Review: Roger Daltrey

Rarely has a rock legend received a more tepid welcome than the initial reception granted to Roger Daltrey Saturday at the Uptown Theater. Only about 300 fans were in their seats when Daltrey took the stage to a meager smattering of applause precisely at the scheduled show time of 8:30 p.m.

Daltrey never completely recovered from his anticlimactic entrance. Even after the remainder of the audience of approximately 700 made their way into the theater, the boorish behavior of some prevented Daltrey from settling into a comfortable groove. Throughout the evening, the fascinating anecdotes he told between songs were disrupted by shouted requests and the loud chatter of seemingly  uninterested fans.

"God almighty, you're tough people, to be honest," Daltrey sighed near the conclusion of his two-hour performance.

The inhospitable treatment certainly wasn't instigated by Daltrey, 66, or his sturdy five-piece band. Daltrey's voice may no longer be the ferocious instrument that made his timeless work with The Who so memorable, but the expressive warmth it retains was ideally suited to the evening's modest format.

"This is not a Who show and it's not really a Roger Daltrey show either," the charming vocalist explained. "It's just me doing songs I love."

None of The Who material Daltrey sang was anything short of delightful. Without the presence of his original band mates, however, the songs inevitably lacked much of their essence. Guitarist and vocalist Simon Townshend did an admirable job of filling in for his big brother Pete, but the late Keith Moon and John Entwistle are entirely irreplaceable. The evening's least familiar material, consequently, provided its most rewarding moments. The Who obscurity "Naked Eye" and "Without Your Love," a selection from Daltrey's solo career, sounded entirely fresh.

Daltrey may have suffered a few indignities Saturday, but he remained adamant about his decision to continue performing.

"Your voice is like any other muscle," Daltrey suggested. "You've got to keep it working. They don't have Viagra for voices yet."

SET LIST

Who Are You, The Real Me, Pictures of Lily, Behind Blue Eyes, Real Good Looking Boy, Freedom Ride, Days of Light, Going Mobile, The Kids Are Alright, Mannish Boy, My Generation, I Can See for Miles, Squeeze Box, Naked Eye ,Young Man Blues, Baba O'Riley, Bargain, Johnny Cash medley, Born On the Bayou, Without Your Love.

| Bill Brownlee, Special to The Star

Comments

[Chubby]

When RD said, "God almighty, you're tough people, to be honest," he was not talking about the behavior of anyone in the audience, he was actually referring to the ability of KC residents to endure widely differing extremes of weather. Prior to that statement he had just mentioned that the last time he was in town it was about twenty degrees and tonight it was more like ninety eight.
That's not to say that there weren't boorish elements in the audience, just that his comment was not about them.

[me]

I was at the show last night and thought this a pretty unfair review. Review the show as a whole not the fans that were chattering during the awesome stories that Roger told.
As Roger said this was not a Who show. So to say Pete, Keith and John were missing was totally unfair. The band was tight and the sound was awesome and Simon did an great job on vocals for the song Going Mobile, which was not even in the review.
Where in the review did it say how the crowd went nuts for Bargin, Baba O'Riley,Pictures of Lily?
Some of reaction to other songs were just crazy!
Where was the story of Elvis Presley before he sang a Real Good Looking Boy?
I'ts to bad that you let some of the crowd get in the way of your review or good time, myself had an great time and enjoyed the non greatest hits setlist. This was a show to have been at, the crowd of only 700 was a dissapointment. I went to a show for the ages at the Uptown. Thank you Uptown for bringing Roger back to Kansas City.
Thank you Roger for coming back to Kansas City!!!

[Bubba Brown]

The ROGER DALTREY concert was good, NOT great - but good. Noticed a lot of late arrivals. MIGHT be because some ticket holders ASSUMED there was a support band - there wasn't one. JUST think if it were THE WHO to play here - it would likely be at Sprint + tickets would likely be $100 to $200 for floor and some lower level seats.

As the radio ad on The Fox 101 said it best - "Enjoy WHO vocalist ROGER DALTREY out on a rare solo tour". And that it was. Guitarist SIMON TOWNSEND was good too - at backing DALTREY. I, for one had a busy-rocking weekend. Take care, Kansas City.

[Bill]

I didn't catch Daltrey's reference to the weather, Chubby. If that's the case, then the quote is taken out of context. It was difficult to hear everything Daltrey said. After all, people were talking!

[Gary Dean]

I was front row balcony and there was empty seats on both sides of me!

I got some good pictures and a boot of the show

[Alas O'Well]

exactly the type of show where they might post a tweet saying

"at roger daltrey, plenty of tickets, very few here, could be a great show"

but alas..... oh well.

[me]

Where can I find the boot of the show?

[MiWeb315]

Bill: I was in the 8th row & while I'm with you about what a bunch of disrespectful @ssholes much of the crowd were - including two rows of girls who were given their tickets for free around us - Chubby is correct. Daltrey was specifically talking about the extremes in climate when he made that remark. While elements of the crowd may have deserved such an admonishment, Daltrey seemed too much the gentleman to have issued it and he didn't. Mike W

[I'm skint]

Magnificent setlist, but like most artists these days, his ticket prices were pretty steep. This is probably naive, but if some of these artists would make their tickets even a little more affordable, they may generate more interest in those who are on the bubble about attending.

I thought about seeing this show, but after buying the cheapest seats for Tom Petty AND McCartney next month, it's impossible to drop another small fortune for a current show outside of the cheaper club shows. But it is sad that there was such a small turnout for the start of this show, as Daltrey is indeed worthy of his legend.

[Steve]

When people complain about artist skipping KC, think about this show as to why they do skip KC. Somebody lost money on this show, and it wasn't Mr. Daltrey. Promoters are in it not to lose money.

[Gary Dean]

I got some good pictures and a boot of the show

[email protected]

[me]

I sat in $20 seats and there were plenty available..
I think the promoters did a bad job trying to sell this concert.

[Bubba Brown]

I went to both URIAH HEEP @ the Ameristar and ROGER DALTREY at the Uptown over the weekend. Both performers won't likely ever be back again - not for awhile, anyway. Like the recent JEFF BECK gig at Starlight - I look for performers I like that simply don't swing through Kansas City very often.

You're right about ROGER (from Oz) - tickets to his low-key solo performance were WAY to high! However, I got a seat in the back section for just $20 - from the Uptown's box office with NO service 'robbery' charge. Very affordable.

[Randall]

The "tough people" comment was indeed about the extremes of weather we endure here. Also, was I the only one who couldn't understand what the guy who introduced Daltrey was saying? I didn't realize he was introducing Daltrey until Daltrey and band actually walked out onstage. That's the reason for MY tepid welcome. It was great to hear songs like "Pictures of Lily" and "The Kids Are Alright."

[pellboy]

Sounds like a good show, unfortunately got stuck going to my wife's 30-year reunion...payback for Uriah Heep/Subdudes on Friday night. The setlist seemed good but curious as to why he doesn't do more of his solo stuff (he put out some good records)when doing these gigs.

[Darrell]

Bill may have been mistaken in his interpretation of Roger's "tough people" aside, but the larger issue of rude, talkative and inattentive audiences is worthy of acknowledgement and discussion. I have attended too many gigs over the last decade where my enjoyment of the show was negatively impacted by people who either can't handle their liquor or simply don't know how to shut up and listen. I have had to "shush" people during quiet parts at Springsteen and Dylan shows, for example. It's gotten to the point that in most cases I won't go to a gig.

[DC]

No matter the context of his comments, this angers me. My wife and I saw Daltrey opening for Clapton back in March, and yes the arena was already full, but the energy was incredible.

We sat in the 10th row and everyone around us was getting into it, singing along to the Who classics they knew, and he was downright charming on stage.

When the Baba O Reilly keyboard intro kicked in he got a standing ovation and everyone remained standing the rest of the set. It may have been a larger venue but it surprises me that he was received so poorly at the Uptown. The crowd loved him at the Sprint center, I wish I knew the dynamics of the people watching him this time around.

It's truly a shame because this was one of a very few shows in the states, like maybe 3 or 4 if that? He chose KC probably because of the reception in March, hope this didn't sour the experience.

[Scott Tacke]

I won't argue that there may have been 'boorish' elements in the crowd, though I was not aware of it (too focused on the show, I guess!) I will, however, take issue with the review!

I thought Roger, looked and sounded absolutely incredible! His comments and storytelling between songs, especially in the intimate setting of the Uptown, made the experience particularly special. I was utterly surprised by the inclusion of 'Pictures of Lilly' and 'Young Man's Blues'; riveted by anecdotes related to Elvis for 'Real Good Looking Boy'; thought Pete's brother sounded fantastic singing 'Mobile'; and thought closing with 'Without Your Love' was brilliant! This wasn't intended to be a 'Who' imitation - we all know there are no substitutes (no pun intended) for John and Keith...but to make mention of that in this article is to slight the amazing backing band Mr. Daltrey had assembled for this tour

My only complaint was how HOT the Uptown seemed that night! Maybe it was those attractive women next to me from North Carolina! ;)

[me]

Scott,
Hope you read my take on the show.
Maybe you would agree with me, the only person not at the show that can't be replaced was our own music critic Tim Finn.

[Eljay]

Way too many ignorant arses around me who thought they could sing better than Daltrey. Oh, how I wish I had a taser.

[Mark]

I think this review dwells way too much on the initial lack of reception. I thought the crowd that was there was very receptive once the show got going, and I think Roger felt the love in the end. He was great, sounded great and picked a stellar set-list. Roger can still rock, still has a great voice and shows that he is a Hall-of-Famer! What I'll never understand is that Micheal Buble can sell out the Sprint Center and Roger Daltey can't fill up the Uptown...come on KC?

[Eric]

I wasn't at the show Saturday night, but did see Daltrey open for Eric Clapton @ the Sprint in March. Looks as if he played a very similar setlist. I do remember him receiving a smattering of applause at the beginning of that show too, but he ended up giving a strong performance (impressive backup band!) that won the crowd over. I am upset to read that there were a certain amount of disrespectful dicks in the audience at the Uptown show, i.e. those not letting Roger talk about the music that meant so much to him. I realize that we can't be 25 forever, and yes, his voice has lost some of it's trademark fierocity, but give the guy credit for continuing to tour and in keeping "the rock spirit" alive. Too many of the great ones are gone. Face it people, we live in a Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber world (I just puked in my mouth!) Bless you, Roger. NEVER STOP!

[wetone]

damn it!!! now you made me puke a lil in my mouth too ..... it always starts like that ..... YUCKY!!!

[Bubba Brown]

One MAIN reason I decided to check out ROGER (from Oz) is that I heard from several patrons that he was BETTER than 'ol SLOWHAND when he opened for him @ the Sprint Center in March. THESE days, I tell you that UNLESS I got a free ticket, I would EVEN consider seeing CLAPTON play live - he's (reportedly) not even a rocker ANYMORE - more of a bluesman + ballad singer. Too bad JACK BRUCE won't reform for an extended CREAM reunion although I respect his decision.

[Lou]

This has nothing to do with the RD show...did I miss a review for Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers?

[SlowDownKC]

Regarding the "tepid welcome," I honestly don't think anyone expected him to start at 8:30 sharp. With the exception of Leonard Cohen last year, where the tickets stated that the show started promptly at the posted time, 95% of concerts start 30-45 minutes late. When the guy introduced "Roger from Oz," I really don't think people actually expected him to walk on stage right then.

While it was awesome to see one of my rock idols from the ninth row in such an intimate venue, it may be my last show at the Uptown. Several have already commented about how warm it was inside the theater, but I also have to take issue with some of the audience members around me. Between the two women behind me who talked incessantly, the guy who shouted out a request for "Substitute" 50 times in a row, and the people around me who watched the entire concert from behind their cell phone cameras, it took away from an otherwise great concert experience. I guess I've been spoiled by the Midland, which seems to have both better climate control and attracts more respectful fans.

As for the actual performance, when Daltrey opened with "Who Are You," I knew it was going to be a great show. It was also cool to see Simon Townshend sign lead on "Goin' Mobile" and he was often so close to Pete in sound that it was scary. The crowd sing-along to "Squeeze Box" was another highlight for me. And although it wasn't "The Who experience," Roger's band was pretty darn tight and sounded very close to The Who several times.

If Roger was frustrated with anything, it was that the heat and humidity inside the Uptown kept causing his earpiece monitors to fall out. However, he remained the consummate professional in his showmanship and showed his charm through his storytelling and the way he interacted with the crowd.

Great show but the venue and crowd were somewhat disappointing.

[Bitcher]

Maybe I'm just different, but when I go to concerts I don't shout requests, have conversations with everyone around me, stand on my seat, sing off-key to every song, spill my drink, belch or puke, take a piss break every 10 minutes, or make out with my girlfriend. Perhaps I would enjoy the show more if I did those things.

[Bubba Brown]

Bitcher, there's NOTHING wrong with shouting out song requests at a concert, problem is that ROGER DALTREY was basically a low-key performance. Those other things you mentioned that other patrons did during his show ARE indeed annoying.

[ABC]

http://www.kcconfidential.com/?p=17148#more-17148

GREAT REVIEW OF THE SHOW!!!

[real gone kid]

Roger Daltrey's solo work is so often overlooked. Read my review of 'Daltrey' here: http://realgonerocks.blogspot.com/2011/02/roger-daltrey-daltrey.html