Greg Kelton, Bec Gill
MORE than 40 years ago, The Who blew apart Centennial Hall with a guitar-smashing, drum-kicking spectacle.
In those days, the band spent more money on replacing equipment than they earned.
The Who's auto-destructive days are long gone and drummer Keith Moon, as well as bass guitarist John Entwistle, are no longer with us.
But Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, in their first performance in Adelaide since that night in 1968, show the new Who is still the power band it always has been.
From the opening riff of the band's first hit I Can't Explain to the famous Daltrey scream in Won't Get Fooled Again, the band gave the big crowd at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre two hours of nostalgia aided by a superb light show which showed images of Swinging London in the 1960s and scenes from Quadrophenia.
The concert was virtually a greatest hits package ranging from the days of My Generation through The Seeker, Who Are You and Behind Blue Eyes, to their last studio album Endless Wire and nobody appeared to be disappointed.
Drummer Zak Starkey – son of Beatle Ringo Starr – is the perfect skins man for The Who, he was taught to play drums by Keith Moon, while session bassist Pino Palladino steadies the rhythmn section just like Entwistle did.
They are complemented by Townshend's brother Simon on guitar and the long-serving John "Rabbit" Bundrick on keyboards.
Late yesterday afternoon, when the pair arrived at Adelaide Airport via charter jet from Queensland, Daltrey made light of the band's history.
"We ruin lots of stuff!" he laughed.
Townshend hopped into a separate vehicle.
They arrived less than three hours before they were due on stage.
