Posted on 11/26/2019 7:20:54 PM PST by DoodleBob
THE WHO guitarist Pete Townshend has said in a new interview with Rolling Stone that he doesn't miss the band's late drummer Keith Moon and bassist John Entwistle.
"It's not going to make WHO fans very happy, but thank God they're gone," he said. "Because they were...difficult to play with. They never, ever managed to create bands for themselves. I think my musical discipline, my musical efficiency as a rhythm player, held the band together."
Townshend said Entwistle's "bass sound was like a Messiaen organ," with "every note, every harmonic in the sky. When he passed away and I did the first few shows without him, with Pino [Palladino] on bass, he was playing without all that stuff … I said, 'Wow, I have a job.'"
The guitarist was equally brutal in his recollection of Moon, saying: "With Keith, my job was keeping time, because he didn't do that. So when he passed away, it was, like, 'Oh, I don't have to keep time anymore.'"
(Excerpt) Read more at blabbermouth.net ...
A local classic rock station has tales from the old days on Sunday mornings.
In one, Pete was interviewed about that windmill thing. He said he saw Keith Richards do it back stage and copied it. Some time later he apologized to Keith for "stealling" the move. Keith asked "What move? That was me warming up my arm?"
I read his autobiography and have to agree with you.
Plus Entwistle was the best bass player of all time!
Quadrophenia,
Did I have that
On 8 Track?
I’m still
Looking for it!
Yeah, but the Police had already broken up. I suspect the whole thing was a Sting.
Petey doesn’t understand that the synergy of Moon’s Celtic style of drumming and Entwistle’s ability to compliment Moon’s lack of backbeat caused Pete to tighten up his own style and make a sound that was completely unique to The Who.
Once Moon was gone, yeah, they still sold records, but the sound of The Who was changed forever, never to be recovered.
Townsend should count himself lucky to have been part of such a unique blend of misfits.
LOL!
Like many rockers, there isn't much there there.
All in all, I think I'll give Pete a pass on this, as it's as much likely something he said just to be provocative and contrary. My guess is that he's had great affection and respect for his band mates since the beginning of their work together.
He can’t excuse being HAPPY someone’s dead.
He could have left the band.
And now i’m AFRAID OF YOU and will NEVER join a band with you.
And you seemed like a nice guy :)
JK!
My Bad,
Kilburn was used
For “The kid’s Alright.”
Watching now.
Love it!
Sounds to me like Pete wasn’t too happy about being upstaged by a legendary bassist and drummer.
It’s a tacky comment but taken somewhat out of context
Bash Pete all folks here like but he IS The Who
In a lengthy statement on Facebook, Pete attempted to explain the controversial comment, saying: "No one can ever know how much I miss Keith and John, as people, as friends and as musicians. The alchemy we used to share in the studio is missing from the new album, and it always feels wrong to try to summon it up without them, but I suppose we will always be tempted to try. To this day I am angry at Keith and John for dying. Sometimes it shows. It's selfish, but it's how I feel."
Townshend added that he is "sincerely grateful" to have had the opportunity to carry on with THE WHO following the deaths of Moon and Entwistle. "I do thank God for this, but I was being ironic in my own English way by suggesting it is something I am glad about," he said. "I can be grateful to be free as a player and writer, but sad about losing old friends. It does feel ironic, and it also makes me angry. Towards the end of my mother Betty's life she drove me barmy, and there was a huge sense of relief when she finally passed, but I miss her very much. Love has so many facets."
The guitarist that said he understood that a lot of THE WHO fans would be "hurt by the way" his comments come across "as a headline," but added that he hoped they knew him well enough to understand that "the upside is missing in the headlines."
"The upside with Keith and John was that on tour and in the studio we had so much fun," he wrote. "Playing with them was hard, but both Roger [Daltrey, vocals] and I spent a lot of time doubled up in joy and laughter even though we could have benefitted from a quieter life sometimes. It was a riot."
He went on to apologize to Moon's and Entwistle's family members, saying that he "carelessly" provided the words that were used in the headlines. He added: "In the past three months, I have done so many interviews I am losing focus and patience. I forgive myself. I hope they can forgive me too. I loved their dads and still do.
"It's really poignantly painful to imagine how things would have turned out had John and Keith had also been allowed to become older, kinder and wiser," Townshend said. "THE WHO might have grown musically, or possibly just gone around in circles, but I assure you we would have deepened our love for each other as human beings and colleagues."
Some FReepers called the follow up statement this afternoon :)
I believe this interview was used in “The Kids Are Alright”, but even then you can hear Pete’s blunt views on the other members of The Who..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8vdvih7_vU
What a POS!!
My two favorites. Moon my mentor and Entwistle my sons.
Effective damage control. Seems sincere.
Maybe a few careless words taken to form a headline by the media, eager to form provocative headlines, were too harsh.
I can see how he would be angry at their deaths.
In the end, Townshend's feelings are his own, and whether we like them or not, he has a right to them.
The drums on “Eyesight to the Blind” are like rolling thunder.
He certainly had something
Pete is well-known for saying stupid things then backtracking. I guess it is comforting to know he hasn't changed and Roger is pro-Brexit.
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