The Fat Angel Sings

The final night of the North American tour, was when The Who took to the stage of the Capital Center in Largo, Maryland before another sold-out house. This show, like the preceding show in Philadelphia two nights prior, was recorded by the King Biscuit Flower Hour. These historical recordings have been the source of collector confusion and the subject of debate for nearly 35 years. While PA system issues are apparent and the band is struggling with problems both on and off the stage, here for the first time ever, are the nearly complete direct recordings from this final night of The North American tour, including all the Quadrophenia songs performed that evening. Much like the Philadelphia gig two nights prior, this performance kicks off with a double dose of primal Who, first with the opener “I Can’t Explain” followed by a ferocious “Summertime Blues” to warm things up. Next up is another enjoyably expanded version of John Entwhistle’s “My Wife,” before they cap off this initial segment with the signature song, “My Generation.” Both feature impressive instrumental exchanges between Townshend, Entwhistle and Moon, with the latter taken at a furious tempo and pummeling in its delivery.

The next hour is devoted exclusively to Quadrophenia or as Daltrey jokingly mentions in his introduction, “what’s left of it.” The band had been trimming it down since the tour began and the opening “I Am The Sea” tape sequences had been problematic. On this final night in America, they forego it completely and instead launch directly into “The Real Me” to kick it off, followed by “The Punk And The Godfather.” As the storyline progresses, the crowd continues to surge toward the stage, which doesn’t go unnoticed by the band. Several times during Quadrophenia both Daltrey and Townshend implore the audience to relax and move back as fans were being crushed against the stage. After addressing this, Townshend continues with his introduction to “I’m One.” Similar in structure to “Behind Blue Eyes,” this begins as a solo vehicle for Townshend’s voice and guitar alone, before the entire group kicks in to dramatic effect. The remainder of the Quadrophenia material features plenty of great ensemble playing, but the problems continue in front of the stage and one can sense the band is distracted. The performance of “5:15” is quite good and a marathon take of “Drowned” never loses its energy. “Bell Boy,” again features Keith Moon altering his lyrics to recall the hotel room destroyed in Montreal earlier that week. Despite the technical limitations of the equipment, which are more prominent during this latter part of the Quadrophenia presentation, the band concludes with a fine performance of “Dr. Jimmy” followed by a majestic “Love, Reign O’er Me” that has Daltrey’s raw vocals echoing throughout the mammoth hall. It’s a strong finale to a difficult performance. As the audience roars, Daltrey addresses them in regards to this being their last night in America. He mentions the ups and downs of this tour and makes a point to debunk then prominent press rumors that this would be The Who’s last tour. As if to hammer this message home, they launch into a powerful “Won’t Get Fooled Again.” As icing on the cake, they cap it all off with two classic tracks from Townshend’s earlier magnum opus, Tommy. First by way of a frenetic rendition of “Pinball Wizard,” followed by a wild finale of “See Me Feel Me” to end the night and the 1973 North American tour.

King Biscuit Introduction

Setlist:

I Can’t Explain Summertime Blues My Wife My Generation Quadrophenia Introduction The Real Me I’m One Sea And Sand Drowned Bell Boy Doctor Jimmy Won’t Get Fooled Again Pinball Wizard See Me Feel Me

Roger Daltrey – vocals, harmonica; John Entwistle – vocals, bass; Keith Moon – vocals, drums; Pete Townshend – vocals, guitar