The Who's John Entwistle died 21 years ago. Listen to this thunderous example of his talent…
Today, we're taking some time out to remember the legendary John "The Ox" Entwistle of the Who.
Below, check out some extraordinary footage of Entwistle's isolated bass track from the Who's Won't Get Fooled Again, as performed May 25, 1978, at the U.K.'s Shepperton Studios. Entwistle, who is standing in front of a wall of Sunn cabinets, is playing his Alembic Spyder bass (Dean makes a limited-run version of this bass, the USA John Entwistle Spider).
The performance is from a mini-concert set up by the band for use in The Kids Are Alright, their career-spanning 1979 documentary. It turned out to be the last performance, ever, by the original lineup of the band. Drummer Keith Moon, who is noticeably bloated in the multi-camera, full-band version of the performance below (bottom video), died just a few months later, on September 7, 1978, at age 31 after mixing the alcohol-withdrawal drug Clomethiazole with alcohol.
Sadly, Entwistle died June 27, 2002, at age 57 while the Who were on tour in Las Vegas. The local medical examiner determined that his death was due to a heart attack induced by cocaine.
The next day, the Who's Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey published a tribute on Townshend's website, saying, "The Ox has left the building; we've lost another great friend."
Regardless of the fact that the band were clearly rusty in May 1978, this footage of Won't Get Fooled Again is one of the most exciting and powerful Who performances caught on film. And then there's Daltrey's freaking amazing scream at 7:50. Enjoy!
After Entwistle's death, bass playing duties were taken on by Pino Palladino until 2017, and by Jon Button since then.
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Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
