I rather liked the 1989 tour. Three-hour shows, complete TOMMYs, lots
of rare material (MAWTSH, TMOA, lots of solo songs, etc.).
Bolton was the weak link. He was merely adequate. He couldn't
impress on lead guitar when everybody wanted Pete. If, for example,
DAVID GILMOUR had been the lead guitarist, no one would have
complained that Pete wasn't playing enough electric.
Walsh might also have been a better choice.
I find it hard to believe Bolton was ROGER's choice. Roger had been
so adamant about firing Kenney Jones as "the wrong drummer for The
Who," that I find it hard to believe he would push for Bolton, who
IMHO was even less of a fit.
As usual, the grumpy old man (of 44 at the time!) didn't want to play
electric lead guitar. He had to be obstinate and let everyone know
that, despite how much he hates the Who, he still would be the martyr
by being a company man, begrudgingly joining the tour ('I’ll do it,
but I'm only playing acoustic and we're going to promote the Pete
Townshend catalogue, especially my new release, Iron Man, currently
available on Atlantic records and tapes!'). And of course, I don't
blame him. It's a lot of work (relatively speaking) to travel around
North America playing stadium shows away from your family, so you
might as well get the maximum amount of $$$...which is another reason
why the Who toured in 1989, despite blaming John's drunken-sailor
spending habits. Pete needed to tour to promote Iron Man; he saw how
much Roger Waters' tour grossed compared to the Waters-less Pink Floyd
tour. Having the brand name on the tour (the Who/Pink Floyd vs. Pete
Townshend/ Roger Waters) is invaluable. Just look at how many yahoos
go out to see so-called "Lynyrd Skynyrd", whose only remaining
original member is their sound man from 1974 (I exaggerate, but I
don't mean to offend...I understand the fun in seeing a cover band as
much as seeing the original band). Anyway, in 1989 the touring Who
made financial sense if not musical sense (but again, I embrace
nostalgia tours and need no new music or particular purpose when
seeing the Who live). So as much as our hero swooped in to save JAE
from debtor’s prison, he also got his own well-deserved pay at the
same time. More power to him….and I'd pay all over again. I mean,
man, I was in college and didn't have two nickels to rub together and
I paid $150 for ONE ticket to see Tommy at Radio City. Talk about a
loser fanatic...I bought ONE ticket because that's all I could afford
(barely) and drove into the city alone....pathetic, but I'd probably
do it again. Come to think of it, I had more spare cash at 20 than I
do at 43.....damn kids! Anyway, I digress....
And the best part of that tour was that our Pete, just as expected,
was stubborn in the beginning by playing only acoustic and then by the
end of the tour he was shredding his fingernails with the guitar
strings and impaling his hand on the whammy bar...like old times. And
there were some great Who moments on that tour....think about when
just the three of them came out after intermission and did some rare
songs...Tattoo, Maryanne, etc.....good stuff. Pete also liked (and
still likes) to really jam out on songs that he didn't write (Hey Joe,
Summertime Blues, Shakin' All Over, Young Man Blues, the Quiet One,
etc.). These are songs on which he plays some of his best guitar.
And our Pete...we don't really know him at all, but in a way we know
him all too well. Like the apostle who shares his name, he still
denies....he denies that he likes the Who, he denies that we fans
affect him in some small way, he denies that he's interested in
Roger's current endeavor, but he wants to be involved again with the
great Who and the great music they (and he) created...like
Quadrophenia. He’s rightfully proud and wants it all back again, but
he needs to direct and control it. And why not? No one else is
better suited to be at the master panel of the Who. No other general
can better lead this regiment into battle…no one else can unleash the
fury of the artillery at his command. All he needs to do is pick up
his weapon and re-enlist!
Sorry for the rambling....you won't hear from me again for months!
T
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D
PS - I need to be more active over at Odds and Sods.