Re: The Who Digest Vol 3 Num 74

[amck@eden.com (Alan McKendree)]

At 3:45 3/15/96, The Who Mailing List wrote:
>Date: Tue, 15 Mar 1994 09:25:31 -0458
>From: cuda340@tribeca.ios.com (Tesco Vee)
>Subject: Re: Entwistle at Milwaukee
>
>>The audience was about 90% male.
>
>        I noticed the same thing at the two JE shows in NYC;  I even
>predicted that that would be the case.  I've also seen other accounts on
>this list of this being true of other shows.  Does anyone have a take on
>why this is so, and also, while I'm at it, why is this mailing list 90%
>male as well?

First, I've noticed that the less large, strong, and/or aggressive one is,
the less fun one is likely to have at loud and raucous rack shows,
especially general admission.  This would tend to skew the audiences for
live shows to the male.  Earlier, as others have noted, the Who were
apparently the favorite band of the "boy's club" of mods, where the guys
dressed up as much or more for each other than for the girls, as a means of
gaining status, and girls themselves were seen as interchangeable and
sometimes unnecessary accessories.  I do think there's something to the
proposition that males are generally (with exceptions to be found on both
sides of the issue) louder and more aggressive than females, and The Who's
music was always among the loudest and more aggressive.

The songs are always from a male perspective (really, girls on the
list...do you identify with "I want to cut myself and see my blood, I wanna
come home all covered in mud" and "you say she's a virgin? well I'm gonna
be the first in"?) and even the bravado of "I can do anything, any way I
choose, I can live anyhow" and the cosmically-scaled revenge motif of "I
Can See for Miles" seem to me to be more male-oriented than female.  "I'd
pay any price just to win you..."?  do females typically have this
all-or-nothing compulsion to achieve an objective?

Unfortunately, the inspirational/spiritual side of the music might be less
apparent to those who are turned off by the decibels and the bluster -- and
those people miss the positive side of the music's sheer exultation in the
life force.

This is just my semi-stream-of-consciousness musings, feel free to comment
or argue me into the corner on them; and let me join in saying I'm heartily
happy to see/meet female Who fans and read their postings.  Things can get
pretty boring in the He-man's Boy's Club...:-).

**************

At 3:45 3/15/96, The Who Mailing List wrote:
>I have the "real" interview that was broadcast on the radio on a Westwood One
>promo vinyl set. What Pete said in the interview, was NOT what he was
>"quoted" in the book (which uses the radio show interview as it's source...)
>
>-wf

So...what _did_ he say?

**************


Alan

Maybe someday a man will come to you on a flaming pie and say "the Beatles
are the best musicians in human history". If he does, listen, cause he's
fucking right on.   elevator56@aol.com on alt.music.who (?!)

"When I'm on stage, it's not like bein' possessed...it's just...*I* *do*
*my* *job*."                 - Pete Townshend