In 1977, while Jeff Stein was compiling The Kids Are Alright, his excellent documentary on legendary British rockers the Who, the filmmaker felt he lacked strong film footage of several classic Who tunes and wanted performances that would bring the picture up to date. With this in mind, Stein arranged for the Who to play a show to be filmed for the movie, and six 35mm film cameras were on hand when the band took the stage at the State Kilburn Theatre on December 15, 1977. However, Pete Townshend was openly disappointed with the Who's show that day (even saying on camera "This wasn't f--king worth filming, Stein -- might as well send the cameramen home" midway through their set), and they shot another concert several months later that was used in the movie. However, more than three decades later the Kilburn State Theatre set has finally been made available on the DVD release The Who at Kilburn 1977. Compared to the Who's best work on film, The Who at Kilburn 1977 does capture the band on a relative off night -- Keith Moon is clearly out of shape and has trouble keeping up with the band, while John Entwistle and Roger Daltrey appear to be a bit out of practice -- but Townshend is on fire throughout the show, and this footage confirms that the Who were a powerfully exciting act even when they weren't delivering one hundred percent. The Who at Kilburn 1977 delivers two flawed but fascinating shows from one of the greatest bands in rock history, and serious Who fans will certainly want this in their collection.



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