When The Who’s 50th anniversary concert tour hits
the states next fall, my neighbor Seth will be front and center as usual (he’s
already got the tickets) and Pete Townshend might even give him a shout-out
from the stage. That’s because Seth’s loyalty and friendship go way back and
he’s got the autographed photos to prove it.
His ties to the legendary super group are a result of his connections as an entertainment lawyer, successful bids
at charity auctions and a lot of persistence. Seth doesn’t wear his
loyalty on his sleeve but he does display it on his cars and on the walls of
his house. His collection includes lots of posters and photos as well as a
cymbal, a guitar and Roger Daltrey’s microphone.
It takes two rooms to hold this super fan’s collection.
Upstairs there are LP’s, books and CDs…all from the Who.
Downstairs is the wall of fame and the piece de resistance:
a genuine working pinball machine, just the way Tommy would have played it.
I may not make it to the concerts but I am trying to catch
the new documentary, “Lambert and Stamp,” about the two guys who helped take
the Who from rock band to household names. Roger Daltrey describes Kit Lambert
and Chris Stamp as the fifth and sixth members of the group. It includes some great
footage from the early days (I’ve seen the trailer) in part because the two protagonists
were film makers who started out to do a documentary on a typical 60’s group
and follow it on the road to fame. When they saw the band (known then as High
Numbers), they decided to switch from filming to managing. The rest is another
chapter of our music history.
