RobbieReverb
Joined: Feb 28, 2006
Posts: 2346
San Jose, Ca.
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 01:01 AM
Joelman
But Pete T. did it in a sorta regular fashion. Sometimes mid show. He must have had equiptment to throw away. I wonder if it irked his other band members?
I mean, how would the band keep playing with something like that going on?
Joel
In the early days of the Who, they were losing a lot of money
because of all the trashed equipment by Townshend and Keith
Moon. The management of the band (and I would guess, Daltry
and Entwistle)were not happy about the rapidly mounting bills
for equipment. But it was a double edged sword: the notoriety
brought them a lot of attention from both the music fans,
and the media. "There's no such thing as bad media" being
Townshend's rationale. He persuaded the management and
other band-members to hang in there, argueing that all the
notoriety would make them so huge that it wouldn't matter. It
probably didn't start as a scheme for success. I would guess
the volatile Townshend probably "went-off" one night and smashed
his axe. Seeing the audience's reaction probably led him to the
conclusion that this would get them a lot of attention, and it
"ramped-up" from there. Moon was an uncontollable lunatic on
and off stage, who happily followed Pete's lead.
I think the Who were so good they didn't need to resort to these
schemes to be successful. But who knows? Maybe they never
would have gotten the breaks to succeed without the
instrument smashing.
One thing I like about surf music is that the fans aren't there
strictly for the gimmicks. Surf fans love the music. If you have
a novelty angle (like Messhugga Beach Party) you'd better be
able to "back-it-up" (like they do) with great music and talent.
A lot of popular music fans are like sheep, flocking from the
latest fad to the next. And a lot of it has nothing to do with
talent, but with media exposure, gimmicks, and notoriety. If
you want massive success, you've got to capture the attention
of the "sheep". Sometimes good music alone will do it, but if
given a choice of really great music with no gimmicks, novelty,
or notoriety, or mediocre music with those things, most people
will invariably choose the mediocre music. When a band has
both tthe great music and the novelty, gimmicks or notoriety
(like the Who) it's almost a sure-thing for massive success
(unless you're playing surf, where massive success probably
isn't an option.)
Personally, I'd much rather play for a few people who genuinely
love the music than for a gazillion "sheep" who are there only
because you're the latest, greatest fad. I don't blame people
who are in it for the money, the adoration, or to attain society's
definition of success. But all I care about is the quality of the
music.
Sorry for the long winded reply... It kind of touched on something I
feel very strongly about. This is a very cool thread.
Bob
— Bob
|
Klas
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 2293
Stockholm, Sweden
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 06:11 AM
I don't think we ever smashed anything on purpose in the Daytonas but on occasion our shows ended up with everyone crashing into the drums making a bit damage I guess. Reason why? We were drunk!
— T H E ✠ S U R F I T E S
|
DannySnyder
Joined: Mar 02, 2006
Posts: 11050
Berkeley, CA
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 10:06 AM
Maybe I should start smashing shofars and boxes of matzoh on stage 
— Danny Snyder
"With great reverb comes great responsibility" - Uncle Leo
Playing keys and guitar with Combo Tezeta
Formerly a guitarist in The TomorrowMen and Meshugga Beach Party
Latest surf project - Now That's What I Call SURF
|
IronMaiden
Joined: Nov 02, 2006
Posts: 564
Virginia Beach
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 10:25 AM
I read that Townsend once said part of the reason he destroyed gear was to protest the high cost of guitars (60 dollars?) Personally Id LOVE to see someone smash a 20,000 dollar Mosrite, I know JohnnyMosrite would probably have a heart attack!
I understand the feeling of it being a waste, but the fact that it pisses a lot of people off I think is appealing too. (I always cringe when I see them blow up a Porsche or Ferrari in a movie.)
The best is the clip of Sid Viscious hitting a guy on the head with his bass, now thats cool!
|
Xotie
Joined: Apr 29, 2006
Posts: 22
Las Vegas NV
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 10:30 AM
Back in 67 or so - I was at concert at Griffith Park Auditorium where some radio station was hosting multiple artists, including the Who, the Animals, and the Association (really) on the same venue.
I was disappointed because the Who DIDN'T break anything (although they swung the guitars of and looked like they were going to...), but after the Animals set, Eric Burden jumped into the reflecting pool at the front of the stage.
The guy next to me yelled out, "You're a genius, Saint Eric!"
After hearing that, my buddy and I decided it was time to leave early..
— <i>"In the beginning there was Nothing. Then it Exploded"</i>
|
mom_surfing
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 5300
the outer banks of north carolina
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 11:32 AM
not only did PT beat the crap out of his guitar when i saw the who, he also jammed it through several of the speakers and through some of the heads on the drums. he beat that poor guitar senseless before the neck finally broke off. i wish i could remember what kind of guitar it was.
— www.surfintheeye.com
|
Redd_Tyde
Joined: Apr 23, 2006
Posts: 260
Oceanside, CA
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 12:32 PM
surfdaddy
  i haven't broken, burned or bashed any gear in years--but sometimes i want to  peace
Sometimes, I feel it would be easier to smash the instruments of the other band members when they start to over-complicate what should be a simple tune.
Getting them to understand vibe versus technical playing is like pulling your own teeth sometimes. 
You know what is worse than smashing your own gear up. Is watching someone else smash or destroy gear they borrowed from you. It hasn't happened with my musicial gear. But it has happened with surf gear. Leashes not attached t boards at rocky breaks. Forgetting to strap the board into the roof racks, or my favorite disaster - leaving my board on the ground behind the car and backing up over it. Lovely.
_RT
|
Redd_Tyde
Joined: Apr 23, 2006
Posts: 260
Oceanside, CA
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 04:58 PM
|
Surfabilly
Joined: Apr 21, 2006
Posts: 852
Connersville, Indiana, USA
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 06:46 PM
Didn't Pete Townsend once use his guitar like a baseball bat? Something about an over zealous fan rushing toward him, on stage...or something like that? My guess is that the dude had to have felt that, the next day (guessing he didn't feel it, then, for being too drunk, stoned or both).
Matt
— Fast Cars & Loud Guitars!
|
JakeDobner
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 12159
Seattle
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 06:54 PM
The person who he used his guitar against just wasn't a fan. It was Abbie Hoffman who rushed the stage to protest.
There is no video of this because they were switching reels. There is audio though. Hoffman says this didn't happen but everybody else says otherwise.
At Woodstock in 1969, Hoffman interrupted The Who's performance to attempt a protest speech against the jailing of John Sinclair of the White Panther Party. He grabbed a microphone and yelled, "I think this is a pile of shit! While John Sinclair rots in prison. . ." The Who's guitarist, Pete Townshend, unhappy with the interruption, cut Hoffman off mid-sentence, snarling, "Fuck off! Fuck off my fucking stage!" He then struck Hoffman with his guitar, sending him tumbling offstage. Townshend later said he actually agreed with Hoffman on Sinclair's imprisonment, though he made the point that he would have knocked him offstage regardless of his message. The audio of this event can be heard on the The Who's box set,Thirty Years of Maximum R&B (Disc 2, Track 20, "Abbie Hoffman Incident").
|
Joelman
Joined: Sep 07, 2006
Posts: 1488
Redlands, CA
|
Posted on Jan 28 2007 11:37 PM
RobbieReverb.> Sorry for the long winded reply... It kind of touched on something I
feel very strongly about. This is a very cool thread.
Bob
Not long winded at all. I think it is a very informitive reply.
mom_surfing> not only did PT beat the crap out of his guitar when i saw the who, he also jammed it through several of the speakers and through some of the heads on the drums. he beat that poor guitar senseless before the neck finally broke off.
Did the band stop playing, or did they have spare instruments?
As an aside. My ignorance stems from working for 36 years 6 days a week. Sometimes I worked two jobs. Hench my lack of musical, sports, and general life events knowledge.
Thank you all for your output! I have learned so much from this thread keep on keeping on guys.
Joel
|
WR
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 3832
netherlands
|
Posted on Jan 30 2007 04:27 AM
true story:
when I was 16 or 17 or so (yep, that's over 15 yrs ago, must have been early nineties) I was on a saturday afternoon in our local guitarshop, checking out guitars I could never afford and talking pedals, and being your regular "can I play stairway to heaven, please" kid. In walks this guy who works at the local music hall. he walks to the counter and says he wants to buy "a bunch" of cheap sunburst strat copies. me and the shop owner go   ...... then the guy explains, there's a band playing that night that has in their contract/technical rider 5 sunburst strat copies, which the venue has to supply, and which are intended to be smashed on stage during the gig. . 
it doesn't get more un-punk than that. 
WR
— Rules to live by #314:
"When in Italy, if the menu says something's grilled, don't assume it is."
https://www.facebook.com/The-Malbehavers-286429584796173/
|
ECsurf
Joined: Jan 04, 2007
Posts: 31
YOCO
|
Posted on Jan 30 2007 10:15 AM
Klas
I don't think we ever smashed anything on purpose in the Daytonas but on occasion our shows ended up with everyone crashing into the drums making a bit damage I guess. Reason why? We were drunk!
Understandable
— -Fly on little wing-
Couldn't Stand The Weather...
www.myspace.com/yougottabeshittenme
...add me...
|
dp
Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 3546
mojave desert, california
|
Posted on Jan 30 2007 10:35 AM
DannySnyder
Maybe I should start smashing shofars and boxes of matzoh on stage
I'd love to see what a case of matzoh looks like when several band members kick the sh*t out of it... during something like "the Wedge"...
|
JohnnyMosrite
Joined: Jun 14, 2006
Posts: 892
New York City area
|
Posted on Jan 31 2007 12:54 PM
To address IronMaiden - vis a vis:
"Personally Id LOVE to see someone smash a 20,000 dollar Mosrite, I know JohnnyMosrite would probably have a heart attack"
Naw, Iron - I wouldn't have a heart attack.. I'd just think to myself.. Look at that A**HOLE with more money than brains and very liitle 'value add' musically.
On the bright side of reality, what you suggest can't happen all that much.. there just aren't to many $20,000 Mosrites out there. And if your fantasies do come true.. great - now there is one (rare) Mosrite less and my stash goes up a few dollars in value.
Isn't capitalism great??
Smash away, then 
|
Jon
Joined: Mar 15, 2006
Posts: 1076
Columbus, OH
|
Posted on Jan 31 2007 04:19 PM
WR
true story:
when I was 16 or 17 or so (yep, that's over 15 yrs ago, must have been early nineties) I was on a saturday afternoon in our local guitarshop, checking out guitars I could never afford and talking pedals, and being your regular "can I play stairway to heaven, please" kid. In walks this guy who works at the local music hall. he walks to the counter and says he wants to buy "a bunch" of cheap sunburst strat copies. me and the shop owner go ...... then the guy explains, there's a band playing that night that has in their contract/technical rider 5 sunburst strat copies, which the venue has to supply, and which are intended to be smashed on stage during the gig. .
it doesn't get more un-punk than that.
WR
Wow, that is absurd. Did either of you say anything to him after he said that?
|
Dane_Brammage
Joined: Jun 14, 2006
Posts: 203
|
Posted on Feb 01 2007 12:23 PM
DannySnyder
Maybe I should start smashing shofars and boxes of matzoh on stage
I'll fly out to California to see that.
|
surfraptor
Joined: Dec 27, 2006
Posts: 336
near Amsterdam
|
Posted on Feb 01 2007 04:34 PM
You remember the band's name WR?
That sucks.
Did see the Who in 1968 on a big festival in England, no smashing anymore, the hype had worked I guess...
Keith Moon is another story, that was one crazy f**ker. The Golden Earring toured the US with the Who, they stayed in the same hotel.
At one point he refurnished his hotelroom, because that wasn't enough he smashed himself through the wall and ended up in the Earrings room. Now that's demolish work!
image
It's just a Gibson folks
|
mom_surfing
Joined: Feb 27, 2006
Posts: 5300
the outer banks of north carolina
|
Posted on Feb 01 2007 09:20 PM
mom_surfing> not only did PT beat the crap out of his guitar when i saw the who, he also jammed it through several of the speakers and through some of the heads on the drums. he beat that poor guitar senseless before the neck finally broke off.
Did the band stop playing, or did they have spare instruments?
it was the last song of the show.
— www.surfintheeye.com
|
Tuck
Joined: Sep 02, 2006
Posts: 3166
Denver, CO
|
Posted on Feb 13 2007 09:07 PM
Jeff Beck (playing with the Yardbirds) destroys a guitar in the club scene in the movie Blowup. My understanding is, the Yardbirds replaced the Who in this movie, and they were required to include one guitar smashing in the performance. Everything about this scene makes more sense if you mentally substitute the Who. In fact, mentally substitute Quadrophenia for Blowup, so the club scene isn't more or less gratuitous. On the whole, I'd rather hear a cool noise than see something smashed. However, I suppose the smashing fit the nihilist attitude of the band's crew.
|
December Birthdays 
