Available now, assembles some of Townshend’s most memorable live shows away from Who in When the compilation landed at his door late last month, Townshend grew reflective thinking about his time away from the band that has been an indelible part of music since their 1965 debut . “I needed a creative outlet outside of The Who. I needed to be a solo artist,” Townshend said of his independent tours and seven solo studio albums Townshend, 79, said that his decision to really embrace an identity as a solo artist was inspired by the death of the band’s original drummer Keith Moon in 1978.
“Keith Moon’s death came at a time where Who were already struggling creatively. After Keith died, I think the logical thing for me would have been to end my tenure with Who and choose a solo career,” he said. “I thought it would be good to work with a different drummer, because Keith’s style was very much decorative.
It was not a rhythmic style and I’d been contained ...
in a sense with The Who.” Along with vocalist He worked in a publishing house for over a decade and ran other companies. He fulfilled his solo contract, releasing several albums in the ’80s.
In 1989, The Who reconvened for a new tour and have returned to the road steadily ever since. In 1993 he adapted The Who’s 1969 rock opera But listening back through the new anthology, Townshend is reminded how he’s never felt at home onstage. “The weird thing about me, compared to most artists, is despite the fact that I look like I’m enjoying myself, I don’t really feel that,” he smiles.
“It’s not that I don’t feel good about performing, I just don’t know who that guy is that’s up there on the stage. He isn’t me ..
. As a creative, I’m happiest in a studio. I don’t like touring.
I don’t like travelling. I like to be at home in my studio being creative on my own.” He thinks he would have been better as a painter namechecking Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon as inspirations.
“As it turned out, I ended up in The Who and because I was the songwriter I got tremendous fulfilment out of that creatively, but as a performer I was always uneasy,” he said. But even though he doesn’t like to spend too much time looking back, during an interview with Postmedia earlier this month, Townshend wrestled with his past and contemplated the future “Both Roger and I look forward to touring again with each other,” he said. “We need to talk about that.
” There probably is and it probably has something to do with a girl. So it’s best if I skip that. What I had instead was this band and a bunch of fans and I didn’t make that connection.
I’ve seen that with other artists, Dave Grohl is an example. His band and his fans are his family. They’re his people.
Bruce Springsteen “I bought him his first house. I bought him his first decent car. I bought him his holiday home in the Balearic Islands.
So he was really pleased with me (laughs). We played together once on the Michael Parkinson Show is now available..
