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Re: Lifehouse





The Who's Townshend To Unveil Follow-Up To 'Tommy'



LONDON (Reuters) - Guitar-bashing rock legend Pete Townshend has finished a
visionary rock opera he began nearly 30 years ago which foresaw the birth of
the Internet.

``Lifehouse'' will be heard for the first time on BBC Radio 3 on December 5,
the BBC said Monday.

The former guitarist in the rock band The Who began work on the futuristic
epic in 1971, two years after ``Tommy'' -- his story of a messianic deaf,
dumb and blind boy -- elevated him from rocker to cult composer.

Townshend, 54, said the new play with music was ``the story of a vast global
network'' which he dubbed ``The Grid.''

``It is extraordinary. He was almost hitting the nail on the head back in
1971,'' said Kate Rowland, head of radio drama at Radio 3.

An early version was performed in 1971 but failed to get sufficient feedback
from the audience, so Townshend shelved it.

``'Lifehouse' is an apocalyptic journey set across the industrial wastes of
Britain on the last day of the millennium,'' the BBC said in a statement.

``The play addresses the spiritual consequences of a move away from physical
human congregation to digital networking and the power of music.''

Townshend, who has grown from a mop-headed music icon of the '70s to a
balding '90s composer, said that at the end of the '60s technology and rock
had gone hand in hand.

``In the midst of all this uneasy anticipation, I wrote a play,'' he said.

``If, in the future, life itself ever had to be experienced through art --
let's say because of a necessary curfew to avoid the effects of radiation or
pollution -- a vast global network would be required.''

``Lifehouse'' will feature many of Townshend's most memorable songs such as
``Won't Get Fooled Again,'' ``Baba O'Riley'' and ``The Song is Over.''



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Good things come to those who wait...


Andy
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