MSG shows

Some thoughts I had on the MSG shows.  (I flew back to New York from San
Francisco and saw the shows on Saturday and Sunday nights.  Unfortunately, I
didn't have the chance to make it to the Digest gatherings)

1.  Overall, fantastic!  Wow!  I thought the entire show, from the videos to
the Quad music to the encores was just great.  Sunday night, everything
seemed to especially gel, and Sunday was without the technical problems that
Saturday had.  It was worth the money I spent to get there.  My 40 year old
cousin went with me on Saturday, and only had a vague knowledge of the
group--she loved the show.

2.  I enjoyed Phil Daniels a lot.  I thought his narration really added
something to the show.  I don't think he slowed things down at all.

3.  Roger and Pete seemed to be having a love-fest, especially during the
encores.  I'm not sure what happened, but for some reason they seem to be
getting along extremely well right now.  (Think it will last?)

4.  Zak did a very good job.  I agree with Fang that Steve Luongo probably
would have been better (he blew me away at the JAE show in S.F. a few months
ago).  However, Zak more than held his own.  Clearly better than Simon or
Kenney.

5.  Some of the T-shirts they were selling said on the back:  "Quadrophenia,
North America, 1996," which is a further evidence that they plan to take the
show on the road.  I hope so.

6.  Gary Glitter and Billy Idol weren't really annoying like I thought they
would be.  

7.  Yeah, I wish Pete would play electric.  I think he can play electric if
he wants to.  But I really enjoyed his acoustic playing this time, especially
on WGFA.

8.  JAE's solo on 5:15 was one of the highlights of the show.  It proves once
again that he is the best bass player in the history of rock.  (His playing
skills haven't deteriorated in the slightest.)

9.  Best of all, the Who showed that they could get together and really do
something new, significant, and refreshing in the 1990s.  This was 180
degrees different from their 1989 "re-hash the hits and make the money" tour.
 This version of Quad needs to go on the road.  It shouldn't have just a
brief 7 performance (1 in England and 6 in NY) life.  

Jon Karesh
Foster City, CA