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| Photo by Michael Litt |
November 27, 2012 – The Who released the Pete Townshend’s rock opera Quadrophenia in October 1973. It was the band’s second “opera”, the first, Tommy, was released was released in 1969. Like Tommy, Quadrophenia was also later made into a movie in 1979. The libretto tells the story of a troubled working-class youth named Jimmy, a depressed, pill popping Mod in early 60’s London who’s unable hold a job. Crazy about the R&B music of the day, Jimmy finds an identity with the Mods. As his relationships with his girlfriend and parents break down, the battles between the fashion conscious, scooter riding Mods and leather clad, motorbike riding Rockers become Jimmy’s primary concern, particularly in the town of Brighton on the south coast. Later Jimmy is forced to even question his anti-establishment Mods when their leader (played by Sting in the movie) takes a job as a bell boy at a posh hotel they once vandalized.
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| Photo by Terry Makedon |
Where Tommy was a rather ludicrous story of a deaf, dumb and blind boy who became a messiah through pinball, Quadrophenia was an introspective look at frustration, depression and a young man’s identity, or lack thereof. Jimmy’s issues are ones that listeners could identify with in their own lives. While the album contains some great individual songs (like The Real Me, 5:15, Love, Reign O’er Me), there are no rock anthems like Tommy’s Pinball Wizard, I’m Free and We’re Not Gonna Take it (See Me, Feel Me), but yet musically it’s more complex and the vocal performances by Daltry are some of his very best. Just like Vivaldi’s Four Seasons evokes each season, Townshend paints musical pictures of the sea, cold wind and rain. It’s nearly an hour and a half of music that thematically flows together as one long song broken up only by brief pauses.
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| Photo by Michael Litt |
About Quadrophenia, Townshend has said “The music is the best music that I’ve ever written, I think, and it’s the best album that I will ever write” and “We never really ever made a truly great album again.” Of course, Townshend naturally has extremely high standards when defining greatness and while he’s largely correct, a strong argument could be made that Who Are You is a great album.
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| Photo by Terry Makedon |
In 2012 the surviving members of The Who, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey are performing Quadrophenia in its entirety and in order.
In the tour’s announcement, Townshend said “In 1972 I was twenty-eight, writing about London and Brighton in 1963 and 1964 when the band was just starting. I was still young enough to remember how it felt to be 16 or 17, and at war with my parents, bosses and authority. I could still remember that feeling of struggling to fit in, something that happened to me when I was even younger, around 14, and everyone around me seemed to have got their lives on track. This is such a universal experience for young people that it has echoed.”
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| Photo by Michael Litt |
When asked about his favourites songs to play from the album he replies, “I really love playing all of it. It’s a unique piece for me in that. Some Who music is nightmarish to perform live. Roger has some very tough songs to sing, and he must have preferences. But for me on guitar everything falls under the fingers. It flows naturally, and I always feel proud of my achievement as the writer, that I put it all together and gave the band a third wind. The real high point for me is always the final song ‘Love Reign O’er Me.’ Roger and I now stand almost alone together, representing not only the original band, but also its Mod audience, and of course all our other early fans. We are connected by it, in what is the most clear cut prayer for redemption, and it feels like an acknowledgment that rock music has managed to deal with the highest emotional challenge: spiritual desperation.”
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| Photo by Terry Makedon |
The concert performance at the ACC was incredible with both Pete and Roger in fine form. On stage, they were joined by Pete’s brother Simon on guitar and backing vocals, (Simon also sang lead vocals on The Dirty Jobs), Pino Palladino on bass, Zak Starkey on drums, Chris Stainton on keyboards, Loren Gold on keyboards and backing vocals and Frank Simes on keyboards and backing vocals.
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| Photo by Terry Makedon |
John Entwhistle, arguably the best bassist in rock history, made an appearance on a video bass solo as did Keith Moon who sang Bell Boy on the video screen.
Side one
I Am the Sea
The Real Me
Quadrophenia
Cut My Hair
The Punk and the Godfather
The Real Me
Quadrophenia
Cut My Hair
The Punk and the Godfather
Side two
Helpless Dancer
Is It in My Head?
I’ve Had Enough
I’m One
The Dirty JobsHelpless Dancer
Is It in My Head?
I’ve Had Enough
Side three
Drowned vocals by Pete
Bell Boy video of Keith Moon singing
5.15
Sea and SandDrowned vocals by Pete
Bell Boy video of Keith Moon singing
Side four
Doctor Jimmy
The Rock
Love, Reign O’er Me
The Rock
Love, Reign O’er Me
After the band finished Quadrophenia, they continued with some additional songs from their vast catalog.
Who Are You
Behind Blue Eyes
Pinball Wizard
Baba O’Reilly
Won’t Get Fooled Again
Behind Blue Eyes
Pinball Wizard
Baba O’Reilly
Won’t Get Fooled Again
Encore
Tea & Theatre
The Who always have had a fondness for Toronto. After the Quadrophenia set, Pete mentioned that the band felt that if the band started and ended a tour in Toronto it would be a good tour. In October of 1982, they played a show at Exhibition Stadium and then came back two months later in December to play the final show of the final tour at Maple Leaf Gardens. It was a major worldwide event that was broadcast live around the world by satellite. In Toronto, it was broadcast on CITY TV and simulcast on CHUM FM, sadly in their very last act as a rock radio station. They became the lame station they remain today just a month later. This time around Toronto was just another stop on The Who’s tour. In total they played about two and a quarter hours.
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| Photo by Terry Makedon |
Their choice of encore was the slow, acoustic Tea & Theatre from their final album Endless Wire released in 2006. It seemed to be The Who’s way of saying goodbye, most likely for the final time.
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| Photo by Terry Makedon |
Tea & Theatre
Will you have some tea
At the theatre with me?
We did it all
Didn’t we?
At the theatre with me?
We did it all
Didn’t we?
Jumped every wall
Instinctively
Unravelled codes
Ingeniously
Instinctively
Unravelled codes
Ingeniously
Wired all the roads
So seamlessly
So seamlessly
We made it work
But one of us failed
That makes it so sad
A great dream derailed
One of us – gone
One of us – mad
One of us – me
All of us sad
All of us sad
One of us – mad
One of us – me
All of us sad
All of us sad
Lean on my shoulder now
This story is done
It’s getting colder now
A thousand songs
This story is done
It’s getting colder now
A thousand songs
Still smoulder now
We play them as one
All of us free
Before we walk from this stage
Two of us
We play them as one
We’re older now
All of us sadAll of us free
Before we walk from this stage
Two of us
Will you have some tea
Will you have some tea
At the theatre with me
Will you have some tea
At the theatre with me
Review by Steve Mallinson, Photos by Terry Makedon and Michael Litt
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