Live Review: The Who - Royal Albert Hall, London 27/03/2025
“These are the joys of getting old, you go deaf. I’ve also got the joy of going blind. Fortunately I’ve still got my voice - cause if I lose that, I’ve gone full Tommy”, wisecracked Roger Daltrey during the first of two shows The Who were headlining at The Royal Albert Hall in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust.
The band made it known throughout the show they were maybe not as sharp as their younger days but proceeded to pull an absolute blinder of a performance.
The general vibe of the show was definitely that of awe and gratefulness for Roger's voice - where other vocalists from past eras can end up struggling with their live delivery, the lead singer's pipes were still mind-blowing.
The legendary Brits hurtled through their back catalogue during the nearly two-hour set, while sharing moving tributes, comical tales and rallies to support the charity.
Their first ever single ‘I Can’t Explain' kicked off the evening, followed by ‘Who Are You’ and ‘The Kids Are Alright’.
The thunderous drum solo in ‘Who Are You’ was nailed by session drummer Zak Starkey and was a fitting tribute to Keith Moon.
Previously the band would tour with an orchestra, but its absence tonight gave the songs a sharper focus, allowing a purer sound to emerge during the show.
Pete on the other hand had other thoughts on this: “Don’t you miss the orchestra? I fucking do. When we had the orchestra I could just come up and pretend to play.”
‘I Can See For Miles’ was dedicated to an inspiring 19-year-old woman Roger met at a Teenage Cancer Trust ward, who had been diagnosed late with stage 4 Ewing sarcoma. He commented: “early diagnosis in that age group is everything to them. It’s nothing to do with money - just do your job and recognise it.”
The rockers rattled into crowd favourite 'Pinball Wizard', swiftly followed by the driving force that is ‘The Seeker’, before taking a more reflective pause and lowering the lighting for the pensive ‘Behind Blue Eyes’.
The remaining original members displayed their onstage chemistry and synergy during ‘Love, Reign O'er Me’, with Pete’s meandering guitar notes dancing around Roger’s voice.
During the aforementioned track the 81-year-old lead singer let out a guttural wail, with a hint of pride on his face when he finished the long note and rightly so.
Often when you see iconic bands well past their glory days, you can come away with a ‘never meet your heroes’ mentality, but the band proved that still to this day they have retained their essence and magic spark, with Roger’s powerhouse of a voice and Pete's still-stirring guitar solos standing the test of time.
Compared to some other older acts who are still on the tour circuit, this is the show I’ve seen most recently with the most soul and substance.
Cult classic My Generation was followed by ‘See Me, Feel Me / Listening to You’ from the band’s iconic movie Tommy.
The latter was a highlight for the real The Who heads, with one man in front of me raising a fist in appreciation.
The show really came into its own during ‘Eminence Front’ with the energy in the room distinctly shifting, as flashing, pulsating bright white lights matched the glitchy ethereal start of the track, with Pete sliding through another satisfying guitar solo.
The operatic ‘You Better You Bet’ electrified the Albert Hall, before the moment we’d all been waiting for, the melodic intro to the band’s ode to wasted youth 'Baba O-Reilly'.
It was beyond epic to hear the legendary song live, as the looping synths built up to the epic drum solo, culminating with Roger’s insane harmonica skills.
The hits kept on coming as they segwayed into ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’, with Roger’s iconic ‘yeahhhhh’ wail crackling through the venue; hearing it transported the room back to the 70s, when the vocals were all thunderous war cries.
The show concluded with the playful remaining founding members finishing the one-and-a-half-hour set with ‘Tea and Theatre’, a fitting finale song with the line ‘We did it all? Didn't we’.
As the two stood side by side it was hard not to picture their wild shared history in my mind’s eye and marvel at the musical journey they’ve been on.
At one point Pete messes up the chords and the pair have a laugh: “Gahhh sorry, this is what it’s like at rehearsal.”
“Tonight isn’t perfect but it could’ve been fucking worse”, said Pete to rapturous laughter, who had earlier admitted to being a bit slower due to a knee operation.
“I get myself going by dancing around like a goon, which is how I fucked up my knee in the first place. I’ve got a Mick Jagger [dance impression] which I can still do.”
It was this authenticity and playfulness that took the show to another level and reminded us who the fuck they are - irrevocably one of Britain's best ever rock'n'roll bands.
Words by Monique Hall
Photo credit: John Stead
