The Who: Substitute

by (**collin**) » Fri Apr 25, 2014 11:02 pm

Pete use to hit the amp with the headstock as shown in that clip at Richmond, but there is no documented instance of him ramming a Rick through the speaker and leaving it there.

Oddly enough though, Entwhistle did that once in '66 and it took roadies 20 minutes to get the bass out!

Tim, would your friend have seen him in the UK or stateside? By the time they first gigged in the States in '66, Pete was using Fender and then the Mapleglo 360/12 used on Pictures of Lily, so couldn't have been too many opportunities to smash a Rick.

My hunch is that the tale just grew taller over the years :lol:

by (**manta**) » Sat Apr 26, 2014 5:35 am

Hi Collin,

We were US Midwest kids so he would have seen him performing on TV. We were in high school. He had a circa '54 MG sports convertible and it was by far the coolest car anyone drove to school. Whenever he offered me a ride in that car, I jumped at the chance as it was certainly THE car to be seen in after school. We were driving in that car when he brought it up. I am sure you are right, his exposure to The Who was probably a combination of black & white TV Shows and British Invasion specials that came to his colorful explanation of his The Who sightings. :lol:

And it would have been circa '66 or no later than '67.

My friend has always been quite musical and I wouldn't be surprised if he still plays in a band back home even now. I see his name in the alumni news so I know he's still around!

I didn't know that about Entwhistle. Did he get his RIC bass stuck in the speakers? Maybe that's what my friend saw. That clip I'd like to see whatever bass it was.

Keep The Who trivia coming. Love it.

by (**manta**) » Sat Apr 26, 2014 5:54 am

This article is a pretty good one on Entwhistle's influence on the band and Rock N' Roll in general:

http://gpatt.customer.netspace.net.au/cream/john_entwistle.htm

by (**collin**) » Sat Apr 26, 2014 2:28 pm

manta wrote:I didn't know that about Entwhistle. Did he get his RIC bass stuck in the speakers? Maybe that's what my friend saw. That clip I'd like to see whatever bass it was.
.

The incident isn't documented on camera, to my knowledge but it was June 5, 1966 at a gig in Sweden. John stuck his P-Bass through a speaker and it took two people to pull it out.

by (**k43rover**) » Sat Apr 26, 2014 3:08 pm

collin wrote: By the time they first gigged in the States in '66, Pete was using Fender and then the Mapleglo 360/12 used on Pictures of Lily, so couldn't have been too many opportunities to smash a Rick.

Interesting...as I'd seen the footage of Pete with the RoMo performing live on US TV shows in '65 I'd assumed (wrongly) that they must have done some gigs there at that time....

by (**collin**) » Sat Apr 26, 2014 7:54 pm

k43rover wrote:
collin wrote: By the time they first gigged in the States in '66, Pete was using Fender and then the Mapleglo 360/12 used on Pictures of Lily, so couldn't have been too many opportunities to smash a Rick.

Interesting...as I'd seen the footage of Pete with the RoMo performing live on US TV shows in '65 I'd assumed (wrongly) that they must have done some gigs there at that time....

You mean Hullabaloo or Shindig? AFAIK, they traveled to London and shot the specials there to air later in the States. I can check but I think they didn't gig in the USA until '66.

by (**k43rover**) » Sun Apr 27, 2014 1:08 am

collin wrote: You mean Hullabaloo or Shindig? AFAIK, they traveled to London and shot the specials there to air later in the States. I can check but I think they didn't gig in the USA until '66.

I did a quick search on the gigs yesterday and it looks like they were continuously on the road in '65 but exclusively in the UK/Europe. So unless they flew over specifically for those Hullabaloo/Shindig TV performances, they must have been filmed here and sent over for insert into US transmissions. Do you know whether the US content for those shows was typically performed and transmitted live at first broadcast or was all the content pre-recorded for later broadcast?

by (**k43rover**) » Sun Apr 27, 2014 1:29 am

I'm afraid this is completely off topic, but when I searched for the US '65 TV performances my eye was taken by this clip I'd never seen before. I wonder how many more old gems like this are waiting to be rediscovered. BTW looks like relations within the band are more than a little strained on this one....but the Moon shines bright as usual

by (**manta**) » Sun Apr 27, 2014 6:22 am

Roger does seem a bit put out at the end of that song doesn't he? :lol:

by (**collin**) » Sun Apr 27, 2014 9:53 am

Roger quit the band for three days after that gig! They were in Sweden and tensions ran high after touring for so long. Not their best moment that year...

Eddie, those two specials were most definitely taped in the UK and aired later in the US (remember the first live satellite transmission wasn't until 1967 and it was actually a Beatles performance). The Shindig! host Jimmy O'neal even opened the show with "Shindig....in London!"