The show was a better than decent presentation because I wasn't looking for them to breathe fire--were you? Not only did the camera work effortlessly shift back and forth between Townshend and Daltrey, giving viewers more than one focal point, but having their superb, young looking drummer (I read later that it was Zak Starkey, Ringo's son)
in many of the shots was a smart move. The songs still rank as some of the best ever, and still inspire generations other than mine. Young people dig classic rock, too.
Besides, I'm happy if this means that Steve Miller is seething, ready to motivate his lobbyists to garner the halftime show for him in 2011. I've read or heard Miller putting down the Who about their days of smashing their instruments on more than one occasion, as if it never dawned on him that they stopped destroying their equipment long ago. Oh yeah, and then going on to create The Who Sell Out, Who's Next and Quadrophenia, not to mention some impressive solo material.
In fact, that brief folk-rock fade over Keith Moon's rolling drums at the end of "Pinball Wizard" is more creative than all of Steve Miller's records put together. Nice job, Pete and Roger. Their next series of shows will include performing Quadrophenia
in its entirety to benefit the Teenage Cancer Trust.
Addendum: There are some nasty bloggers out there ripping the Who about this show. Of course they're not going to sound as if this were the '60s and '70s--none of the songs done on Sunday were slowed down or lowered in key, by the way. This was hardly "an embarrassment"--it sounded like passionate, quality Rock'n'Roll, warts and all.
If the NFL continues this trend of mega star, white male acts doing halftime at the Super Bowl, we're likely to get Corporation Eagles or Bon Jovi's lowest common denominator, sing-a-long swill next year. Or Steve Miller. That would be embarrassing.