Last night was our 2008 tribute to the Who, and it rocked. Oh…you didn’t watch it? Busy doing laundry or listening to Coldplay? Well save whatever lame excuses you have to offer, and start thanking us, because we’ve got every performance from last night’s show right here. Just click on the above video to watch Rainn Wilson’s “special” “Pinball Wizard” tribute, performances from Tenacious D, Foo Fighters, Incubus and Pearl Jam, and of course, the rock icons themselves the Who. No need to thank us. Just watch.

Not near a television? You should be, as Rock Honors: The Who is going down right now, featuring every rock stars’ rock star. Don’t worry though — we’ve got some highlights from the show below. Check it out and tell us which one is your favorite!

It’s not until you hear them play a Who song that you realize Pearl Jam take so much from the band – and on “Love Reign O’er Me,” they give it back. The track’s a frequent cover in the grunge godfathers’ set, and its obvious why: Vedder wails through the song, pleading, as the rest of the band shreds to keep up. 

It wouldn’t be a party if Boy in the Bubble and Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne didn’t roll around in the audience in his big inflatable ball for a while, getting the crowd appropriately amped as they play the beginnings of “See Me, Feel Me” (which Wayne told us before the show was a personal favorite) before launching into a searing medley from Tommy that includes “Pinball Wizard.” To find out what else the Oklahoma psych-rockers played, check the clip above. 

For Tenacious D frontman Jack Black to call the Who “the greatest band of all time” is a pretty big deal, as that’s usually a title he saves for his own band. Watch the merry pranksters strum through a fun version of “Squeezebox” in the clip above. 

The gentlemen from Pearl Jam had an excellent time worshiping at the alter of the Who on Saturday night when we taped this year’s Rock Honors, but don’t take our word for it. In the clip above, watch the grunge godfathers tear it up when they play “The Real Me” (and check out the typically scowling Eddie Vedder’s huge grin at the end).

Can’t wait for tomorrow night’s show? Check out live performances from the Who and the Foo Fighters on-stage, and read our behind-the-scenes coverage of the event. Want to hit next year’s in the flesh? Enter to win, and you just may end up there.

Our man on the scene, Steve Pavlopoulos, was delivering up-to-the-minute reports from Rock Honors: The Who (which taped this weekend) on what you’ll see tomorrow, July 17th at 9 pm on VH1. Check out his behind-the-scenes look at what went down on rock’s front lines. The following report comes from the Foo Fighters‘ soundcheck, but watch the above video to see how it all pans out!

I’m sitting back by the celebrity trailer park that is home to the rock legends who have come out to play here at the UCLA campus for Rock Honors and everything appears to be going swimmingly (or at least that’s what they want me to think). The Garnier Green Room (sponsored by Garnier – get it?) is a hotbed of drinking, hors d’oevres, people who have VIP status and Rock Band. So far, we’ve seen Jack Black and Kyle Gass of Tenacious D fame, the Foo Fighters, Eddie Vedder, Kiefer Sutherland, and Gaz Coombes of Supergrass (more on that later). As far as I can tell, rock stars are unanimous on at least one thing: riding in electric golf carts rules. I sort of get it – your hair flies freely in the wind, you can silently maneuver the outside of the venue, and you can deliver high fives to any passerby who might want a little skin.

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This year’s Rock Honors taped this weekend, and we had The Office’s Rainn Wilson sneak backstage to get the scoop from this year’s performers (Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters) and the main event (the Who). Watch Rainn diss Pearl Jam and talk Rock Band with Pete Townsend in the above clips, and be sure to tune in Thursday at 9/8c to watch what went down on-stage. We’ll also have more backstage reports all week, so check back!

Want to head to next year’s Rock Honors? Enter here to win tickets to 2009’s event.

Our man on the scene, Steve Pavlopoulos, was delivering up-to-the-minute reports from Rock Honors: The Who (which taped this weekend) on what you’ll see this Thursday, July 17th at 9 pm on VH1. Check out his behind-the-scenes look at what went down on rock’s front lines. The above shot is from Saturday night’s festivities — check out more shots for a sneak peek at the show. Can’t wait to see Pearl Jam on Thursday? Watch them rock right now.

These events do this to me every time: I look forward to them before they come up, but when they actually happen, I am completely blown away by what I consider a once-in-a-lifetime live music experience. I walked out of the Pavilion at the beginning of Pearl Jam’s soundcheck and had to stop to look back in awe. (No kidding – and probably the first time I’ve ever been seen rocking out while carrying a $3,000 tripod.) From the first chord, you could tell that they meant business. They know (and love) this music, as the Who is in their lifeblood. Expect their set to be filled with songs from Quadrophenia, with the help of a string and horn section. The best thing about this venue is that when you exit the Pavilion, you can still hear the music pouring out and enveloping a good portion of the UCLA campus in glorious rock.

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Our man on the scene, Steve Pavlopoulos, was delivering up-to-the-minute reports from Rock Honors: The Who (which taped this weekend) on what you’ll see this Thursday, July 17th at 9 pm on VH1. Check out his behind-the-scenes look at what went down on rock’s front lines. The above shot is from Saturday night’s festivities — check out more shots for a sneak peek at the show.

After a big night of some good-natured, post-work partying (Sunday morning, the hotel lobby was abuzz with talk of the “robe party” that rocked the 18th floor –- all I’m at liberty to say is leopards and zebras know how to bring the fun), I was back at work running around, carrying things, sitting in chairs, and taking care of business…
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Tonight, a sold-out crowd of 6,000 lucky fans watched The Who play an intimate, hour-long set of their most memorable songs at UCLA’s Pauley Pavillion. Incubus, Pearl Jam, The Flaming Lips, Foo Fighters and Tenacious D also took the stage and paid tribute to The Who by covering some of the band’s biggest hits. In addition to rockers, stars like David Duchovny, Rainn Wilson, Mila Kunis, Sean Penn and Adam Sandler were on hand to honor the most explosive band in rock.

Highlights of VH1’s 2008 Rock Honors included:

Gaz Coombes of Supergrass joining Foo Fighers on stage for “Bargain.”

Rainn Wilson from The Office as the pinball wizard (”from Scranton down to Fresno, I must’ve played ‘em all”).

Wayne Coyne getting passed around the audience in an inflatable space ball.

Mila Kunis and her dress.

Tenacious D’s acoustic version of “Squeeze Box.”

Pearl Jam accompanied by a ten-piece string section on “Love, Reign O’er Me.”

Adam Sandler’s musical intro of The Who (to the tune of “Magic Bus”).

Roger Daltrey’s trademark “Won’t Get Fooled Again” scream.

Jeremy Piven’s date might deserve an honorable mention. (No image available, unfortunately.)

Tune in to VH1 on Thursday July 17 at 9PM ET to see the entire show (and see it in HD on MHD) and check out VH1.com throughout the week to see sneak preview performances from Foo Fighters and The Who as well as exclusive, behind-the-scenes interviews hosted by Rainn Wilson from The Office. After Thursday’s show, VH1.com will feature exclusive The Who songs that didn’t air on TV.

Full set list and rundown after the jump …

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Rockers like Foo Fighters‘ Dave Grohl and the Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne payed tribute to The Who this weekend along with reality TV stars like Lauren Conrad and Kim Kardashian. Below, check pics from Rock Honors’ red carpet and Intermix’s 3rd Annual VH1 Rock Honors VIP Party. Tune in Thursday, July 17 to watch the big show.

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Rock Honors 2008 Web site

The stage is being set for Rock Honors: The Who at the Pauley Pavilion. I’m lucky enough to have an all-access pass, and walking around a day before the show, you can tell something big is in the air. The monitors are being tested and the psychedelic images are flowing –- giant pulsating speakers, trees, planets — I see it all, man (and it totally makes sense). OK, so there may be one or two acid flashbacks in the course of reporting, but this is the Who, and if you’ve seen the movie Tommy, we should be on the same page.

To find out what’s going on behind the scenes the day before the big show, take the jump.

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The Flaming Lips Rehearsing from Irreversibility on Vimeo.

See them, feel them, touch them, heal them? Word has it that the Flaming Lips will string together an array of tunes by the Who for their segment of this week’s Rock Honors bash. By the looks of the above rehearsal footage, it’ll include “I’m Free” and “Pinball Wizard.” The show airs Thursday night at 9/8c. Come back to the blog this Sunday morning for the first photos of Saturday night’s event.

Get psyched for the loud stuff by checking our playlist of Who videos, and photo gallery of wild on-stage antics.

Want to go to Rock Honors next year? Enter our sweepstakes.