Rock Legends The Who' Kick Off Their UK Comeback Tour This May
One of the most legendary rock bands to have come out of Britain in the last 50 years, The Who have just released 'Endless Wire' - their first full studio album of new material since 1982 - and are now in the midst of their first tour in over 20 years. However, while the touring longevity of some bands, such as The Rolling Stones , Status Quo and Iron Maiden , may make such achievements seem quite ordinary, this belies the long and complex journey that remaining members of The Who - Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey - have taken.
Formed in the 1960s, the initial line-up of The Who consisted of Townshend and Daltrey, as well as John Entwistle and Keith Moon - widely credited as one of the greatest drummers of all time. Influenced by the early music of The Kinks, the foursome released their debut album 'My Generation' in 1965, which included some iconic mod anthems such as "The Kids are Alright", title-track "My Generation" and, Homer Simpson's personal favourite, "Magic Bus". Although the album generated the group much success as a singles band, The Who - with Townshend at the creative helm - began to steer themselves towards greater things and in 1969 revealed their first full-length rock opera, 'Tommy'.
'Tommy' brought The Who untold levels of popularity across the world, with Melody Maker magazine quoted as saying, "Surely The Who are now the band against which all others are to be judged." At the Woodstock Festival in 1969, The Who performed 'Tommy' in its entirety and the film that followed in 1975 - starring the likes of Oliver Reed, Elton John, Tina Turner and Jack Nicholson - helped the band skyrocket to stardom in the United States.
The 1970s saw The Who continue to plough their way through the world of rock 'n' roll, with the 1970 release of 'Live at Leeds' - widely considered to be the best live rock album ever released - and the advent of their second full-length rock opera, 'Quadrophenia', in 1973. However, the death of drummer Keith Moon in 1978, just weeks after the release of album 'Who Are You', marked a turning point for the band, who replaced Moon with Kenney Jones. Moon's death, however, didn't damage the place of The Who as rock legends, and in 1979, Time Magazine heralded The Who as having "outpaced, outlasted, outlived and outclassed" all their rock contemporaries.
In 1983, Pete Townshend declared himself unable to write material that was appropriate for The Who and withdrew from the band, thus signalling an end to a rock outfit that had managed to last the pace of nearly 20 years. However the band re-formed for Bob Geldof's Live Aid Concert at Wembley Stadium in 1985, and the remainder of the decade saw similar one-off collaborations between the former members.
The year 2000 saw a landmark in the evolution of The Who as musical geniuses, when Townsend, Entwistle and Daltrey decided to re-form and record new material. Tragedy struck in 2002, however, when Entwistle died from a cocaine-induced heart-attack. Nevertheless, Townshend and Daltrey continued to create new material, and in 2004 released two new singles as part of a singles anthology. In October 2006, 'Endless Wire' was released, debuting at number seven on the US Billboard albums chart and number nine on the UK Albums Chart - and The Who embarked on a long and gruelling worldwide tour.
Following a highly-acclaimed American leg - during which the Boston Herald claimed, "More than forty years on, The Who's shows still burst with youthful exuberance," - The Who will be playing in venues around the UK from May; the highlight of which is sure to be their performance at Wembley Arena on June 27th. If you're a fan of The Who, young or old, why not take a to witness them in action in the capital - and see 40 years of some of the best musical talent the world has ever seen speak for itself!
