What did you think?
The Who have seen better days. Certainly nothing like the energy Springsteen had last year, but still a decent show. I would have started off with “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” How cool would it have been to have had that intro emerge out of the darkness with the guitar riffs setting off the pyrotechnics?
I thought it was a great show. Those guys are my mom’s age, and I’m no spring chicken.
Greatest live rock band in history.
I liked it a lot. Daltrey’s voice isn’t bad at all, and they seemed to be having a ton of fun.
I like and respect the Who, but that was awful. The vocals, in particular, were horrible. Daltrey has no upper register left and could barely stay in key. Townshend sounded even worse. Roger and Pete cannot sing in harmony any more, or even in unsion. They were huffing and puffing like old guys going up the stairs. "They sang “Who Are You” like they were yelling at the pizza guy. They could barely move either. Daltrey looked like he was going to keel over. They were a sad shadow of what they used to be.
The music itself still sounded tight, though. At least they haven’t forgotten how to lay their instruments.
Should’ve got Green Day, or someone fairly current.
Nothing against The Who (I like them), but they’re aging a little.
I thought the show was amazing and it was great to hear the crowd singing along with me. (smile)
I was jumping around and banging my head - Good times.
Great show and perfect halftime choice.
Thought there would be more old songs like My Generation, it was good but I’m a fan.
In case anyone is wondering about the other guys:
Zak Starkey - drums (yes, Ringo’s son)
Pino Palladino - bass
John “Rabbit” Bundrick - keyboards
Simon Townshend - guitar (Pete’s brother)
As a fan I’ll be generous and give them a “B”. If only they had got the halftime show earlier–even 5 years ago and they would have come off much better. Oh well, they got their chance.
A twelve-minute gig is a terrible handicap for them. Even when he’s in good voice, Roger always takes a couple of songs to warm up. Same for Pete…he doesn’t start cranking on guitar until he gets a sweat up, but you could tell he was trying.
The light show was great, though. Loved the windmilling silhouettes on the stage.
Where’s all that child rape we were promised?
I was lucky enough to see The Who about a month before Entwistle died, and even then, they seemed past their prime. This performance was just embarassing…and they were my favorite band when I was a kid and they still are. They were just never the same after they lost Keith.
Also, at the end it looked like Pete was ready to smash his guitar, but at the last second calmly put it back on the stand. He INVENTED that, so why hold back?
Awful. Embarrassing. And I’m a big “Who” fan.
I blame Janet Jackson.
Given the game’s on CBS, it felt like one big CSI promo. Remember that commercial near the beginning of the game, where those two basketball players said “Who’s that?” about Larry Bird? Millions of young football watchers just had the same reaction to the halftime show.
Zzzzzzzz.
The vocals sounded awful. Get somebody under 40 next year.
Another long-term Who fan checking in - this was better than expected. Good musical performances, solid singing by Townshend (not something that’s ever been a strong point) an entertaining light show, and a couple of legends having a good time. I wouldn’t have picked them to do the show, but they gave it a solid effort.
With the exception of one cringe-worthy sour note from Daltrey, I think they did a good job for AARP-worthy rockers.
Good light show. Can’t say anything nice about The Who except that they weren’t awful.
They’ve run out of rockers from the (and in their) 60s, so they have to go younger next year. And that’s a real problem. Who do they get that could appeal to a large mainstream audience? There’s a thread in which people are posting that Them Crooked Vultures were good on SNL last night. That’s incomprehensible. They may be rock veterans but they were awful in a way The Who could never be. Where is the middle course between unlistenable new rock and unlistenable old rock?
The stage was freaking awesome.
No fans on the field, was that because the stage was so big? The stage and light show were great. I wonder how much a band gets paid for that gig? I guess not as much as a normal show but not pocket change either.
If they’re desperate, they could probably roll out ZZ Top.
It was funny how they played CSI songs when the game was on CBS.
Maybe it’s long enough past the wardrobe malfunction to bring back a female singer or younger artists.
I’m just happy there wasn’t a wardrobe malfunction this year.
After getting a screenful of “Boss Crotch” last year. I second that, Magiver.