CONCERT REVIEW
The Who's "Quadrophenia"
by Seth Rogovoy(ALBANY, N.Y., Nov. 20, 1996) -- When Pete Townshend wrote the rock opera "Quadrophenia" in 1973, he was already a generation removed from the audience he originally wrote to and about so eloquently in songs like "My Generation" and "I Can't Explain."
Now nearly a quarter of a century later, and looking every bit his 51 years (and then some), the mastermind behind the classic rock group The Who has called his bandmates out of semi-retirement once again, specifically for the curious task of staging the complete "Quadrophenia" once and for all, as had never been done before successfully until this current tour.
The spectre of Townshend and the two surviving members of the Who _ bassist John Entwistle and singer Roger Daltrey, who are Townshend's elders by a year _ acting out this seminal rock fantasy about teen angst at an age when their personal concerns are more likely to revolve around bladder control and not bouncing their grandchildren too hard on their rickety knees is truly bizarre. After all, this is the group whose best-known phrase _ "Hope I die before I get old" _ is 31 years old this month.
And indeed, the Who's "Quadrophenia," as seen at the Knickerbocker Arena on Monday night, had its moments of unintended irony. But it also had its moments of intended irony, and, I am happy to report, its moments of visceral, rock 'n' roll transcendence.
The oxymoronic term "rock opera" has been bandied about at least as far back as when the Who released "Tommy," and perhaps earlier in regard to some of Ray Davies' more ambitious works with his group, the Kinks. Attempts at creating a work that truly blends the structure and elements of classic opera with rock music and rock sensibility have all met with varying degrees of failure. Credit Pete Townshend's persistence, because based on its show at the Knick, on its current tour the Who comes the closest to succeeding.
"Quadrophenia" ostensibly tells the story of Jimmy, an alienated, pill-popping London teen who in the summer of '64 falls in with a lifestyle gang called the Mods, gets thrown out of his parent's house, takes part in a riot at the seashore and kvetches a lot about not knowing who he is and not fitting in. In other words, it's about a typical teen-ager anytime, anyhow, anywhere, to paraphrase an earlier Who song.
An excellent 1979 movie version of the story fleshed out the plot, and the Who's current live version of the show drew on the film _ including drafting erstwhile punk-rocker and Sting look-alike Billy Idol to play the role the former Police-man played in the movie _ as well as on vintage newsreels, film clips of the Who, a few guest shots by Gary Glitter and new computer-enhanced videos featuring narration by "Jimmy" that served to tie together the songs.
Most of the songs from "Quadrophenia" are meant to reflect and elaborate upon Jimmy's angst, which is also to be understood as an identity crisis brought on with an overidentification with the rock group the Who and its four members (Townshend, Daltrey, Entwistle and the late, great drummer, Keith Moon), hence QUADrophenia. The title is also a play on schizophrenia, although to my knowledge Townshend has never explained why he didn't call it "QuadroPHRENia."
Unfortunately, few of the Who's best or most popular songs are from the original "Quadrophenia" double album, which makes Townshend's choice of staging this album in its entirety and to the near-total omission of the group's other material all the more perverse.
The show, however, was great. Daltrey looked adorable as ever and sang almost as well, and in character. Dressed in a black suit, Townshend looked more like the book editor that he is when he is not engaging in his hobby as rock star, but he sang his parts with serious intent. He confined himself mostly to acoustic guitar except for a few wildly greeted electric solos near the end of the night, leaving the bulk of the electric work to his brother Simon Townshend, who has joined the band for this tour. Bassist Entwistle was as rock-solid a bottom as ever, and Ringo Starr's spawn Zak Starkey did the best that could be expected of anyone attempting to fill the impossibly large shoes of Keith Moon.
This was the penultimate show of this short tour of the Northeast. It is as good a bet as any that this will be the last time the Who performs as the Who. Many have gone broke, however, buying tickets to the Who's "farewell" concerts. If it is to be their last tour, then TED, as Townshend called it (for Townshend, Entwistle and Daltrey), is going out in a blaze of rock 'n' roll glory.
[This review originally appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on Nov. 20, 1996. Copyright Seth Rogovoy 1996. All rights reserved.]
Seth Rogovoy
rogovoy@berkshire.net
music news, interviews, reviews, et al.
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