Ahead of The Who taking the stage of London's most beautiful venue for the second of their two Teenage Cancer Trust gigs this week, the screen above the stage displays archive footage of previous TCT/Albert Hall shows, featuring the likes of Them Crooked Vultures, The Cure, Pulp, Florence + The Machine, Noel Gallagher, Nile Rodgers and Chic, Muse, Ed Sheeran, Paul Weller and more. The short film serves as a reminder of the incredible work which Roger Daltrey has done in curating shows for the charity for the past 24 years, not least when you remember that all these acts were persuaded to offer their services without receiving a single shiny penny in remuneration.
Meanwhile, the two hours of music which follow the film are a reminder that none of these artists, as fine as many of them undoubtedly are, can hold a candle to The Who in terms of catalogue, ambition and, even now, with Daltrey aged 80, and Pete Townshend 78 and three-quarters, live prowess.
Roughly speaking, tonight's entertainment, a revised set-list from that performed on March 18, is split into three sections: the Tommy set (seven songs, augmented by the Heart of England orchestra), the 'greatest hits' set (seven songs, sans orchestra), and the Quadrophenia set (five songs, orchestra back in place), with Who Are You, closing section 1, and Baba O'Riley, the climax of section 3, delicious cherries on the cake. And from the moment that the allied forces strike up Overture, The Who have all 5,000+ punters in this historic hall in the palms of their hands.
