The Who have to be one of the most exciting bands to ever see live in concert. The energy they put into their performances and music is electrifying. In February 1968 and March 1976, The Who performed gigs in the same venue: The Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco.  Teenage Wasteland–The Who at Winterland is an all-access look at those two shows, and the years in-between.

This beautifully put-together hardback, glossy book, with the dedication at the beginning stating “To every teenager who right now in this moment, lonely in his or her room, is discovering The Who”, was compiled by Edoardo Genzolini (with a foreword by Joel Selvin) and has 250+ pages of never-before seen archived photos and accounts from people and fans who were there at each individual gig. The Who’s career spanned highs and lows over the years and these two gigs seem to bookend that rollercoaster.

America first discovered The Who when they toured in the summer of ‘67, which included a definitive performance at the Monterey Pop Festival in California. When they first arrived in San Francisco in June ‘67, it was the Summer of Love, a huge cultural phenomenon that saw young people flock to the Haight-Ashbury district. Creative, new ways of thinking were expressed at this time including the anti-war movement, Eastern spiritual philosophy, and the taking of LSD and other psychedelic drugs. Rock music was a huge part of this new culture.

Bill Graham, who managed Jefferson Airplane during ‘67 and ’68, was a rock promoter at the time, who booked bands at the Fillmore Auditorium, where many acts of the time played, including Jimi Hendrix. The venue actively nurtured creativity. When the Who played there, it opened a whole new world of live performances for them, particularly Pete Townshend.

Teenage Wasteland contains some great anecdotes and stories from fans who were there in the dressing room at the time, creating a touching portrait of a moment in time. The Who’s San Francisco experience changed the direction of the band forever. On the flight home, after taking psychedelic drugs, Pete experienced a traumatising ‘near-death’ trip and ended up moving away from these powerful substances. That year he discovered the spiritual teachings of Meher Baba, who would deeply affect him and his beliefs from then on.  Baba believed that psychedelics drugs took one further away from reality and enlightenment.  At the time, many people used psychedelics to attain higher states of consciousness, but Baba thought they were ‘delusion within illusion’.  However, his caveat was that he believed that LSD could be used beneficially for depression, alcoholism and certain mental problems.