| Around noon, Thursday, June 27, John Entwistle was found dead in his Las
Vegas hotel room. At the same time, Sonja and I were on a plane heading towards Vegas for a two-day vacation. We were going to celebrate the 16th anniversary of our first date, explore the hotels on the strip, relax by the pool, and enjoy a few days away from the kids. But of course the REAL reason we were going to Las Vegas was to see The Who play the first show of their 2002 tour at the Hard Rock hotel. We got to Vegas and began our vacation, oblivious to John’s death that morning. Who stops to read the news when in Vegas? Where would you even find a newspaper in a city where you can’t even find a clock? Friday morning I awoke and couldn’t believe this was the day! In less than 12 hours, we would be at our seats – on John’s side – watching The Who! I went down to the hotel cafe to get pastries and coffee, singing "Shakin’ All Over" (The Who’s rendition, of course) in the elevator. As I stood in line to get into the cafe, I looked through the window and spotted a local paper. A big photo of Entwistle on the cover! Not Pete or Roger, but John! Pretty cool, I thought, and leaned closer to the glass to read the headline, and my view was something like this:
The text over the photo reads: John Entwistle For a second I stared. Then I pushed my way past the others in line and raced through the door to the newspaper rack. I couldn’t believe it. The full headline read, "Bassist for The Who found dead in Las Vegas hotel room." I don’t know how long I stood with the paper in my hand, staring at the photo and text. Finally I got back in line, read the article, and mindlessly ordered my coffee. Could it be true? I kept looking around the cafe. Everyone else was acting perfectly normal, as if nothing had changed in the world. How could that be if John was dead? I looked at the paper, and again at the crowds around me. It was as if I was staring at a headline "Nuclear War in Asia" and no one else seemed to care. By the time I got back to the hotel room, Sonja had been on the phone and learned of his death as well. It was true, not just some horrible mistake or joke in the local paper. We decided the thing to do was go to the Hard Rock. I wasn’t sure what to expect there, and didn’t know if I wanted to talk to others or not. I certainly didn’t want to get caught in a crowd of gawkers... "ooh, look honey, here’s where that old guy from The Who died." But I needed to go. I put on the closest thing to a Who shirt that I had with me: Pete Townshend and Eddie Vedder on the front, and a small target on the back with the words in a circle "nothing is everything is nothing is everything...". I wrote JAE RIP around the target. It felt important to me that other people knew I wasn’t a gawker or a casual fan who happened to be walking by the Hard Rock. I was – am – a huge Who fan. Over the years I’ve loved them more than any other band. Occasionally they’d slip down my "favorite" list by a few notches, but every time I saw them play live (and that includes every tour to hit California since 1980) they became my favorite again. When we got to the Hard Rock hotel – where The Who were scheduled to play that evening and where John’s body was found the day before – the huge lighted sign in front read "John Entwistle – We will miss you." We walked inside and heard "Boris the Spider" playing in the background. Not just at the entry, but throughout the entire casino. Over the next hour or two that we were there, they played rotating rock songs, but lots of them were The Who, and lots of those were John’s songs. A nice touch, especially because I had no other way of listening to The Who on this trip, since I didn’t bring any music with me. We crossed the casino and found The Joint – the 1400 seat venue where The Who were supposed to play that night. On either side of the door there were large flower arrangements (from the hotel?) and smaller bouquets and flowers on the floor from fans. Several Who postcards. The Bhagavad-Gita. A picture of Entwistle with the opening verse from "Heaven and Hell" hand-written across the top. Above the open door to The Joint hung the Union Jack. Inside, the lights were dimmed, and the DVD "Classic Albums – Who’s Next" was playing on the large video screens to the sides of the stage. The stage stood empty and dark, except for the Hard Rock Joint logo on the back wall. There were maybe 20 people milling about or sitting, talking quietly. Sonja and I went to the spot where I guessed our seats would have been (the chairs were all folded), and we sat on the floor. I stared at the stage. We should be seeing The Who there. It should be loud. It should be crowded. People should be drunk and obnoxious, yelling for Magic Bus, or for Pete to smash his guitar. I should be jumping up and down and up and down singing along with every song. Moaning at the opening drum beat of Magic Bus (but then enjoying the song anyway), looking down my nose at those who yell for Pete to smash his guitar (but secretly wishing he would). But it was dark and quiet. And people were reverential, including the casual walkers-by who seemed sincere as they looked at the flowers and Union Jack and poked their heads inside the Joint. We walked back out and I knew – absolutely knew – that the current tour would be cancelled. And I would have bet good money that Roger and Pete would never tour together again. Maybe a few benefits together, but I couldn’t imagine them on stage as The Who. Of course, I was wrong. Pete and Roger have announced that the tour will continue. Today (June 30) they’re in Los Angeles rehearsing, and will play Monday, four days after John’s death, in Los Angeles with Pino Palladino on bass. And I’ll see them two days after that at Shoreline. And I’ll keep my Vegas tickets and presumably later this summer or fall Sonja and I will stand at The Joint and stare not at an empty stage, but at The Who. Without John or Keith, but still The Who. I still can’t quite believe that John died last Thursday. Or for a flash I do believe he’s dead, but then I can’t believe I’m going to see The Who next Wednesday. I don’t fault Roger or Pete for going on, it’s just that I can’t believe it. Is this good for them? For fans? I don’t know... ask me next week. Ask Pete next fall. For now, though, my thoughts go out to John’s family and friends; to Pete and Roger and everyone else on the tour; and to all the fans who are as shocked and saddened as I am. Evan June 30, 2002
For more info on the status of the current tour, and to read Pete's and Roger's comments, go to:
Heaven and Hell On top of the sky Why can't we have eternal life In the place up above And down in the ground Why can't we have eternal life
|
