I have heard said, probably as advice to me, "Nobody likes an angry old man". After seeing the Who this summer of 2000, I can safely say, not so. There were three angy old men on stage (well one angry old man, the other two, old, but glad to be there) and I loved 'em! And that anger is okay. If the anger is all about Pete Townshend "keeping his edge", and that edge translates to age-lessness, then let Pete rant all he wants. Pete's pissed but not boring.

Now I know all this but initially, I was not going to see The Who this summer. I thought the same thing about the Who live as alot of people "it's not really the Who, blah, blah, blah". So I was making plans to go to the annual "Las Vegas Grind" 60s band gathering and booze it up for cheap fest. Well, all it took was for my car to breakdown (very expesively breakdown) and everything to change. It was the long Fourth of July weekend and I needed to do something! Well wouldn't you know it, the Who were playing a gig that weekend practically in my backyard. So 2 hours before showtime it is decided, my wife and I are going to see the Who! Little did I know it at the time, I would be glad everything went the way it did.

And what we got was possibly the best show of their tour (Tweeter Center, Mansfield, MA). So, okay, Pete did not smash his guitar for this show. It didn't matter. Anger was what smashing the guitar was all about. And there was a moment a few songs into their set where Pete showed us a little of that temper. Pete's guitar would not stay in tune. A very frustrasted Pete walk's up to the microphone and says "This guitar's f*cked". The audience starts to chant "Smash it! Smash it!". Pete comes back with "If I do it, it'll be for ME, not for YOU!" The very real threat of smashing it was enough.

Okay now, lets stop right here and make a list of what a perfect Who show for the year 2000 would be. (I know these kind of lists drive Pete bananas!) Pete plays electric all night, check. A fanastic drummer with a Moon-like feel, check. Roger and John to be in fine form, check. The Who playing a "greatest hits" show, with a few surprises, check. Windmills and leaps from Pete, check. Well, that's a good start.

Okay back to the night. Pete did play electric, but he was playing better than I have ever heard or seen him before. Some of his rhythm-leads were some of the best rock guitar work I had ever witnessed. Pete seemed to be posessed by a few moments of the set where he was playing for himself. He could give a monkey's if we were there at all. Fine by me.

Zak Starkey, Ringo Starr's son, was on the drums for the evening. And did he bang the sh*t out of them! What do you want from a kid who was taught by Keith Moon himself. But Zak is more than Moon. He also possesses his father's control. He never got sloppy and never tightened up. He is the perfect drummer for the Who at this moment in their career, period.

And the man who invented modern rock bass, John Entwistle seemed happy to play his bass - and that he did. This man is NEVER off. I did notice John seemed to need help singing "My Wife", his only lead vocal, with Roger singing the lead with him. I suspect a sore throat and that is why John did not perform the crowd favorite "Boris the Spider".

Roger's voice was in tip-top shape as was his muscles which made me think this guy cannot be 56!!! Roger seemed a little rattled after a mistake was made in the transistion of "Naked Eye" to "See Me, Feel Me" to "Listening to You". He tried to explain what had happened to the audience but was only stopped by Pete shouting, "Don't f*cking explain to them". It sounds a bit nasty now, but it was a very funny moment. John "Rabbit" Bundrick rounded out the band with tasty Hammond organ reminiscent of the Mod scene bands (the Who being one) of the 60s.

Back in high school, alot of us kids used to take a Pete Townshend interview as law - a reading from the book of rock and roll. Then after reading more and more and more interviews I got the feeling he might be f*cking with us! Well now Pete can f*ck with you almost instantly online at PeteTownshend.com. All kidding aside, Pete's website is a great way to follow the tour with regular entries by Pete into his tour diary. Check it after you've seen them and you just might see yourself! There's a section with Pete's video diaries which can be viewed using Quicktime or RealPlayer (the photos on this page are from the video diaries). Get Pete's thoughts straight from the source. And if they are on their way to your town, and you are undecided on whether to attend, go to the website. Remember, if I got tickets 2 hours before the show, you probably can too.

Here's the Who's set list for July 3rd, Tweeter Center, Mansfield, MA.

I Can't Explain
Substitute
Anyway Anyhow Anywhere
I Don't Even Know Myself
My Wife
Baba O'Riley
Relay
Bargain
Naked Eye
See Me, Feel Me
Listening to You
I'm One
Pinball Wizard (stopped and restarted by Pete)
The Real Me
Who Are You
Magic Bus
Behind Blue Eyes
You Better You Bet
5:15
Won't Get Fooled Again
-encore-
The Kids are Alright
Let's See Action
My Generation