The WHO — FrontRowPerspective

Atlantic City has always thrived on reinvention, but the air inside the historic Boardwalk Hall on Sept. 12 carried more weight than usual. This was the long-delayed Jersey Shore stop on The Who’s The Song Is Over tour, a date rescheduled from late August, and the sense among fans was unmistakable: this might be the last time these songs shake these walls.

The band came out swinging, no hesitation. “I Can’t Explain” and “Substitute” opened with youthful snap, Roger Daltrey’s voice digging into lines he first sang over 60 years ago, Pete Townshend answering with slashing chords and a few still-potent windmills. By the time “Who Are You” and “I Can See for Miles” hit, the hall felt like it had been pulled back into the muscle and menace of the Seventies. “Long Live Rock,” cheekily placed before “Pinball Wizard,” underscored the band’s refusal to let nostalgia sink into sentimentality.

The mid-show suite leaned on both power and intimacy. “See Me, Feel Me” still carried that communal, almost gospel release; “Love Ain’t for Keepin’” and “Behind Blue Eyes” reminded the audience that Townshend could write tenderness into even the most storm-tossed rock operas. The turn toward “Eminence Front” and “My Generation” was sharper, darker — the former still biting, the latter now a sly acknowledgment rather than a threat.

The backing musicians deserve credit, Scott Devours along with Jody Linscott kept the heartbeat huge and fluid, Simon Townshend’s rhythm and harmonies with John Hogg wrapped around Pete’s guitar, and Loren Gold’s keys provided orchestral breadth. Jon Button’s bass was a glue force all night, particularly on “Cry If You Want” and “You Better You Bet,” where the groove could easily have gone off-kilter.

The momentum built through the Quadrophenia selections: “The Real Me,” “I’m One,” and “5:15” carried both grit and melancholy. Daltrey’s delivery on “Love, Reign O’er Me” — shaky in places but redeemed with bursts of volcanic power — earned one of the night’s longest ovations.

The homestretch was classic Who theater. “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “Baba O’Riley” had Boardwalk Hall roaring, the crowd filling in where Daltrey’s voice faltered, Townshend straining and smiling through every guitar strike. But the two-part finale made the evening unique. “The Song Is Over” — long a fan favorite, rarely a set staple — was delivered with elegiac force, as though the band were staring directly at the title. And then, the lights dimmed and it was just Roger and Pete, side by side for “Tea & Theatre.” Acoustic, fragile, and painfully human, it was a farewell without pomp: two men acknowledging their partnership and their audience, as stripped-down as they began.

This tour has been a patchwork of triumph and imperfection, but Atlantic City crystallized its purpose. The Who are not trying to recreate 1975. They are writing an honest last chapter, with a backing band strong enough to keep the canvas taut while Daltrey and Townshend sketch whatever final lines they can.