Pete Townshend - Let My Love Open The Door (E Cola Mix)

Pete Townshend does a pretty interesting version of "Let My Love Open the Door" on a VH1 awards show in 1996. The song comes from Townshend's 1980 album, Empty Glass."Let My Love Open the Door" has been used in many films, most notably Jerry Maguire, and even a few t.v. series.

The Who - Sparks Live at Leeds

All I need to say about this version of "Sparks" is Live at Leeds and you'll know that this is a legendary performance. The concert was recorded 41 years ago today, February 14, 1970 and released as an album on May 16. Nicknamed the "brown bomber" for its simple album jacket, which resembles a bootleg, the CD was The Who's first live album. Gibson.com has an article here which looks back on the recording of Live at Leeds. For many this is the greatest live album ever and is part of the reason The Who are considered to be such a great live act.

Although one performance does not make or break someone in my opinion, The Who have had decades of great live showings on their resume. Live at Leeds is clearly one of those occasions that The Who were aobve and beyond everyone else.

Roger Daltrey Interview

This is a good, lengthy interview with Roger Daltrey conducted by Dave Gorman of Absolute Radio. Daltrey touches on quite a few topics, most notably the upcoming concerts at the Royal Albert Hall for the Teenage Cancer Trust Charity.

Robert Plant and the Band of Joy - 12 Gates to the City (Washington)

Washington D.C. was the site for this performance by Robert Plant and the Band of Joy on February 2. "12 Gates to the City" is quite different from what most people expect from Robert Plant, but he nails it perfectly.

Roger Daltrey Playing with Solo Band at TCT

It's now been confirmed through The Who's official website that Roger Daltrey will be using his solo band for next month's performance of Tommy as part of the Teenage Cancer Trust benefit show. That band consists of Simon Townshend on rhythm guitar and vocals, Frank Simes (pictured with Roger above) on lead guitar, Jon Button on bass, Loren Gold on keyboards and Scott Devours on drums. I would imagine there will also be some special guests. I like this band a lot, particularly Simon and Frank Simes.

Robert Plant and The Band Of Joy - Cindy, I'll Marry You Someday - DAR Hall - Washington, DC - 2/1/11

"Cindy. I'll Marry You Someday" comes off of the album put out by Robert Plant and the Band of Joy. Whenever they perform the song in concert, they play it at a faster tempo than what appears on the CD.

Robert Plant & The Band of Joy - Gallows Pole @ House of Blues in Boston

Robert Plant and the Band of Joy perform "Gallows Pole" and take a final bow in the above video from the House of Blues in Boston on January 25.

Robert Plant and The Band of Joy - Please Read The Letter (Beacon Theater)

On Saturday night January 29, Robert Plant and the Band of Joy changed up their setlist at the Beacon Theater. For this show they added "Please Read the Letter," which is off of the 2007 Raising Sand album that Plant did with Allison Krauss.

Robert Plant & The Band of Joy - "Cindy, I'll Marry You Someday" @ Fox Theater in Atlanta

Robert Plant and the Band of Joy performing "Cindy, I'll Marry You Someday" at the Fox Theater in Atlanta on February 5. The beginning of the video has the final moments of Patty Griffin singing "Move Up."

Robert Plant and The Band Of Joy - 12 Gates to the City/Wade in the Water

Robert Plant and the Band of Joy opened up the tour on January 18 in Asheville, N.C. at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium. The video above is the group singing "12 Gates to the City/Wade in the Water."

The Who - Amazing Journey/Sparks 1970 Denmark

So continuing on a thought from my last post that with Roger Daltrey performing Tommy at this year's TCT show and Pete Townshend not taking part, that means that someone else will play "Sparks."

Uh oh, you don't tug on Superman's cape folks! I wonder who Roger has in mind to step in for Pete, could it be Brian May?

So this gave me a reason to post an "Amazing Journey/Sparks" video, which of course I never need any reason to listen to "Sparks."

For this one, we'll travel back to 1970 and Aarhus, Denmark. I don't know how I stumbled upon this one, but I'm glad I did. Although, come to think of it I do consider myself to be a "Sparks" connoisseur so I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised. The "Sparks" portion begins around the 3:15 mark.

Another great version from the "Tommy era!"

The Who News: TCT Announces This Year's Lineup, The Who Touring New Version of Quadrophenia?

Teenage Cancer Trust has announced the line-up for its 11th annual week of music and comedy gigs at the Royal Albert Hall:

Monday 21 March: An evening of comedy with John Bishop, Kevin Bridges and Greg Davies
Tuesday 22 March: Squeeze and The Feeling
Wednesday 23 March: Biffy Clyro
Thursday 24 March: Roger Daltrey performs The Who’s Tommy
Friday 25 March: Beady Eye
Saturday 26 March: Editors
Sunday 27 March: Tinie Tempah

By the way, Beady Eye is Liam Gallagher's new band.

What jumps off the page is that Pete Townshend will not be performing. I have no idea who Roger Daltrey will use as his backing group. Will it be The Who's touring band of Zak Starkey, Pino Palladino and co. or will it be the band that Roger used when he toured in the fall of 2009, which featured Frank Simes and Pete's younger brother Simon, or will it be something entirely different?

I'm expecting some sort of combination with special guests. I would love to make the trip to London to see Roger sing Tommy, especially since it is for such a worthwhile cause. But does this mean without Pete Townshend someone else will play "Sparks?" Those are some big shoes to fill, it better be somebody good!

Daltrey said after the Killing Cancer show last month that The Who wouldn't be doing anything for a while. Pete Townshend's battle with tinnitus has been well-documented and reportedly has gotten worse. But then there is the report in the February 2011 issue of MOJO which says that The Who will be touring later this year with a new production of Quadrophenia and that the album is going to be re-released in expanded form this summer.

Some people on the message board of the band's website are saying that this might be the 5.1 version of Quadrophenia, but I recall reading in the last year or two that Pete had abandoned that project.

We'll see. I first saw The Who during their 1996 Quadrophenia tour. What great, great memories!

John Bonham's Mother Has Died

According to Led-Zeppelin.org, Joan Bonham has passed away at the age of 81 after a long illness. Click this for the full story.

From the article...

"Joan was a singer, most notably one of the principal lead vocalists of The Zimmers, a 40-piece British band originally created by BBC television for a 2007 feature documentary on the conditions and feelings of the elderly, as part of the Power to the People series. In September 2008, the band released its first full-length album Lust for Life. Joan was also a fan of big band music, such as the Benny Goodman, and Harry James bands. She also ran a newsagency business in Hunt End, Redditch, Worcestershire, England."

One other thing that I noticed was that she had three children: John, Deborah and Mick. John, as we all know, passed away in 1980 and Mick died in 2000. Sad, children aren't supposed to pass away before their parents.

My condolences to the Bonham family.

Robert Plant and the Band of Joy at the Beacon Theater - Tangerine

One of the highlights from the concert at the Beacon Theater was Robert Plant and the Band of Joy performing "Tangerine," which of course is from Led Zeppelin's album, Led Zeppelin III. Now if you've read my blog before you know how much I love III so to hear Robert and his new band sing this song was a real treat.

Robert Plant on Letterman

Robert Plant was on with David Letterman last week. I've always found Plant to be a very good interview and this is no exception. One of the things Plant discusses with Letterman is when Led Zeppelin met Elvis Presley. Robert didn't disclose everything that "The King" had to say, though. I've always heard that Elvis asked if the war stories about Zep's partying on the road were true and that the members of Led Zeppelin told him the tales were nothing more than legend.

Plant and his Band of Joy then perform "House of Cards" beginning at the 8:36 mark of the video.

Keith Moon/Pete Townshend Talking

I love YouTube for videos such as the one above, which is a short clip of Pete Townshend and Keith Moon joking around. These guys must have been an absolute riot to have been around. I've never heard of anyone with such an infectious laugh as the one that Keith Moon has!

Pete Townshend Sings "My Generation"

In my last post here, Pete Townshend discussed the fact that he had never sung "My Generation" live. The only instance I can find of Pete singing the song was at a show in Chicago in 2006. Roger was sick and had to leave the stage so Townshend carried on with "My Generation/Cry if You Want."

Pete Townshend Interview

Let's travel back to 1986 and an interview Pete Townshend did on MTV for "Friday Night Videos." Pete talks about the song "My Generation" and how up until the time of this interview he had never sung it publicly.

Robert Plant and The Band of Joy - Houses of the Holy

Good video shot by a fan at the Beacon Theater of Robert Plant and the Band of Joy performing "Houses of the Holy," which is from Led Zeppelin's 1975 album Physical Graffiti.

Robert Plant and The Band of Joy - House of the Holy

From the January 29 show at the Beacon Theater, Robert Plant and the Band of Joy play "Houses of the Holy" off of Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti (1975) album.

Robert Plant and The Band of Joy - Move Up (Asheville)

Robert Plant and the Band of Joy sing "Move Up" in Asheville, North Carolina on January 18. Plant and Darrell Scott provide backing vocals for Patty Griffin. The song comes from Griffin's 2010 album, Downtown Church.

Led Zeppelin - Achiles Last Stand (Knebworth 1979)

It was a tough act for Led Zeppelin to follow up Physical Graffiti, but they attempted to do so with Presence in 1976. While the album isn't a favorite of many fans it did produce one of the band's best songs in "Achilles Last Stand." The site for this video is the Knebworth Festival in 1979.

Led Zeppelin - The Rain Song (Earls Court 1975)

Led Zeppelin performs "The Rain Song" at Earls Court Arena in London in May 1975. When the song was done in concert it followed "The Song Remains the Same." Led Zeppelin initially booked three concerts at Earls Court Arena, but due to strong demand the group added two additional shows. If you want to know more about the Earls Court concerts, Wikipedia has a page on them here.

Robert Plant and The Band of Joy - In The Mood - Beacon Theater 1/30/11

Here's another clip from the great show that Robert Plant and the Band of Joy did at the Beacon Theater. "In the Mood" is off of Plant's 1983 solo album, The Principle of Moments.