The Who

Despite a chaotic and sometimes tragic history, The Who endured as one of rock's most venerated bands. Formed in London in 1964, the band (first called the Detours and then the High Numbers) embraced London's Mod subculture, built around sharp clothes, American soul music, tough attitude and sometimes, use of amphetamines. In its classic lineup, The Who embodied four distinct personalities: The deep-thinking guitarist/songwriter Pete Townshend, the tough and flashy singer Roger Daltrey, the loose-cannon drummer Keith Moon, and the "quiet one" on bass, John Entwistle. Townshend began writing songs that celebrated Mod culture, including "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere" and most significantly, "My Generation"-an enduring rock anthem despite its failure as a US single (perhaps because of the almost-profane line, "Why don't you all f-f- .fade away"). Both feature the manic drums and feedback guitar that distinguished Who shows, where Townshend had begun smashing his guitar as a finale. The brashness of Who singles "I Can See for Miles" and "The Kids are Alright" would influence punk rock a decade later. The band began reaching for larger concepts on 1967's The Who Sell Out, a salute to London's "pirate" radio stations complete with jingles and commercials. But Townshend was working on something far more ambitious: Released in 1969, Tommy was billed as the first rock opera, concerning the spiritual journey of a young boy whose childhood trauma renders him deaf, dumb and blind. They played the album in near-entirety at Woodstock that year and scored a hit single with "Pinball Wizard," making Tommy The Who's real breakthrough in America. They were now known mainly as an album band, and the followup Live at Leeds caught the ferocity of their live shows. Peak years continued on the next two albums, Who's Next (1971) and Quadrophenia (1973). The former was salvaged from another concept project (Lifehouse) that fell apart, but produced two of the landmark Who tracks, "Baba O'Riley" and the political treatise "Won't Get Fooled Again." Quadrophenia was Townshend's second rock opera, embracing Mod culture lyrically and heavy use of synthesizers musically. Townshend's writing took a surprising turn on the next albums, The Who By Numbers and Who Are You, which aired the self-doubt he was feeling. Soon after the latter's release Keith Moon died of overindulgence in September 1978. Though the band was devastated, they recruited Small Faces drummer Kenney Jones and carried on, with mixed results, over the next three years. Their 1979 tour is remembered mainly for a tragic Cincinnati gig at which overcrowding and gate-rushing led to the deaths of 11 fans. Though The Who ceremoniously disbanded in 1983, the next years saw numerous reunions, first Live Aid in 1985 and then a full-scale tour in 1989. By the 2000's they were again touring regularly, even the death of Entwistle (also from overindulgence) on the eve of a 2002 tour didn't shut them down. 2019 found The Who-now Townshend, Daltrey, drummer Zak Starkey and a changing backup cast-touring stadiums once again and preparing to release their first studio album in 13 years.