| Main Performers | Roy Guest,
Chuck Berry - vocal |
| Orchestra or Band | The Who (Roger Daltrey - vocals, Pete Townshend - lead guitar, John Entwistle - bass guitar, Keith Moon - drums)
Renaissance (Keith Relf - guitar, vocal, Jim McCarty - drums, vocal, Louis Cennamo - bass guitar, John Hawken - piano, Jane Relf - vocal) |
| Set List | The Who:
'Do You Think It's Alright?',
'Fiddle About',
'There's a Doctor',
'Go to the Mirror!',
'Smash the Mirror',
'I'm Free',
'Tommy's Holiday Camp',
'We're Not Gonna Take It',
'Substitute',
'My Generation',
'Shakin' All Over', J Kidd and The Pirates |
| Performance Notes | The final Gig (5th July) was headlined by The Who with support from Chuck Berry. Berry was uncomfortable with the playing order (he topped the Bill the night before) so he was allowed to close the 1st of the 2 Shows (5.30pm and 8.30pm) on the 5th. Unfortunately, the 5th July also coincided with the Stones Hyde Park Free Concert and therefore numerous Rockers and Teddy Boys took advantage of seeing Chuck Berry at the Albert Hall. When the Who appeared for their 2nd Show a riot broke out and Townshend struggled to regain control launching into a raucous version of "Summertime Blues".
"Fittingly Saturday's Pop Prom at the Albert Hall, the last of what may become an annual series, presented two of the big names in pop history - Chuck Berry, one of the archetypal rock and roll performers, and The Who, the outstanding modern British group. Equally fittingly a small platoon of rockers turned up from the last to mob Chuck Berry and even smash a chair or two, while The Who were received with calm enthusiasm.
The difference between them was that while Berry relied on his past successes, The Who presented a series of numbers from their latest record, which though billed as a pop opera is really a song cycle with a coherent narrative. The whole thing has been impressively worked out entirely in pop terms, and that means a sustained level of invention with an equally relentless level of volume; if you can accept both, you can recognise that pop has come a long way since Chuck Berry, even if it still has a long way to go.
At the same time Berry, an immaculate singer and guitarist, has a relaxed buoyancy in his music which seems to have been lost along the road to progress. Modern pop sometimes seems too dogged and hard working to be much fun. M K .
(The Times, 7 July 1969)
Roger Daltrey's debut Royal Albert Hall performance.
Renaissance replaced Bodast who were originally booked to play. |
| Related Archival Material | Programme (RAHE/1/1969/78) |