LA Times Article - Pete and Roger are alright - 7/20/03

["O'Neal, Kevin W." <Kevin.ONeal@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks to David Barling on O&S for the following article.
Kevin in VT

From: "David M. Barling" <dmbarling@xxxxxxx>

LA Times 7/20/03

Pop Eye
by Steve Hochman

Pete and Roger are alright

It's been a somber year for Pete
Townshend and Roger Daltrey, starting
last summer with the death of their Who co-founder, John Entwistle, and
continuing
with Townshend being charged with,
then cleared of, downloading child
pornography.  That doesn't mean the
surviving members will quietly overlook
the 40th anniversary of the year the
band first moved beyond performing
R&B covers and started playing
Townshend compositions.  This is, after
all, the band that once held the Guiness
record for the loudest act in the world.

There's talk now of a tour, as well as
a show in October celebrating what
would have been Entwistle's 59th birthday.
At the center of the planning is the first
DVD release of "The Kids Are Alright,"
the 1979 documentary often ranked
among the best rock films ever, alongside
the Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night" and
the Band's "The Last Waltz."

The film will be available Sept. 30 in two packages: a double-disc special
edition
featuring a bonus disc titled "Won't Get
Filmed Again," and a single-disc with
the film and alternate commentary tracks.
The bonus disc will include interviews
with Daltrey and director Jeff Stein, who
initiated the project in 1970, when he
was a 17- year-old Who fanatic who
approached Townshend backstage
at a concert with the idea.  It also includes
full footage, totaling 100 minutes, from
six cameras used to film the 1978
performances of "Baba O'Riley" and
"Won't Get Fooled Again" that were
centerpieces from the film.

Entwistle's death preceeding the DVD
release is a bit of deja vu.  The film's
original release came on the heels of
Keith Moon's 1978 death from an
accidental overdose of prescription
medication.

Stein says that although he had
screened the film for Moon just two
days before he died, he resisted
temptation to change the film in any
way to make a Moon memorial.  And
he says he has no problem with
Townshend and Daltrey continuing
to perform as the Who.

"it's their band," he says.  "People still
want to see them.  People still need to
see them, and people get off when
they see them."