Re: Question about the film version of "Tommy"

[Rich Bogovich <bogie@itis.com>]

Cheryl (I wonder if she's the surnameless Cheryl who Barnes thanks at the
beginning of Maximum R&B?) wrote:

>I remember once hearing (or reading) that while Elton John's regular
>band (Dee Murray, Nigel Olsson, etc.) played "Pinball Wizard" on the
>album, The Who themselves played backup to Elton during the movie.  The
>tracks do sound different.  Does anyone have definitive information on
>this subject?  Thanks!

Here's what the blurb on page 49 of the Barnes/Townshend book says:  "Pete
Townshend couldn't get into 'prancing around on stage pretending to play
with an unplugged guitar.'  So the Who had several tons of amplifiers set up
and played live for filming the 'Pinball Wizard' sequence.  [snip]  Despite
playing live for the cameras, this is the one song which Townshend did not
produce, and on which the Who did not play.  Elton John's own band played on
it and his record producer Gus Dudgeon produced it."

There's a little more info on page 51, but it still doesn't answer your
question fully (i.e., IS that entirely The Who's version heard on the film
itself?).

Bogie