After gathering dust for three decades in the Who’s film vault, the masterfully produced DVD The Who At Kilburn 1977 – a chronicle of their Dec. 1977 show at London’s Gaumont State Theater in Kilburn – reveals a musical outfit whose raw, riveting power still puts many a contemporary band to shame.
And while the release of this long-awaited footage will surely be embraced by Who devotees around the world, it also will serve as an ironic testament to a band whose harshest critics were so often its own members.
As evidenced throughout much of the multi-35mm camera Kilburn footage – originally shot for Jeff Stein’s epic musical compendium of the band, The Kids Are Alright – band members Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle and Keith Moon deemed the footage unusable, which prompted the musicians and filmmakers to restage a shortened version of the show five months later at Shepperton film studios.
“(That) was their last show with Keith Moon,” recalled Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones, who was part of the invited Shepperton audience. “[It was] a great, great show!”
But while the Shepperton gig yielded the signature versions of “Baba O’ Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again” that eventually became familiar Kids Are Alright showcases, the songs are mostly indistinguishable from the equally propulsive performances from Kilburn featured on the new DVD.
So why was the Kilburn show initially rejected? The perfectionism of Townshend and Entwistle, in particular, seems largely to blame, perhaps coupled with the insecurities of a band who’d been off the road for two long years when they took the stage at the Gaumont. Indeed, the filmed Kilburn and Shepperton shows would be the only live gigs the Who played in 1977 and ’78.
Central to their concerns was the health – both physically and musically – of drummer Moon, who’d relocated to Malibu during the band’s long hiatus. Years of hard-partying had finally begun to take their toll on Moon, whose flowing, spangled purple stage robe now barely concealed a hefty, uncharacteristic gut.
Townshend pointedly underscores the tensions at the frayed end of Kilburn’s rendition of “I’m Free,” when the guitarist turns to director Stein and declares, “Well, this wasn’t (adjective) worth filming, Stein. Might as well send the cameramen home!”
Thankfully, the years have gratifyingly proven Townshend wrong. Moon’s playing may occasionally fall short of his band mates’ perfectionist standards, but Kilburn nonetheless shows the Who in all their fierce, jagged glory. The set, which is essentially a cut-down version of the one they’d toured stadiums with in ’75-’76, is notable for several live-recording rarities, including the Who By Numbers standout “Dreaming From the Waist,” a spare, funky “Join Together,” and the stage debut of a classic song they’d recorded just weeks before, “Who Are You,” here sans its familiar pulsing synth rhythm track.
Daltrey milks the theatricality of a then-state-of-the-art laser show, while Townshend turns the set into a revue of every jump, windmill and leg-kick variation in his stage antic repertoire, trading off on a pair of “numbered” Gibson Les Paul Deluxes (wine and gold top) that had been his stage axes for most of the decade. Entwistle’s thunderous bass work, as ever, serves as the band’s virtual stage gravity.
The bonus disc captures part of another historical Who show, a Dec. 1969 performance on the Tommy tour at London’s Coliseum, home of the English National Opera. Literally salvaged from the scrap heap of the band’s former management, it’s a grainy, ill-lit 16mm affair that nonetheless captures the band at a fever pitch.
Watch Daltrey discuss the Kilburn DVD release in this recent interview.
Set List from Disc One: The Who At Kilburn 1977
I Can't Explain
Substitute
Baba O'Riley
My Wife
Behind Blue Eyes
Dreaming From The Waist
Pinball Wizard
I'm Free
Tommy's Holiday Camp
Summertime Blues
Shakin' All Over
My Generation
Join Together
Who Are You
Won't Get Fooled Again