The Who Deliver Final North American Performance

The Who, photo by Bill Kelly

The Who took the stage at Thousand Palms, Calif.’s Acrisure Arena last night, Oct. 1, for their final North American performance. Since August, the legendary rock innovators have crossed the US and Canada with their “The Song Is Over” North American Farewell Tour, properly honoring six decades of powerful music by sifting through the many highlights of their expansive catalog night after night. Wednesday’s performance was a fitting finale to the run and a bittersweet farewell to Stateside audiences.

The Who set off their Friday show with “I Can’t Explain,” the group’s very first single released as The Who in 1965. This retrospective opening set off an early focus on the beginning of their discography, including further groundbreaking singles like “Substitute” and “The Seeker,” connected by “Who Are You,” the title track from their recently reissued eighth studio album.

A high-flying treatment of “I Can See for Miles” from The Who Sell Out sent The Who soaring into a set that stayed close to the format they’ve established over the past month and change. Cuts from their 1969 rock opera, Tommy, like “Pinball Wizard” and “See Me, Feel Me,” dropped the band into “Another Tricky Day,” the standout from 1981’s Face Dances that appeared for the first time since June 2023 at their Hollywood Bowl staging. Other rarities revived on this historic tour cropped up throughout the set, including “Cry if You Want” and the Simon Townshend-helmed “Going Mobile,” within a mix of essentials like “Behind Blue Eyes,” “Eminence Front” and “My Generation.”

The Who moved into the last act of their final North American performance with an in-depth exploration of Quadrophenia, featuring “The Real Me,” “5:15” and “Love, Reign O’er Me.” After the titanic hits “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “Baba O’Riley,” founders Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend led introductions to the supporting ensemble, which currently features guitarist Simon Townshend, bassist Jon Button, keyboardist Loren Gold, percussionists John Hogg and Jody Linscott and drummer Scott Devours, previously of Daltrey’s solo band and joining in place of his publicly ousted predecessor Zak Starkey.

“The Song is Over” served as an electrifying and sentimental farewell to a band famously considered the loudest in rock in their heyday. For one last message of thanks to their North American fans, Townshend and Daltrey took the spotlight as a duo for an acoustic closer of “Tea & Theatre.” Fans who missed out on the sold-out series can hold on to some hope, as recent interviews with the band indicate an openness to return to markets they missed on their latest in a long history of farewell tours.

Learn more about The Who and their future at thewho.com. Read Daltrey and Townshend’s reflections on their last North American outing here.