The Who

So, I was 16 when I attended what was billed as "the Who’s farewell show.” It was at Maple Leaf Gardens and it was broadcast live on TV. It was 1982 and the band, having just released a second post-Keith Moon album to mediocre reviews, were getting ready to call it a day. Roger Daltrey was still hitting the high screams in "Won’t Get Fooled Again” and Pete Townshend’s windmills were still spinning. I had forgotten, though, how bad the fashion was and how the quality of their music was on a steady decline. All the hits are pretty much here but the 22-song-set lags when they try to showcase songs from the cheekily-named Face Dances and It’s Hard albums. As it turns out, this wasn’t their final performance — far from it — and it definitely wasn’t one of their best. In the absence of any bonus material to provide context, this set is for nostalgia fans and Who completists only. (Immortal)