THE WHO WITH ORCHESTRA - "LIVE AT WEMBLEY"
By ENRICO SPINELLI
I was in my usual trusted CD shop sifting through the new releases when this Who Live came into my hands... think about it and think about it and I decide to buy it, but in doing so I am left with a strange feeling, a positive tension that at first I can't explain, something that only materializes the next day: I wanted to see them live, so I rushed to buy a ticket for the next Firenze Rocks! And after listening to this live album I'm more and more convinced that I made the right choice!
THE CONCERT
THE CONCERT
The concert in question was recorded in 2019 at Wembley Stadium with a 50-piece orchestra, with a rather different lineup from the standard one presented on the other dates. It should be clarified immediately that this is not a "greatest hits show", on the contrary, there is a total exclusion of the songs from the first 3 albums, therefore no "I Can't See for Miles" or "My Generation" to name two cases, but don't worry, the ones from the series C.S.I. are all there, starting from the opening track "Who Are You?" (alas it is also used for the show "The Masked Singer"). "Quadrophenia" is the master with 7 extracts while only one from the masterpiece "Tommy" (I don't think I have to tell you which one), and there are a couple of convincing extracts from the last, and at least for me, partially successful, homonymous album.
In between the inevitable "The Seeker" and songs from the more recent past, among which the aggressive "Eminence Front" stands out. The intense "Naked Eye" and "Behind Blue Eyes" shine while the acoustic "Won't Get Fooled Again" really convinced me right. The band's performance is good even if it struggles a bit in the stronger passages ("The Real Me") and the orchestra is not particularly invasive but integrates well with the musicians, giving us an experience of great impact.
Sure, let's not expect the Who who smashed stages and hotel rooms (after all, half of the group went to play in rock heaven) they died before they were old, and maybe that's why there's no place for "My Generation" in their concerts. These are today's "The Who", with all the limitations of the case, but they are always a great feeling!