Pete's ears

["Kimberly R. Wilson" <krwilson@weir.net>]

Hello, I was wanting to convene the fine readership of this Digest in
order to seek input on an issue which is important to me.  Does anyone
know for sure whether or not Pete's hearing problem prevents him from
playing electric guitar as often as he used to?  When Roger Daltrey did
his "celebration" thing in 1994, I was able to meet him backstage.  He
told me flat-out that Pete was full of shit and that he was using the
ear thing as an excuse.  He said that Pete has never lost the ability to
play electric guitar the way he used to; it's that Pete merely doesn't
want to.

	Pete, of course, hedges a bit.  In a letter he wrote to the Naked Eye
addressing the issue, Pete says his hearing problem "contributes" to the
decision to lay off electric -- but other (non-health) reasons exist as
well, including, presumably, personal choice. And of course, we all know
that he still dabbles with the electric guitar here and there on
stage.   

	Does anyone here know whether Pete can actually hear the tones of an
electric guitar anymore?  In addition, did his hearing situation
contribute to his decision to use a Fender instead of his trusty Les
Paul back in 1980? Relatedly, is that also why the volume of the shows
were not as loud? 

	And finally, if his hearing situation had nothing to do with his
abandonment of the Les Paul, why did he shun the instrument?  Anyone
know anything?