it's a boy, mrs. walker, it's a boy
01.21.03 @ 10:07 a.m.
Wow, talk about your random convergences of fate.
Okay, so this isn't the earthshaking sort of fate, by no means. But still, it's sheer bloody luck.
So what the hell am I talking about? Like all things in my life lately, it has to do with Tommy. For the first time, I decided that I wanted to listen to music while I skulked my way across campus to Rock History, and I very briefly debated between The Who Sell Out and Tommy as my listening material. Tommy won out, though I don't exactly remember why. Probably because I listened to the Who Sell Out a whole bunch yesterday traveling to and from the dog show and on my way to Eugene (after my laptop had to be shut down -- I was updating my operating system but when it was time to go, it wasn't nearly finished, so I had to lug my laptop into Taco Bell (where we had a last family dinner before Dad and I went off to Eugene and Mom went back home... classy, eh?) and then I killed the last little bits of battery power by ripping my dad's copy of All Things Must Pass (George Harrison) into my iTunes. Sure, I could have just taken his CD, but I didn't want to deprive him of his Christmas present from moi.
So. Tommy. I listened to bits of various songs up to Go To The Mirror, Boy! and tucked my discman safely into my backpack once I got settled in in the third row of the lecture hall. (This is a class of approximately 150 people.) We did a bit on Jimi Hendrix (our third day with a Hendrix song) because his Jimi Hendrix Experience and Band of Gypsies were both power trios and we're studying blues-inspired power trios. Cream came next and we listened to Sunshine of Your Love, one of two Cream songs that I really like. I never noticed before that the guitar solo quotes Blue Moon at the beginning. While we were listening to, oh, I don't know, Crossroads, I guess, he popped in the much talked of Monterey Pop DVD and I nearly had a heart attack as he queued up My Generation. Seriously, I was shaking. I'm so geeky.
Pete looked fantastic. Roger's hair was okay but I still don't like it much. Keith was wild on the drums as usual, but I couldn't help grinning like crazy every time they did a close up on Moon. John didn't draw much attention, but I spotted him playing stoically in the back while Pete smashed up his guitar and Roger whirled around comically... They were so psychedelically dressed, I was very impressed with it. Very swinging San Francisco. My professor told a story about how a friend of his worked at the music shop where Pete bought the guitar he smashed up, and the clerk offered Pete an imitation Fender to smash as it was cheaper, but Pete said "No, I've got to play the best" and bought a real Fender.
Neat. Some classmates debated on who had to pay for the guitars and the prof said Townshend could certainly afford it (and I didn't have the courage to say "Um, if Tommy hadn't been the smash hit it was, they would've had to quit music because they were in serious debt.")
Prof. Woideck spent some time fast forwarding and rewinding on a cassette tape and I finally said "Are you playing all of Overture? Because I have the CD in my bag if that would be easier." He gratefully accepted as it would be much better sound quality. We talked about My Generation for a while (which is what we watched on Monterey Pop, did I mention that?) and A Quick One as a mini-opera (that we did not listen to, but the professor looked at me and said "I'm sure you know that one." I just grinned and nodded) before talking about the concept album and Tommy.
After we listened to overture I was able to show off a bit more by answering a student's question about how soon after Tommy came out that it started being performed on stage as a dramatic production (i.e. not the Who singing the whole thing in a concert). This guy had apparently seen the Broadway version. I said something about the Canadian ballet doing a version, then the Ken Russel film and the Broadway play in '93, but there were lots of productions in between those two.
Luck! I never take a CD to class... I picked Tommy out of the mix... I just got that most excellent Tommy documentary from my aunt...!
I feel absolutely fantastic.
Previously
fuck it @ 08.01.05
fanciful imaginary sea voyages to come @ 07.20.05
*dies* @ 07.19.05
more ootp @ 07.17.05
harry potter: driving our children into devil worship @ 07.17.05
