The Who were tricked into giving a concert?

[TrishDaDish]

I'm not sure of the year for this, late 90's or early 00's (Entwistle was still alive, if this helps). I heard that The Who was asked to pay a concert for a "corporation", I think it was supposed to be for a new website of some kind, and the concert would be broadcast on it. They played the gig, but later learned the "company" they were playing for was a fake, and only a select few people saw it, it wasn't broadcast. However, it was taped and put out on DVD.

Does this seem like a lot of hooey, The Who just giving a concert for an upstart website that doesn't even exist? Or was the whole tale of the con job hooey to begin with, just to sell the DVD?

[stoolie]

I wonder if this relates to the Olde Springfield / New Springfield area code episode. Did they base The Who playing for Homer and Marge on the same UL?

[TrishDaDish]

Well, the DVD itself actually exists - just found some info on it on the old interweb - it's just the story behind the concert I find incredibly hard to believe. Are you telling me The Who were so hard for money, they put their differences aside yet again to do a gig for a fledgling dotcom no one's ever heard of?

Brief synopsis of the DVD

[Eddylizard]

Hopefully they Won't get fooled again.

[diddy]

Originally Posted by TrishDaDish

Well, the DVD itself actually exists - just found some info on it on the old interweb - it's just the story behind the concert I find incredibly hard to believe. Are you telling me The Who were so hard for money, they put their differences aside yet again to do a gig for a fledgling dotcom no one's ever heard of?

Brief synopsis of the DVD

Not to mention neglecting to charge a mint and not go through the usual channels (management, contracts, etc) that would probably reveal a fake company? Bands (no matter how they feel about each other) aren't going to sign a deal in this day and age that could destroy their reputation.

[TrishDaDish]

Also popping into my head: They find out it's fake, yet somehow this DVD of the concert exists. So who's getting the money for it? The guy who orchestrated the whole con? The Who? It just boggles the mind on so many different levels to me for this to be real, and not just a "concept concert/video".

[Jay Tea]

They're playing up the road on Sunday, though I daresay they won't have been duped into this one

[Ali Infree]

A concert in Las Vegas where John Entwhistle would die just before the start of an American tour.

Kind of ironic.

[BoKu]

Originally Posted by TrishDaDish

...So who's getting the money for it?...

Maybe, maybe not.

Bob "Watt's on second" K.

[James G]

Originally Posted by TrishDaDish

I'm not sure of the year for this, late 90's or early 00's (Entwistle was still alive, if this helps). I heard that The Who was asked to pay a concert for a "corporation", I think it was supposed to be for a new website of some kind, and the concert would be broadcast on it. They played the gig, but later learned the "company" they were playing for was a fake, and only a select few people saw it, it wasn't broadcast. However, it was taped and put out on DVD.

The story is ringing bells, although I'm not sure what it is reminding me of. Unfortunately there are so many stories of the Dot-com boom of the 90s that they are all melding together in my head. Don't forget that at this time there were people investing in companies that didn't even exist, with money that didn't exist on concepts which were enitrely fanciful. But I do remember something regarding The Who, eraly internet broadcasting and corruption. (Does anyone else think the dot-com boom was reminiscent of the gold rush?)

A little bit of Googling suggests that this may be the story I was remembering, and possibly the one which has become corrupted into this:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2000/04..._confesses_he/

(Note: The Register isn't the most reliable of news sources, and although the basics will be acurate they are likely to put a bit of a spin on the details.)

ETA: More on pixelon:

http://www.wired.com/techbiz/media/news/2000/05/36243
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m...12/ai_56210433

[Joostik]

Isn't it the management which arrainges all the concert bookings? Would the band members even be that much involved at all? It's not that they personally just decided to pick up their guitars and play at the local pub.