The Who honor Entwistle with ferocious concert

By Jim Harrington

CONTRIBUTOR

After 20 years of farewell tours and sleepwalking through concerts, The Who performed as if they had something to prove Wednesday night at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View.

And, boy, did they ever.

They had to prove that they made the right decision to continue the tour. They had to prove that they are in this for more than just money. They had to prove that they deserve even to be on the stage. They had to prove that the music still matters.

Most important, they had to prove that they were honoring, not diminishing, the legacy of the late, great bassist John Entwistle.

Deemed "The Quiet One," a nickname that he shared with the Beatles' George Harrison, Entwistle unexpectedly died last week from a heart attack in a Las Vegas hotel room just as the band was to embark on a North American tour.

Most people expected The Who to cancel or, at very least, postpone the tour. Yet, just four days after the shocking death, the band was back in action, with fill-in bassist Pino Palladino, at the Hollywood Bowl on Tuesday. The Shoreline gig Wednesday was the group's second show since the tragedy.

To say that fans had mixed reactions to the band's actions is an understatement. Sure, longtime fanatics wanted the chance to hear the classics like "Magic Bus" and "Happy Jack." But it also seemed as if the remaining band members, vocalist Roger Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend, were slighting the importance of Entwistle by so quickly carrying on without him.

I mean, is there any doubt that The Who would have broken up if Daltrey or Townshend had died instead of Entwistle? So, in effect, weren't they coldly telling the fans that Entwistle was the least important member of the band?

There was only one thing that The Who could have done to put an end to this line of questioning. And that was to put on an absolutely inspired performance Wednesday night.

Bingo. That's exactly what happened.

This show was so good it made any discussion of whether they should have been playing so soon after Entwistle's death irrelevant. Of course, they should. This music is too good to keep in the closet.

The band did address Entwistle's death, but they certainly did not dwell on it.

"It's one day at a time for us," Daltrey said three songs into the set. "It ain't (expletive) easy. It was never meant to be. Rock 'n' roll was never meant to be easy."

From the very start of the set, it was obvious that the band was playing for keeps on this night. Beginning with "I Can't Explain," the traditional opener that also happens to be the band's first Top 10 hit, The Who performed with a level of energy and a wealth of emotion that hadn't been seen or felt in years.

As the group raced through ferocious versions of such early classics as "Substitute" and "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere," Townshend played as if he were expected to carry the entire band on his shoulders. That's a refreshing change because the lead guitarist has often been the weakest link during the band's concerts in recent years.

However, Townshend displayed no weaknesses this night. He ripped through the songs like a child going at his presents on Christmas morning. He waved his arm in big circles on such FM radio staples as "Who Are You" and "Baba O'Riley," doing his signature windmill routine and strumming the strings of his axe as if he had no desire to keep the tips of his fingers connected to his knuckles.

Daltrey was in fine voice on challenging full-tilt rock numbers like "Baba O'Riley" and "Won't Get Fooled Again," proving once again that he is the best screamer in the history of pop music. He's also still quite fond of theatrics, mimicking Townshend's motions on the air guitar and twirling his microphone on its cord like a propeller.

The rest of the band held its own with the two inspired main players. Simon Townshend, Pete's brother, covered for Entwistle on the high harmonies for "The Kids Are Alright" and played rhythm guitar on tracks like "Who Are You." Drummer Zak Starkey, son of Beatle Ringo Starr, filled in admirably for another dearly departed Who member, Keith Moon, and kept things steady all night.

Of course, what everyone wants is to meet the new bassist and see if he is the same as the old bassist. Well, not quite. Still, Pino Palladino did a good job in a tough spot and did receive some encouragement from the crowd. His short bass leads in "My Generation," The Who's signature song, were met with shouts of approval from audience members.

In the end, after an excellent encore segment that included "Pinball Wizard" and "See Me Feel Me," The Who left the stage having won over the critics, wowed the fans and, most importantly, greatly honored the legacy of John Entwistle.

It was a lot to ask of just one band on just one night. But The Who accomplished it.

Long live rock, indeed.

* You can reach Jim Harrington at jimthecritic@yahoo.com.