Review: THE WHO at Schottenstein Center

When the Who, a 1990 inductee to the Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame, announced their current "The Who Hits Back" tour, the response of many "fans" on one website was a hard pass.

"Saw them a couple of years back, and Roger (Daltrey's) voice was (crap)," one fan wrote.
"These guys are in their late 70s. It's time to hang it up, lads" wrote another.

Those who stayed away from the Schottenstein Center on Oct. 9 missed one heck of a show.

The surviving members of the Who, Daltrey, 78, and Pete Townshend, 77, released an electrifying 22-song, two-and-a-half hour set of classic rock that would silence most of those critics. Performing with members of the Columbus Symphony, the band showed they could outlast most of their far-younger peers.

The fan misgivings are understandable. One of the last times the Who made an appearance in the Capital City, Daltrey lost his voice late into the set and Townshend seemed aloof and unwilling to take over lead vocals.

The band that performed on Oct. 9 however bore no resemblance to the one that performed that night in 2006. Daltrey's voice was nearly as strong as it had been in the 1990s and Townshend was engaged, intense, and sporadically amusing.

After making a few observations about his pants being a little tight, Townshend quipped, "my trousers will not affect my performance."

Without bassist John Entwistle (who died in 2002) and drummer Keith Moon (who died in 1978), Townshend and Daltrey surrounded themselves with a stellar band including guitarist Simon Townshend (Pete's younger brother), keyboardist Loren Gold, bassist Jon Button, drummer Zak Starkey (son of Beatle drummer Ringo Starr), and backup vocalist Billy Nicholls.

The addition of traveling musicians Katie Jacoby (violin), cellist Audrey Snyder and keyboardist Emily Marshall, and the Columbus Symphony seemed to bring out an extra element to the show. The Who's orchestra conductor Keith Levenson kept the 40-piece orchestra in tune with Townshend's windmills and Daltrey's soaring vocals.

The show drew heavily from the band's rock operas Tommy (1969) and Quadrophenia (1973). The Who's first six songs were from Tommy, starting with the overture and closing with "We're Not Gonna Take It." The band then performed its classic hits, "Who Are You," "Eminence Front," and "Join Together" as well as "Ball and Chain" from the 2019 Who album.

After Townshend jokingly shooed the orchestra away, the band launched into its hit catalogue, performing "Relay," "Another Tricky Day," "Won't Get Fooled Again," and the intense "Behind Blue Eyes."

The orchestra then returned to the stage for the last third of the show. Those who worried the symphony might dull the Who's sharp edges need only to listen to Daltrey's scream on "Won't Get Fooled Again," or Townshend's delivery of "I'm One."

Daltrey's legendary shriek on the aforementioned track went like an incendiary bomb, leaving nothing but smoke trails and destruction behind.

A member of the touring group said of Townshend, "He's very intense and very interesting. He doesn't suffer fools gladly." This became apparent in the opening of "I'm One."

After strumming through the song's intro, Townshend abruptly halted the song and growled at one of the mixing board operators, "Yes, I am talking to (expletive) you! Let's start it again!" The guitarist's anger subsided and he delivered a touching version of one of the high points of the Quadrophenia album. Towards the end of the song, Levenson suddenly cut off the orchestra, allowing Townshend to add an extra stanza to the song, which went something to the extent of "I just want to make this song special/and not sound like (expletive)."

Although the setlist had a few notable absences -- "Long Live Rock," "My Generation," "Magic Bus," and "This Song is Over" to mention just four - it felt complete. The Who wound down its performance with a hymn-like reading of "Love Reign O'er Me" and a scorching version of "Baba O'Reilly" with Jacoby taking centerstage with a blistering violin solo.

Perhaps with a wink of irony, the Who closed off its show with Mose Allison's "Young Man Blues:" In the old days Everybody stepped back when a young man walked by. But you know nowadays It's the old man/Who's got all the money/And a young man Ain't got nothin' in the world these days.

Many dismiss Townshend and Daltry as old men trying to pass themselves off as that angry, young man. However, there's something inherently beautiful in watching an artist in their late 70s still able to do what they did when they were younger and still loving to do it.

TURNING THE PAGE

Steven Page, the former front man of the Barenaked Ladies, set the classical music vibe by performing with guitarist Craig Northey and cellist Kevin Fox. He opened the concert with a solid nine-song set that featured five BNL tunes.

Although at first glance Page seemed to be an odd pairing with Townshend and Daltrey, the singer primed the audience with a cache of well-crafted music. Throughout the set, Page wore the goofy grin of a guy who couldn't believe he was the opening act for the Who.

Page opened with "It's All Been Done," and offered a smattering of Barenaked Ladies songs including the overlooked gem "Jane" and "What a Good Boy" before closing out his set with crowd favorites, a raucous "The Old Apartment" and the intense "Brian Wilson." Sprinkled among the songs with his old band, Page exposed the audience to his solo career with songs like "A New Shore" from Page One, "The Golden Age of Doubling Down" from his recent release Excelsior, and "Feelgood Summer" and "Gravity" from Discipline: Heal Thyself Part II.

The last time he was in central Ohio, Page was playing the 31 West Ballroom in Newark, which holds no more than 500 seats. It was nice to see such a talent back on stage in a larger venue.

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