The Who performing at SSE Arena, February 13 2016 (YouTube screen cap)
The last time The Who performed on a regularly scheduled American TV show it was nearly 50 years ago.
(The band has famously performed as the halftime entertainment at the Super Bowl as well as at the 9/11 America: A Tribute to Heroes and 12-12-12 Sandy relief concerts at NYC’s Madison Square Garden.)
To celebrate the re-launch of the final North American dates of The Who Hits 50! tour, the band will be guests on The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon on Friday, March 4 at 11:35 PM (ET/PT) on NBC. Well rested and in prime shape since postponing the second leg of the tour due to Roger Daltrey’s recent bout with viral meningitis (see our report from a London warm-up here), The Who are earning stellar reviews throughout the 50th anniversary farewell.
In other news, First Citizens Bank and Republic Records have teamed up with nonprofit Teen Cancer America to release an exclusive recording of Roger Daltrey performing Pete Townshend’s 1980 classic “Let My Love Open The Door.”
Apple, Daltrey and Republic will donate their respective proceeds in the United States to the Teen Cancer America and its work to increase targeted care and specialized treatment facilities for teens and young adults with cancer. The single is available exclusively on iTunes. (Download Daltrey’s “Let My Love Open The Door” here.)
The Who’s 1967 appearance on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour ended with a bang when Keith Moon overloaded the explosives in his drum kit.
For the tour openers, the band has set Tal Wilkenfeld to perform on the first 13 shows, with Slydigs to accompany them on the remaining dates. In addition, 2015 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Joan Jett & The Blackhearts (who accompanied The Who on the first leg of this tour) will perform as special guests at the Thursday, March 3 show at MSG.
What is billed as the famed classic rock band’s final tour has generated historical excitement. Best Classic Bands is reprising our pre-tour coverage from last year by re-running an article on this last concert run by the band’s original biographer, John Swenson, a review of an early U.S. show on the tour by our editor, Rob Patterson, and a remembrance of their first tour and full New York City concert by Who fanatic Binky Philips.
Tickets for the originally scheduled shows will be honored at the new dates. They are also still available for some dates (click here to purchase).
The updated “THE WHO HITS 50!” tour dates are as follows:
with Tal Wilkenfeld supporting:
Sat 2/27: Detroit, MI, Joe Louis Arena
Tue 3/1: Toronto, ON, Air Canada Centre
with Joan Jett & The Blackhearts supporting:
Thu 3/3: New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
with Tal Wilkenfeld supporting:
Mon 3/7: Boston, MA, TD Garden
Thu 3/10: Chicago, IL, United Center
Sat 3/12: Louisville, KY, KFC Yum! Center
Mon 3/14: Philadelphia, PA, Wells Fargo Center
Wed 3/16: Pittsburgh, PA, CONSOL Energy Center
Sat 3/19: Newark, NJ, Prudential Center
Mon 3/21: Milwaukee, WI, BMO Harris Bradley Center
Thu 3/24: Washington, DC, Verizon Center
Sat 3/26, St. Louis, MO, Scottrade Center
Tue 3/29: Denver, CO, Pepsi Center
with Slydigs supporting:
Tue 4/26: Toronto, ON, Air Canada Centre
Fri 4/29: Kansas City, MO, Sprint Center
Sun 5/1: Minneapolis, MN, Target Center
Wed 5/4: Winnipeg, MB, MTS Centre
Fri 5/6: Saskatoon, SK, SaskTel Centre
Sun 5/8: Edmonton, AB, Rexall Place
Tue 5/10: Calgary, AB, Scotiabank Saddledome
Fri 5/13: Vancouver, BC, Pepsi Live at Rogers Arena
Sun 5/15: Seattle, WA, KeyArena at Seattle Center
Tue 5/17: Portland, OR. Moda Center
Thu 5/19: Oakland, CA, Oracle Arena
Sun 5/22: Anaheim, CA, Honda Center
Wed 5/25: Los Angeles, CA, STAPLES Center
Fri 5/27: San Diego, CA, Valley View Casino Center
Sun 5/29: Las Vegas, NV, Colosseum at Caesars Palace
**Please note: Tickets for the Toronto October 19 show will be honored on the March 1 date, while tickets for the October 21/December 1 show will be honored at the April 26 performance.
3 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationWell thanks for hitting Cleveland there, guys….
Great news , looking foward to seeing THE WHO in Madison Square Garden on March 3,and then March 4 on the tonight show, Lets all enjoy this legendary band now while we can,for this may be the last time,i don’t know
Saw the final tour in 82, that was about 5 final tours ago…