Who's smartest?

[Bogie3200@aol.com]

I think it would be interesting to find out which member of The Who people
think is the smartest (particularly those of you whose answer ISN'T Pete).
 As for me, I'm uncertain; it may depend on what smartness means to people.
 Is it a very subjective quality, or its it something that can be measured
more objectively, such as by an IQ test?

I can make a case for any of them:

PETE:  Known as one of rock's best interviews.  The only member had an
intellectual journal devoted to him (the two issues of the late and lamented
Sparks).  Certainly the "deepest" and most analytical.  The group's visionary
and philosopher.

ROGER:  Known much more for lung power than brain power, but I've never heard
him say anything dumb, and he doesn't constantly contradict himself like
Pete.  My writing sometimes resembles the high-falutin' way that Pete talks,
but when I talk I think I sound (or at aspire to sound) like Roger--very
common sensical.  And common sense is certainly a component of overall
smartness.  Roger seems to be the member who lives Baba's famous advice,
"Don't worry, be happy" and it takes a certain amount of intelligence to
recognize all the good in life and to avoid dwelling on the bad.  Roger might
be the wisest of the group--he definitely seems to have sidestepped the
substance abuse problems that have plagued Pete and Keith.

JOHN:  When I've heard him talk on the radio or on stage or (a huge thrill)
in person, his wit has made me laugh perhaps more than that of the other
members, and quick, clever, intelligent humor ranks very high among smartness
criteria.  He also restrains his emotions, like Spock on Star Trek, and I
consider that to generally be an intellectual virtue.

KEITH:  Although known most for his wild, dumb, and goofy antics, hearing
stuff like "Life With The Moons" proved that his humor often operated on the
brilliant level of Monty Python.  And despite his untimely death, his
recognition that life should be lived to its fullest ought to score him a few
smartness points.

KENNEY:  Um, I haven't heard him talk very often.  But he was smart not to
try to imitate Keith, as well as for only releasing a solo 45 and not an
entire LP.  Those of you who think The Who was rapidly deteriorating in the
1980s should acknowledge that it was intelligent for Kenney to get out when
he did (true, he may have been pushed out, but I'll bet he had the legal
authority to stay if he had really wanted to).

LITTLE BILLY:  Despite being overweight, clearly the smartest of the bunch.

Rich B.