbOys discuss “what makes a: Before the show, The Who an-
Iloud. !man a man—” and decide that swered a few questions about
Who? As he plays, the drumsticks1 the answer is a tattoo on the their personal life and their acti
shoot from his hand into the air; arm. Pete Townshend appears to be
Peter Townshend of The Who clowns belore the group's and the audience, and one; So they both get tattooed. the spokesman for the group, al-
perfnrmance at Oakdale Theater (Courant Photo by Henry ‘stagehand does nothing through-gThey come to find out that this though he acknowledges John
McNulty). the performance exceptiis hardly the solution to theirgEntwhistle’s “lightning wit.”

I93

Three members of “The Who." British
rock group, get ready for a show at Oak-
dale. A stage hand, left, assists. The Who
are, from left Peter Townshend, guitar;

John Entwhistle, bass; and Roger Daltry,
singer. Keith Moon, drummer. was else-
where in the dressing room (Courant photo
by Henry McNulty).