Who's the greatest?

That's exactly right By Roger Kaye Star-Telegram Rock Music Writer

DALLAS — It was everything one could hope for, and then a little bit more.

Having long ago outstripped all of their competition, the Who Wednesday night simply reaffirmed that they are the world's greatest rock 'n' roll band with a dazzling display of pure power rock that left 19,000 fans emotionally drained at Reunion Arena.

It was the concert of the year — or any year, for that matter — as the Who unleashed a performance that approached perfection. There wasn't a low spot or down moment in the whole show . . . no small feat since the concert ran nearly two hours long.

The intensity never waned from the moment new drummer Kenney Jones hit the downbeat and Pete Townshend leaped in the air to kick off the night's first tune, Substitute.

With lead singer Roger Daltrey strutting around the stage, John Entwistle standing still while running out his patented bass lines and new addition John "Rabbit" Bundrick manning his sophisticated set of keyboards off to one side, the veteran British rockers tore their way through a 19-tune set that touched most of the bases from their brilliant 15-year career.

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They dipped back to 1965 for a series of classic mod-era singles that launched their career, blazed through the psychedelic period with I Can See For Miles, remembered their two rock operas with selections from Tommy and Quadrophenia, pumped out a healthy dose of music from their memorable 1971 Who's Next album, played several cuts from the recent Who Are You LP and tied it all together with the anthem Long Live Rock. Two from '65 started it all off as Substitute and I Can't Explain led into a pair from Who's Next — Baba O'Riley, which featured Daltrey on harmonica, and Entwistle's My Wife.

"Here we are back again, a little older and not much wiser," cracked Daltrey, who resembled a perpetual motion machine much of the night, as did Townshend.

Although his right hand was heavily bandaged, Townshend never missed a lick as he brought the crowd to its feet several times with his patented sweeping windmill guitar strokes.

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"I had an accident with my hand today, so I'm not all that proficient with the guitar. But we'll make up for it by drinking a lot," Townshend said.

And the group members did drink a lot, but mainly because it was so hot in the arena. Entwistle had a couple of mugs tied to his microphone and Daltrey twice threw cups of water up in the air so that he could be showered by the liquid coming down.

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The arena was bathed in flashing lights for the anti-disco song, Sister Disco, then Daltrey was bathed in blue light for an emotional Behind Blue Eyes. A three-piece horn section joined the band for several tunes, beginning with Music Must Change and Drowned.

Bundrick, a former member of Free and a keyboard wizard who hails from the Houston area, especially made his presence felt on a sizzling version of Who Are You, which served as the concert's midway point.

Then it was on to 5:15 from Quadrophenia and Pinball Wizard and See Me, Feel Me from Tommy.

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Throughout the concert, the Who used a spectacular lighting array that took the shape of a flying arrow above the stage, periodically flooding the audience with five megawatt back-lights that were powerful enough to brighten the entire hall. The effect was especially effective on a rousing See Me, Feel Me that brought the crowd to its feet.

That was followed by Long Live Rock, My Generation and a dynamic version of I Can See For Miles, a 1967 hit the Who rarely — if ever — played live during the '70s. Townshend kicked it off with a classic psychedelic riff, and the band lashed into a version that made it sound more powerful than ever.

The next-to-last tune of the regular set was Naked Eye from the 1974 Odds And Sods LP and that segued into a ferocious version of Won't Get Fooled Again, which featured Jones' drumming, Townshend's unmatched guitar playing and Daltrey's blood-curdling scream near the song's end.

Although the late Keith Moon's machine-gun drumming and flamboyant stage presence certainly were missed, Jones (the ex-Small Faces member) definitely proved to be a group asset with his strong, steady drumming.

Following a tumultuous ovation that lasted a full six and one-half minutes, the band came back for two encore tunes — Summertime Blues and The Real Me, finally calling it quits after a 110-minute show that had been preceded by a fine 30-minute opening set from newcomer Willie Nile.

When it was all over, new standards of concert excellence had been set because this was the best one of all.