and popular live act, but were never going to set the world on fire. The discovery of a group going by a similar name prompted a change to The Who, and in 1964 a new member, Keith Moon (1946–78), took his place on the drum stool. Rechristened The High Numbers by publicist Pete Meaden in an attempt to ...
The Who became embroiled in legal proceedings with their record company and producer. Finally extricated from a restrictive contract, the group launched into a period of creative brilliance, spurred on by Townshend’s eloquence and knack for writing the perfect pop single. Encouraged by Lambert and influenced by classical composers such as Purcell and Scarlatti, Townshend experimented with elaborate ...
became infamous. On his return to the UK in 1978 he was woefully out of shape and, despite appearing indestructible, he died that September. Personalities | Introducing The Who Personalities | The Who | Rock Gods (1969) | Key Events ...
The band’s decision to continue, with Kenney Jones on drums, raised a few eyebrows. At first they proved the sceptics wrong by demonstrating that The Who were still an unstoppable live force. The honeymoon period came to an abrupt halt at the end of 1979, however, when tragedy struck in Cincinnati and 11 fans died. The new ...
been touring regularly ever since. An album, Endless Wire, was released in 2006 and marked the first recording of new material for 24 years. Personalities | Introducing The Who Personalities | The Who | Reunited & Revitalized (1985) | Key Events ...
in 1962. Although they enjoyed some success on the West London club circuit, it was not until Keith Moon joined them in July 1964 that the newly rechristened The Who really took off. Personalities | Introducing The Who Personalities | The Who | Up & Running (1964) | Key Events ...
new material for more than five months – a lifetime as far as the charts were concerned. Despite flirting with Rolling Stones representatives Andrew Oldham and Allen Klein, The Who managed to extricate themselves from Talmy’s grasp in August 1966. The price of freedom was dear, however – an out-of-court settlement which included an agreement that Talmy would receive ...
band played at a deafening volume in a venue more used to the relaxing sounds of jazz. The show was met with unanimous critical acclaim, and set up The Who well for their upcoming American tour. The Tommy Tour In May The Who set off for a two-month tour of America. Performing Tommy marked a shift in the group’s live ...
January Kenney Jones Joins The Who The Who without Keith Moon was hard to imagine. No other drummer in the history of rock music had treated the drums so badly and yet played them so well, turning them into a lead instrument. He was surely an impossible act to follow. Daltrey, Townshend and Entwistle thought otherwise, and quickly ...
July Live Aid Two and a half years after the final show of their farewell tour, The Who reunited to play Live Aid at Wembley Stadium on 13 July 1985. The worldwide event, masterminded by Bob Geldof’s Band Aid charity, was to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. The band’s four-song performance was little short of shambolic ...
to take the band and mould it for a mod audience. A change of look, a change of musical direction and even a change of name – from The Who to The High Numbers – rapidly followed, as the band became the focal point of the mod movement. A single, ‘Zoot Suit’/‘I’m The Face’, was released but sold ...
January Saville Theatre Concerts With a new record label (Lambert and Stamp’s Track Records) and the lure of America ahead, the year started well. The Who appeared at the Saville Theatre in Shaftesbury Avenue for one of Brian Epstein’s Sunday Soundarama shows. Playing two performances on 29 January, the supporting bill included Track stablemates The Jimi Hendrix Experience, ...
intended to mark the end of Tommy as the focal point of the stage show, and new material was introduced into the act. The relentless touring continued and The Who returned to the Isle Of Wight Festival in August, this time as headliners. The Aquarian festival dream of Monterey and Woodstock had already been destroyed by the darkness of ...
in King’s Road rather than return to his Twickenham family home. April Townshend’s Empty Glass The ailing songwriter released Empty Glass in April 1980. Whereas his previous solo efforts – Who Came First and Rough Mix – were collaborations or devotional in nature, this one was full of new Townshend compositions that were powerful, emotional and honest, highlighting ...
news. The shambles was typical of the whole ceremony that year, though. The performance was notable as being Kenney Jones’s last one with the band. Personalities | Introducing The Who Personalities | The Who | Reunited & Revitalized (1989) | Key Events ...
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