The Who "The Kids Are Alright"

Half its members may be dead and its leader may be keeping a low profile, but the Who remains enormously popular. Devotees who haven't availed themselves of Jeff Stein's thrilling, self-mocking 1979 documentary about the group shouldn't wait another minute now that the film has been painstakingly--perhaps heroically--restored to its theatrical-release length from original elements. The sound is clearer than on previous video releases, images are once more crisp and color-rich, and adjustments in tape speed make the Who sound like themselves again, particularly in vintage television performances and filmed club dates from as far back as the band's sonically thrilling, early R&B period. Special features are, shall we say, extensive: 100 or so minutes of multiple-angle footage, an insightful interview with Roger Daltrey, a featurette about the film's restoration, and a mesmerizing, isolated John Entwistle audio track.