You gotta roll with it and be lucky
The Who performs at Madison Square Garden as part of its farewell tour on Aug. 30, 2025.
A frontman and guitarist whose most meaningful work relies on the other, yet whose relationship is marred by decades of strain.
Working class Brits who dominated their era in music, yet who lost years of albums and tours to personal and artistic strife.
And oh so many anthems.
Two acts — one taking a well-earned victory lap, the other perhaps back to stay — were in action on successive nights over Labor Day weekend in the New York City area. Or, as the latter put it, “New Jersey vibes in the area!”
Saturday brought The Who to Madison Square Garden for what Pete Townshend said was “probably” the last time. On Sunday (and again Monday) it was Oasis’ turn as the reunited Gallagher brothers headlined MetLife Stadium for the first time, part of a box office-smashing comeback tour that has already spanned continents.
It’s no stretch to say you don’t get to Oasis without Townshend and Roger Daltrey, who opened their lone New York City gig on their final U.S. trek with their first hit. “I Can’t Explain” still conjures all that The Who has meant to pop culture, with Townshend’s crunching guitar leads recalling the swinging 60s pop art scene and the Mods and Rockers whose youthful skirmishes inspired weightier work to come in the form of 1973’s “Quadrophenia.”
Cliche-embracing rock writers have been pointing to the irony of “My Generation”’s “Hope I die before I get old” lyric dating back to the band’s first farewell tour in 1982. Townshend has since called labeling it such a mistake, but in the 21st century, every chance to see the group perform its rich catalogue has felt like a fleeting one, especially after the death of bassist John Entwistle on the eve of a tour in 2002.
Recognizing the vanishing window to hear these songs live, I’ve caught The Who six times since the 2012 “Quadrophenia” tour, plus two Daltrey solo gigs and Townshend’s “Classical Quadrophenia.” The older they’ve gotten — the two survivors are both in their 80s now — the more thrilling it has been to watch them continue to pull off their high-wire act.
The music is especially difficult to sing, and while Townshend joked at the Garden about how easy it is for him to perform, he recently had a knee replaced and sat for Saturday’s acoustic numbers.
Bootlegs of the band in its punchy prime show everything that made The Who famous — it was loud, chaotic, sometimes shambolic, but always concussive and unmissable. And so you could forgive what was an off night in some places in this more polished era, which included a backup singer, a new drummer, and a percussionist.
Daltrey seemed unhappy with the mix, briefly got a half-measure ahead on “The Real Me,” and botched a line or two in “Baba O’Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” songs he’s performed hundreds of times since starting the band as a teenager. In fact, a triumphant moment came when, unsatisfied with the climactic ending of “Love, Reign O’er Me,” he backed up, did it again, and nailed it.
Notable omissions, at least for me, included “Join Together,” “The Kids Are Alright,” and anything from the group’s latest release, 2019’s “Who.” (Over the same weekend in the same venue in 2019, while performing with an orchestra, they played two new ones; there was clearly no wiggle room in this setlist, a six-decade valedictory, with even the seminal “Tommy” limited to two songs.)
Rough patches aside, it seems my lasting image of The Who live will be the capper to this 36th MSG appearance. After a titular “The Song Is Over” with updated lyrics for the farewell tour occasion, the backing band left just Roger and Pete to play “Tea & Theatre,” a touching acoustic tune off 2006’s “Endless Wire.” Arm around Townshend, Daltrey sang the autobiographical lyrics with obvious gratitude: “We did it all, didn’t we?”
Earlier, the setlist included one audible from recent dates, the “Odds & Sods” rarity “Long Live Rock.” Performed for the first time since 2014 and just the fifth time this century, it proclaims “Long Live Rock! Be it dead or alive.”
They’ve been forthright about the reasons for stopping. Touring is a grind and health is always a question. The Who, octogenarians now and wrapping up years of what Daltrey termed “the long goodbye,” may be leaving the road. But they showed they’re very much alive on the way out.
Oasis performing at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey Aug. 31, 2025.
So who’s next?
As unlikely as it is to see The Who still standing strong late in 2025, before last summer, the Adidas bucket hat seemed to be gathering dust for good. But that was before Noel and Liam Gallagher put aside 16 years of bickering and promises never to work together again and reformed Oasis for its first gigs since an implosion in Paris ended the group, sending the siblings off into competing side bands and dueling tabloid insults.
Beating the odds, the brothers survived a year of buildup to the 2025 sellouts without much promotion or, crucially, coming apart yet again before a note could be played.
And as for the music: the rapturous reviews of earlier gigs in Europe and Chicago were spot-on. Oasis at the home field of the Jets and Giants sounded well-rehearsed and excited to be there. “Nobody’s got fans like this,” Noel Gallagher said after two hours of straight ahead, stand-and-play, guitar-driven 90s pop rock that kept 70,000 fans on their feet and hopping for all 23 songs.
The setlist hasn’t varied while Oasis has been reborn, and no matter. Liam was in strong voice throughout, capturing the group’s blistering attitude as perfected on the 90s albums “Definitely Maybe” and “(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?” that dominated the set.
The handful of Noel songs offered more heart and nuance, none more than the encore performance of “Don’t Look Back In Anger.” A stadium anthem from the band’s first iteration, its chorus was carried by a jubilant crowd, many of whom long regretted that our chance to see Oasis at the height of its powers had come and gone.
It’s not known if this unlikely Oasis resurrection will last beyond more far-flung shows this fall. Nor is it known if the band is working on new music. It was a reminder to enjoy the reunion on its own terms. As the giant screen said while the band was coming out, “THIS IS HAPPENING.”
It happened. It’s happening. Oasis is back together. They’re playing as well as ever. And when Liam Gallagher wailed “Tonight, I’m a rock ‘n’ roll star,” there wasn’t a bigger one on the planet. You just hope it can live forever.