Taste of Chicago - July 5, 2001 (Photo By: Chris Castaneda)It was one of those perfect Chicago summer days: the humidity wasn't too high, and the breeze from the lake front was just right.
One day after Wilco's successful headlining of the WXRT Free 4th of July concert at Grant Park, John Entwistle joined Alan Parsons, Ann Wilson of Heart, and Todd Rundgren for a Beatles tribute show titled "A Walk Down Abbey Road." The fact that the famed Who bassist was going to lay his fingers on songs penned by a peer group from the British Invasion of the 1960's was almost too irresistible to pass up.
Little did anyone know that almost a year later in a Las Vegas hotel room the 57-year-old Entwistle would be gone, dead from a heart attack attributed to cocaine. Like his former bandmate Keith Moon, who died in 1978 of a drug overdose, Entwistle's death was considered "accidental" by the medical examiner. Hearing the news made my knees buckle. Fans of The Who that remember the day they heard the news of Keith Moon's death probably felt the same way. All you can try to do it make sense of the whole situation. Here was a man, Entwistle, who was in the unique position as a musician of being in the absolute prime of his abilities. It's the rock 'n' roll mentality that the older you get the less you can capture the fire of your youth. For Entwistle, it didn't seem that hard to accomplish. His statue-esque presence on stage never altered, but his fingers always remained in a fury.
My introduction to The Who was when I was 15 and I rented the documentary The Kids Are Alright (1979). Whenever I went to the nearby video rental store I always headed towards the music video section. Once I decided I rented all their copies of R.E.M. videos one too many times, I randomly picked The Who mainly because of the original VHS box it came in. The image that struck me the most on the box was Pete Townshend--bearded, right fist in the air, legs spread apart while his left hand was squeezing some power chord. I knew not one Who song. But as I watched Townshend destroy his equipment and Moon thrash his drum kit to pieces during an appearance on a 1967 episode of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour I picked up my jaw from off my bedroom floor and popped my eyes back into their sockets. "My Generation" had just redefined everything I thought I knew about rock music up to that point. I went from wanting to be Peter Buck of R.E.M. to wanting to be Pete Townshend.
By the time of my 16th birthday, my father had bought me a copy of The Who's second rock opera, Quadrophenia (1973). He had ragged on me for playing too much Who in the house but stood by Quadrophenia as his favorite Who album (probably since he saw the band in 1973 at the International Amphitheater in Chicago). As part of my birthday breakfast, he allowed me the chance to play the album on his stereo. It was quite the honor back then to even touch my dad's stereo system. All he could talk about was how great a song "Punk And The Godfather" was and how the show he saw was amazing.
Taste of Chicago - July 5, 2001(Photo By: Chris Castaneda)July 20, 1997--my dad got a phone call from a friend that had tickets for a show that he couldn't make and asked if my dad would be interested in going instead. I was called to the living room where my dad was conversing over the phone. "Do you want to see The Who? I can't go."
Oh my stars. I probably fumbled my words before I could finally say, "Yes." The Who were touring Quadrophenia and were performing that day at the beloved New World Music Theatre out in Tinley Park. I'm being slighty sarcastic about the venue, now called the Tweeter Center. It's rather hated by many for its horrendous sound as a venue. I didn't care at that moment though. Two tickets were offered to me. Now the only question was who would I go with? Well, that came easy. I asked the one friend who had his license already and a car. So, I called my friend and within 15 minutes we were off to experience The Who live. It's funny to think back to how those tickets sent our egos skyrocketing. Box seats. VIP parking. What more could two 16-year-olds ask for?
The show was incredible. Quadrophenia had been my soundtrack to being 16. To me, it summed up everything about being a teenager. Next to my personal favorite "I'm One" was the highlight performance of "5.15". Taking the spotlight was Entwistle and his gargantuan bass solo. From the second Roger Daltrey screamed out "Then I heard thunder," Entwistle stepped in and took over the song. I couldn't believe the speed of his fingers or the sound he created from his corner of the stage. You felt each note rattling your teeth.
I walked away from that show having felt I just saw one of the great rock bands ever still playing like they were one of the greats. Minus Keith Moon, I still felt the spirit of The Who was alive and well. I can still picture Townshend standing at the edge of the stage as "Who Are You" was rumbling to an end and seeing him launch his guitar straight up into the air. And I still remember the gentleman in the next box seat that did his best Keith Moon air drum impression throughout the entire show.
I would have the chance to see The Who one more time in 2000 at the Hollywood Bowl. When Entwistle returned to Chicago for the Beatles tribute in 2001, The Who continued talk of a new album and more touring. On that July day in Grant Park, Entwistle gave a weight to Beatles songs I never thought was possible. His performance with the tribute band made me wonder what he would have been like as the bassist for The Beatles. The dimensions he added to songs like "Day Tripper" and "The End" were a testament to the high level of musicianship he had immersed during his many years of performing.
On June 27, 2002, I took an acoustic guitar to a cafe I usually performed open-mic shows at to do a small tribute to the news that Entwistle died. I played what I knew off the top of my head: "Pinball Wizard," "I'm One," and "Baba O'Riley." Someone came up to me afterwards and thanked me for my set and pointed out the black armband he wore for Entwistle.
I had tickets to see The Who on their '02 tour for shows in Chicago and Indianapolis-Noblesville. Townshend and Daltrey marched on with the tour. I honestly didn't think they should have gone on with that tour. The Chicago performance, which made me realize why the Tweeter Center was detested, left me feeling unexcited but the following night down in Indianapolis--a show I almost missed due to missing an exit and near entry into Ohio--I saw a glimmer of The Who fire that gave me hope. The hope it gave me was that The Who name wasn't being soldiered on for the purpose of living up to the reputation of the name. Entwistle's absence was evident in each song. It's often said that the drummer is always the backbone to any band, but for The Who it was Entwistle. He was the pure musician of the band. Whenever Moon pounded every piece of his kit under 30 seconds or Townshend windmilled his solos, Entwistle kept some form of a foundation intact. He had a sixth sense when it came to Moon and Townshend.
Although I felt the '02 should never have happened I later reversed my opinion. On the eve of a major tour, The Who had to consider the people involved with the tour. There's that one lighting tech who may depend on the summer stint with the band to make ends meet. Probably much of their road crew had been with the band for many years and that's the only job they have for several months of the year. But the tour became a form of therapy. When John Lennon was killed people played Beatles music. When Freddie Mercury died Queen put on a tribute concert. For Who fans, they went to see The Who play Who songs.
Entwistle left a mark that was his own and can never be touched. The debate whether or not a band's name means anything anymore after an original member passes away will swing back and forth. Some say The Who stopped being The Who when Moon died, and some say as long as Townshend picks up a guitar The Who remain The Who. What can't be debated is Entwistle's contributions to the music. He was the constant, the guiding light, to a sound that made the Big Bang seem like a thundercracker on the 4th of July.
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