Catching The Who’s last show in California — EVER

 Sunday the 21st of September was definitely a night to be remembered for those who attended The Who’s show at Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, California. Gracing stages across Canada and America for one final time, The Who’s The Song Is Over Farewell Tour brought special guests along for different shows along the way. Joining them for the Mountain View stop was early ’90s grunge band from Seattle, Candlebox.

As summer is winding down, days are getting shorter, causing the sun to be setting as Candlebox began their set, kicking off with “Arrow”, a track on their debut self-titled 1993 album. Founding member and lead singer Kevin Martin oozed charisma as he knocked out song after song. Six of the 10 songs played during their nearly hour-long set were from that self-titled 1993 album, proving it still rocks more than 30 years later. In between songs, Martin noted how beautiful Shoreline Amphitheater is and how the last time Candlebox played the Shoreline stage was when they opened for Metallica, replacing Alice In Chains back in 1994 for the Sh*t Hits The Sheds Tour. Sounded like a damn good time!

After the blast from the 90s past, out came The Who came to an enthusiastic crowd.

Eager to see the historic band hit the stage for the very last time in California, attendees cherished the third-to-last chanse to ever see The Who on North American soil again. For those that don’t know, the last shows are in Vancouver, BC on September 23rd, then Seattle on the 25th before the tour wraps on the 28th in Vegas at the MGM Grand Arena.

Legendary rock icons Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend walked out waving to the roaring crowd, while the rest of the band followed suit, playing the official debut single of The Who released exactly 60 years ago — “I Can’t Explain”. Pete Townshend went right to work, pulling off his signature windmill moves as The Who played all the hits from their extensive catalog, leaving no dull moments. Roger Daltrey was keeping up with Pete, swinging his microphone and even accompanying Townsend on rhythm guitar.

The highlight moment of the night was when everyone pulled out their phone flashlights midway through the show during “Behind Blue Eyes”, before we were all hit with “Eminence Front” and “My Generation”. 

The band did not let off the gas; it felt like being transported back in time!

Closing the set with “Love, Reign O’er Me”, “Won’t Get Fooled Again”, and “Baba O’Riley”, Roger Daltrey then did band introductions before a fitting finale song — “The Song Is Over”. Then, for the final encore The Who chose “Tea & Theatre” to be the very last song they played in the state of California.

All in all, The Who put on an absolutely stellar and beautiful show. I definitely did not have seeing The Who on my 2025 bingo card, so I’m beyond grateful to have had the opportunity! After over 60 years, Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey are sharing their passion with their loving, devoted fans one last time, closing out an era of being one of the greatest rock bands in all music history.

Photography by Katey Schoenberger

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