T.G.I.F. musings

- What's the over-under on how many songs The Who will play on Sunday at the Super Bowl halftime show? The band has 12 minutes of performance time, so my prediction is that they'll start with "I Can't Explain," their usual concert opener, followed by "Who Are You" and end with "Won't Get Fooled Again." Look for "Pinball Wizard," "Baba O'Riley" or perhaps a little "My Generation" (my upset pick) as the fourth song of the set. It'll have to be a medley similar to what we've seen recently from Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers.

- Is it just coincidence that The Who, whose songs appear on the CSI franchise, are appearing on a Super Bowl broadcast by CBS? Yes, the CSI shows are also shown on CBS.

- And, speaking of Super Bowl halftime acts, much is being written about the octogenarian twosome of Pete Townsend and Roger Daltrey following fellow classic rockers Springsteen, Petty, the Rolling Stones and Paul McCartney as headliners at the Super Bowl since the 2004 "wardrobe malfunction" incident. Even Prince, in 2007, is pushing the aging rocker/R&B-er envelope. So, my question is, who, of more recent vintage, is worthy of Super Bowl halftime status? The Black Eyed Peas? The Peas opened this past summer for U2--the same U2 who played the Super Bowl back in 2002. And, Fergie and company headlined this season's kickoff show for the NFL, affirming that the Peas aren't quite SB halftime worthy just yet. How about the Dave Matthews Band? Not a bad pick but I'm not sure that DMB has the verve, or broad appeal, to get a halftime crowd, at America's biggest annual sporting event, juiced up. Lady GaGa? Uh, really? I'm not sure how the Lady would appeal to the corporate suits who frequent the SB. Let's face it--classic rockers will likely continue to be the choice given their ability to appeal to a broad audience, even if a portion of the audience only knows their work as background for high viewership television shows.

- In case you missed it, Samantha Harris, co-host of Dancing With the Stars, has announced that she is leaving the show to focus on other projects. In an online poll, viewers were asked to name an ex-contestant who would do a good job succeeding Harris. Kelly Osbourne won the straw poll followed by Shawn Johnson and Lisa Rinna. Really? Have people quickly forgotten...Brooke Burke!?