The Venue presents… Roger Daltrey
Tonight was my first night going to the Venue at Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, IN, located just outside the Chicagoland area over the Skyway toll bridge. Shame on myself for never being here but when I arrived to pick up my passes, I was greeted by a very friendly staff. Inside the venue I was very much impressed with the décor and intimate feel the place had with seating going from the second level up in plush seating. With tonight’s show I was told the lay out would be different and photographers only allowed shooting from the side of the stage and behind the first level of seating. I was told the acoustic and sound from the Venue where some of the best and I was soon to find out they were.
The concert started with a short opening act of Paul Freeman, who did a great job with his time, even bringing a female from the crowd to sing along with him but we were all here to see the legend, Roger Daltrey from the legendary band the WHO - performing the WHO version of Tommy with some subtle differences to make the music stand out as a whole, also leaving out Underture.
The band was made up of Daltrey side band, No Plan B featuring Simon Townshend & Frank Simes on guitars, Scott Devours on Drums, Loren Gold on keys, and Jon Button on Bass. Some of the highlights from the Tommy portion of the show were Amazing Journey, Christmas, The Acid Queen, Pinball Wizard, Tommy Can You Hear Me, I’m Free, Tommy’s Holiday Camp, and We’re not Gonna Take It. Daltrey looked in amazing shape for an elder statesman of rock and swung his microphone around like he was back in the 70’s. During this hour plus version of Tommy the whole crowd was into it, dancing in the aisle, moving in the seats and having a grand time.
While the crowd was more of an older crowd, there were a lot of parents with their kids and even young adults getting a dose of true music, compared to the force fed music of today’s artist. While most artists would take a short break after playing for over an hour, Daltrey introduced his band and went right into the WHO catalog of songs. I have to say, this is very impressive from a man his age and dealing with throat surgery in 2009. The crowd was asked to refrain from smoking in the venue area due to his reaction to smoke. He apologized for this but told the crowd he could still eat brownies with a wink in his eyes.
He opened the second set with I Can See for Miles, The Kids are Alright and a haunting version of Behind Blue Eyes. One of my favorite songs, Days of Light was played next which he dedicated to the blue collar workers of Indiana. He played a beautiful rendition of Taj Mahal song, Freedom Ride to go along with Going Mobile, Who Are You. He told the crowd he was going to give his voice a little break and sing for them some Johnny Cash tunes. He sang a medley of five songs from Cash that included, I’ve Got Stripes, Folsom Prison Blues, There You Go, Train of Love, and Ring of Fire. Not sure how he gave his voice a break because he did a damn good job of sounding like Cash during this and then went right into the great bluesy rock of Young Man Blues.
Young Man Blues had the place going crazy, showcasing the talent of Simes and Townshend ripping it up. Townshend also sang a few songs that his brother sang on and did a great job. Without a break for an encore Daltrey seemed to not want the night end after 2 hours of music.
Baba O’Riley was next and for me there are certain songs in your life that when you hear them, they recall you to the timeframe of your life you where when you first heard it. For me, Baba O’Riley was the WHO and was and still is my top 5 songs of all time. As they opened into it, I felt the Goosebumps and that electric feeling you get when something sounds so good you can’t help it. Just that one moment defined for me the whole night and how honored I felt to see Daltrey live.
He ended the night with two slow tempo songs - one to all his fans for their support Without Your Love and Blue Red and Grey which he told the crowd he was now able to play on Ukulele because Pete Townshend would not be caught dead playing one.
While the crowd was hopping, for me, the night was over and everyone who witnessed tonight will have a memory of a lifetime.
All Photos Provide by Peter Lizano
