Just before the start of the fall part of The Who's ‘Hits Back’ tour last week in Toronto, Roger Daltrey said that Pete Townshend "agreed to have a go at" a song from their ‘Live at Leeds’ album that they haven't performed live in quite some time.
Though he didn’t say for sure, Daltrey was likely referring to the cover of Mose Allison's "Young Man Blues," which Daltrey does in his shows. They did perform that song last Friday, closing with it at a show in Elmont, New York.
It was the first time they'd played the song since 2014, and prior to that they'd done it just six times in the past 40 years.
Daltrey talked about putting together The Who’s set list for their shows, saying, “This is a fact, it has to be said, he just doesn't dedicate as much time to thinking about the shows as I do. And it’s as simple as that. And I like to listen to what the fans say, you know, just get an idea of, ‘Well, we've ever done that one live and let’s give it a try and see how it goes down.’ And it's just a matter of stretching yourself out a bit, even if it's only for two songs a night. It’s that little thing that just keeps it fresh.”
They also performed the seldom-played "Naked Eye" off of Odds and Sods, months after Townshend ripped into a fan for requesting it during their spring tour.They also performed "Another Tricky Day" from Face Dances.
Roger talked about performing “Naked Eye” las spring after Townshend yelled at a fan for requesting it.He said, "It's a pleasure to play ‘Naked Eye.’ It's a great song. I do it slightly different than the way The Who did it. I did it just a bit more, not quite so jerky, but you know, why not play it? You know, guys paid for a ticket? You know, it doesn't hurt. There's a lot of other people in the audience who would like to see it. You know, Pete tends to pay too much attention to his negative side and he should just go for it. I've always said to him, ‘Pete, no one gives a damn about the first row, you know? There's a whole lot of people out there. Don't keep arguing with them. Just give them what they want. Just have a laugh. Everybody loves it when you're having a good time.’”
Sunday would have been Who bassist John Entwistle's 78th birthday. He passed away in 2002 just before the launch of a U.S. tour.
[Source: Classic Hits Today]