Pete Townshend has mentioned his time working with Roger Daltrey, and mentioned that the 2 of them “don’t talk very nicely” and “have completely different wants as performers”.
The feedback come as the 2 of them have joined forces as soon as once more and hit the street within the US for his or her ‘The Music Is Over Tour’ – which is ready to be The Who’s ultimate run of tour dates.
In whole, the rock veterans have 16 exhibits lined-up within the itinerary, and the identify of the tour comes as a nod to their tune of the identical identify, launched again in 1971.
They’ve already mentioned that whereas this run marks the ultimate official tour dates from the band, they may nonetheless be coming collectively sooner or later for the occasional charity present or one-off occasion.
Now, guitarist Pete Townshend has shed extra gentle on the dynamic between him and frontman Roger Daltrey, and mentioned that whereas they’re nonetheless content material working collectively, they’re on two completely different pages.
Wanting on the dynamic of the band now, following the demise of drummer Keith Moon in 1978 and bass guitarist John Entwistle in 2002, Townshend informed AARP: “It’s a model quite than a band. Roger and I’ve an obligation to the music and the historical past.
“The Who [still] sells data — the Moon and Entwistle households have turn out to be millionaires. There’s additionally one thing extra, actually: the artwork, the artistic work is after we carry out it. We’re celebrating. We’re a Who tribute band.”
Discussing his working relationship with Daltrey, he added: “We don’t talk very nicely. He and I are very completely different and we’ve got completely different wants as performers.”
He additionally made reference to how he beforehand opened up in regards to the pressure of being on the street for in depth excursions and mentioned that taking part in reside “doesn’t fill my soul” – feedback which would immediate a response from Daltrey, who mentioned: “If Pete doesn’t need to tour, I don’t need to be again with The Who on the street, at 81, with somebody who doesn’t need [to] be there.”
“He bought upset as a result of he felt I had typically given the impression of getting left the constructing,” he mentioned, explaining his stance and making reference to the frontman’s battle with listening to loss. “Roger complained about the truth that he’s deaf. He’s a singer, and he needs to be 100% match to be able to do his job.”
Daltrey has opened up about his well being once more since sharing particulars of his listening to loss. At his exhibits at Royal Albert Corridor over the Spring, held for the Teenage Most cancers Belief, he spoke briefly of imaginative and prescient impairments, saying: “The issue with this job is that you simply go deaf… And now I’ve been informed that I’m going blind.”
He then spoke about his well being points placing a dampener on hopes of a return after the 2025 US dates, saying that he was “nervous” about making it to the top of the present tour, as he has “the potential to get actually in poor health”.
Explaining why they nonetheless come collectively to play reside, Townshend informed AARP, “Collectively we signify all elements of the Who legacy. I’m the songwriter and creator, however Roger’s been the driving drive, which means retaining The Who band and his model on observe. Even together with his solo work, we’ll proceed to work collectively, even when we hardly ever socialize.”
After the band full their US tour dates, it’s wanting doubtless that Townshend will flip his sights to his solo album, ‘The Age Of Nervousness’. The album is one thing he has been engaged on since 2007, and relies on a novel he wrote of the identical title (which bought revealed in 2019).
He additionally opened up about his outlook on guitar, and admitted that he doesn’t “have a relationship” with the instrument to the extent that some would possibly assume.
Earlier than then, Townshend spoke to NME in 2024 about the potential of extra new music from The Who, following on from 2019’s ‘Who’.
“I don’t assume there may be. If there was a necessity or a spot for a Who album, might I write the songs for it inside six weeks? In fact I fucking might, it’s a bit of cake,” he mentioned. “The issue is, I don’t assume Roger desires to do it once more.”