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The Who have agreed to play during halftime at Super Bowl XLIV, a source close to the performance confirms to Rolling Stone. “It’s 100 percent the Who,” the source says. “They signed a long time ago.” (Update: Sources later clarified that while the official contract is still unsigned, a deal is expected to be finalized shortly.) The official announcement from the band and the NFL is expected on Thanksgiving Day, according to another source familiar with the deal. The game, which will take place February 7th in Miami, will be broadcast on CBS.

Photos: U2, Prince, the Rolling Stones and more memorable Super Bowl halftime performances.

The Who will become the latest classic-rock act to play football’s big event, following Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Prince and Tom Petty. As Rolling Stone noted earlier today, the band has a solid relationship with CBS: three of the network’s CSI series use Who tracks — “Who Are You,” “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “Baba O’ Riley” — as their theme songs. (more…)

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During last night’s Monday Night Football game, just after the Baltimore Ravens intercepted a tipped Cleveland Browns pass for a touchdown in the third quarter, ESPN cunningly used the Who’s “My Generation” as the musical bed for the instant replay before fading to commercial. For fans of the NFL and Tommy, ESPN’s use of the Who was a not-so-subtle nod to unconfirmed reports that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band will be the latest classic rockers to soundtrack the Super Bowl XLIV halftime show in 2010.

If the rumors of the Who rocking the Super Bowl are true, Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend would join Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Prince and Tom Petty as the musical entertainment in the post-Janet Jackson Nipplegate era. And let’s be honest, we can all imagine Townshend knee-sliding into millions of living rooms.

Photos: U2, Prince, The Rolling Stones and More Memorable Super Bowl Halftime Performances. (more…)

Last night’s Super Bowl was one of the most intense and dramatic championship games in recent memory, and Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers’ halftime performance was equally impressive. Despite the show’s opening flourishes, Petty didn’t trot out any elaborate pyro, strange props or guest appearances from Kid Rock; rather, he and his band simply delivered a four-song set of stout, no-nonsense rock and roll that included the classics “I Won’t Back Down,” “Free Fallin” and “Runnin’ Down a Dream.” Check out the show-opening rendition of “American Girl” (complete with the odd guitar-impregnating-a-heart light effects) above and bask in the beauty of Petty’s charisma (and be sure to bask in the glow of the Giants victory while you’re at it).