The Who on DVD - Tommy & Quadrophenia Live with Special Guests

My old man was heavily into his music, bands like The Doors, Jimi Hendrix and of course, The Who. His songs became my songs, as we would do the old Father/Son things together, such as going to the hardware store to replace the nail gun I jacked up. 

So in 1989, when I got the chance to see The Who play live, I diverted "smoking funds" to "ticket funds" and had enough to buy not only a ticket to see The Who at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, but I also had enough to see them perform Tommy at Universal Amphitheatre.

The first disc of this three-DVD set is that show. I had a great time at the show, even though I was sitting in the way back, second row from the very back wall, but this DVD brought me right up front. This was way cool for me watching a show I had been too. It was a great show then and still impresses me today.

The story of Tommy opens at the end of World War I with Mrs. Walker giving birth to a young son, whose father, Captain Walker is missing in action. Years later after Tommy's birth and still no word on her husband, Nora Walker (played in the movie by Ann Margaret) marries Frank Hobbs. Captain Walker unexpectedly appears later, and in front of the eyes of young Tommy, Hobbs kills Walker. The effect on the young boy gives way to his illness, causing him to become deaf, dumb and blind. It seems that the only thing the boy can do is stare into the mirror and play pinball.

The movie was pretty trippy, but this live show cuts through the acid-trip visuals and brings you the music. On stage, the backdrop flashes scenes from the movie depicting either who sung the original song or what was going on at that point in the movie. Written captions also give the viewer who may have never seen the movie an idea of what is happening.