WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE WHO...

[beatbo]

read the following then at the bottom is an announcement.....

from rollingstone.com

This Saturday the Who are playing a 40-minute set at the VH1 Rock Honors — where their music will be celebrated by Pearl Jam, the Flaming Lips and more bands — but plans beyond that are murky. Four Japanese dates are on the books for November, but Roger Daltrey tells Rolling Stone that nothing is confirmed beyond that. The group initially planned to hit the studio with T Bone Burnett this year to record an album of R&B obscurities from the Fifties and Sixties as a follow-up to 2006’s Endless Wire, but Pete Townshend has indefinitely postponed the project. “I must not commit to studio time or show dates, especially not to long tours, without some kind of creative programme,” Townshend wrote on his blog in April. “I don’t know whether I can write songs for the Who. I don’t know if I can come up with some idea, some story, some angle, that will make me feel good about being the writer for the Who. Most important of all, I don’t know if I write something whether I should try to force the Who to carry it.”

Daltrey is also conflicted about the idea of a new Who album. “I think we’ve done enough already,” he says. “It would be great to have something new, but it doesn’t really matter.” He does still see a bright future for the band as a touring act. “No one plays our music better than us,” he says. “By the end of this year, after we’ve done this short stint and got Japan under our belts, we’ll have a re-think. I would like to do Quadrophenia again. I think that tour was way ahead of its time when we did it back in 1996. There’s so much we can do, but the road does wear you down.”

On the Who’s fan forums Townshend expressed even more ambivalence about the future. “I am no longer a member of a band called the Who,” he wrote. “I am Pete Townshend. I used to be in a band called the Who. It does not exist today except in your dreams. I am a songwriter and guitarist who — if I create the right setting — can walk onto a stage with my old buddy Roger Daltrey and evoke the old magic of the Who in the dreams of the audience. … There are many Who fans who have just as good a time watching one of the many fantastic Who tribute bands as watching Roger and Pete (and their supporting musicians) pretend to be who we used to be.”

Another Who project is also hanging in the balance: the Keith Moon biopic. Daltrey has been working on a Moon movie for years, but despite rumors that Mike Myers and Jason Schwartzman have been in talks for the lead role, there hasn’t been much progress. “Maybe I made a mistake of coming to Hollywood,” says Daltrey. “I probably would’ve been better off trying to get it done in England. I’d rather nothing was made then a run-of-the-mill biopic about Keith Moon. The project is really struggling, but when it’s ready, it will happen.”

from thewho.com:

ANNOUNCING THE WHO TOUR - USA FALL 2008

The Who will be touring the USA this fall. The first 2 dates to be confirmed are:

Nov. 8 Nokia Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

Nov. 9 Nokia Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

More dates will be confirmed very soon! Stay tuned.

Thewho.com will be offering an exclusive fanclub presale as well as special VIP packages. These will be available on Monday, July 14 at 10:00AM PDT.

Edited July 11, 2008 by beatbo

[jimmie ray]

“I don’t know whether I can write songs for the Who. I don’t know if I can come up with some idea, some story, some angle, that will make me feel good about being the writer for the Who. Most important of all, I don’t know if I write something whether I should try to force the Who to carry it.”

This guy is some confused mess!?!?!?

[beatbo]

This guy is some confused mess!?!?!?

not to mention , the same day that story hits rolling stone, the who fan club sends me a us tour annoucement....

[hot dog]

From an e-mail I received from Thewho.com:

ANNOUNCING THE WHO TOUR - USA FALL 2008

The Who will be touring the USA this fall. The first 2 dates to be confirmed are:

Nov. 8 Nokia Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

Nov. 9 Nokia Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

More dates will be confirmed very soon! Stay tuned.

Thewho.com will be offering an exclusive fanclub presale as well as special VIP packages. These will be available on Monday, July 14 at 10:00AM PDT.

The presale and VIP packages are for members of thewho.com only, so make sure you SIGN-UP TODAY.

GET MORE DETAILS & FAQs

[MadScreamingGallery]

Thanks for sharing that information. The last time that my husband and I had tickets for one of the Who concerts, last year, it was canceled. I hope we (and the band) have better luck with this tour.

[3hrsoflunacy]

Half a Who is better than no Who, I guess. I had tickets to the Irvine show back in 2002, and The Ox died the week beforehand. Honestly, I wanted to see him more than the other 2, so it was a big disappointment (on top of losing one of rock's greatest musicians). I have seen Pino play on video, and while he is a solid player, he doesn't play bass like a lead guitarist, so the overall sound is not as full. I'd probably go see them again, but it's really not quite the same as seeing The Who; but I don't fault them for continuing to use the name.

[kirchzep27]

My friend told me that the sales for -endless wire were not what was expected, might have something to do with not wanting to record another record right away.

[Hickory Man]

not to mention , the same day that story hits rolling stone, the who fan club sends me a us tour annoucement....

To be fair, his most unsure comments are in relation to new material, and not a tour.

This is Pete though... he does not take his pulse on a subject and then look at things overall, he just blurts out exactly how he's feeling at that moment.

[kirchzep27]

For the record, i thought that was a great record. they really kept the sound of -the who going and there are some heart felt moments on there. I'm very interested in hearing older artists material, this is where alot of the wisdom is expressed.

[euro]

My friend told me that the sales for -endless wire were not what was expected, might have something to do with not wanting to record another record right away.

The Who were never a really big selling album act like Floyd or Zeppelin so I dont understand the source of the disappointment.

[beatbo]

i'm a hardcore fan of the original who. i've seen 'live' who since the original who broke up. since then, i prefer pete townshend, but will go see and appreciate the who to get my pete fix. the quadrophenia shows were the tops, in my opinion, of the post-moon concerts. the maryville shows that pete did in the 90's at the house of blues in chicago are strong favorite live performances...

[euro]

i'm a hardcore fan of the original who. i've seen 'live' who since the original who broke up. since then, i prefer pete townshend, but will go see and appreciate the who to get my pete fix. the quadrophenia shows were the tops, in my opinion, of the post-moon concerts. the maryville shows that pete did in the 90's at the house of blues in chicago are strong favorite live performances...

Maybe messers Daltrey and Townshend should consider changing their name to "The Who? "

Edited July 14, 2008 by euro

[beatbo]

Maybe messers Daltrey and Townshend should consider changing their name to "The Who? "

english isn't your first language, no?

[GetTheLedOut]

The Who were never a really big selling album act like Floyd or Zeppelin so I dont understand the source of the disappointment.

They still went platinum and had top 10 albums.

[MadScreamingGallery]

My husband and I are pretty big Who fans too - he more so than I. We go back to the Keith Moon days. Their concerts were always fantastic and we'll probably continue going as long as Roger and Pete are still performing. In terms of number of concerts I've attended by one band, The Who is second only to Zep.

[danelectro59]

My husband and I are pretty big Who fans too - he more so than I. We go back to the Keith Moon days. Their concerts were always fantastic and we'll probably continue going as long as Roger and Pete are still performing. In terms of number of concerts I've attended by one band, The Who is second only to Zep.

I saw them once, back in the mid 70's and even though the show was in the cavernous Pontiac Silverdome, they still kicked ass. I lost a bit of respect for the Who when, after Moon's death, they just kept on going like nothing happened. Zep didn't and that's why I respect them so much more. Not saying Kenny Jones was a bad drummer, but you can't even begin to fill Keith's shoes. None of the records with KJ are even close to the ones with Moon. I can hardly stand to listen to "You Better, You Bet" Now, having seen some recent shows on the tube, I can comfortably say that they're starting to resemble a nostalgia band. It's very clear to see that Daltrey has lost a few steps and thats kind of sad, because I always thought he was a great frontman, along with Pete.

Gotta say that Zak Starkey is a good drummer and light years better than his dad ever was. And is that Townsend's son playing 2nd guitar? He sure looks like him.

[GetTheLedOut]

I saw them once, back in the mid 70's and even though the show was in the cavernous Pontiac Silverdome, they still kicked ass. I lost a bit of respect for the Who when, after Moon's death, they just kept on going like nothing happened. Zep didn't and that's why I respect them so much more.

Just because Zeppelin didn't continue after Bonham doesn't mean that it's wrong or inconsiderate for bands to do so.

Not saying Kenny Jones was a bad drummer, but you can't even begin to fill Keith's shoes. None of the records with KJ are even close to the ones with Moon. I can hardly stand to listen to "You Better, You Bet" Now, having seen some recent shows on the tube, I can comfortably say that they're starting to resemble a nostalgia band. It's very clear to see that Daltrey has lost a few steps and thats kind of sad, because I always thought he was a great frontman, along with Pete.

Gotta say that Zak Starkey is a good drummer and light years better than his dad ever was. And is that Townsend's son playing 2nd guitar? He sure looks like him.

Close, it's Townshend's younger brother, Simon. Simon is, if I'm not mistaken, 15 years Pete's junior.

[MadScreamingGallery]

I saw them once, back in the mid 70's and even though the show was in the cavernous Pontiac Silverdome, they still kicked ass. I lost a bit of respect for the Who when, after Moon's death, they just kept on going like nothing happened. Zep didn't and that's why I respect them so much more. Not saying Kenny Jones was a bad drummer, but you can't even begin to fill Keith's shoes. None of the records with KJ are even close to the ones with Moon. I can hardly stand to listen to "You Better, You Bet" Now, having seen some recent shows on the tube, I can comfortably say that they're starting to resemble a nostalgia band. It's very clear to see that Daltrey has lost a few steps and thats kind of sad, because I always thought he was a great frontman, along with Pete.

Gotta say that Zak Starkey is a good drummer and light years better than his dad ever was. And is that Townsend's son playing 2nd guitar? He sure looks like him.

I only saw the Who in huge, cavernous venues and they absolutely always kicked ass! I went from the Moon years (the best of all the Who drummers and it was a shock how they moved on quickly - an end of an era, IMO) to the Kenny Jones years to the Zak Starkey years (yes, as much as I adore his dad, Zak is the drummer that his dad never was). I know they're, probably at this point, a nostalgia band but, when it comes to old rockers, I am rather nostalgic and sentimental so, as with the Stones, as long as they're playing I'll be there.

Edited July 18, 2008 by MadScreamingGallery

[AMAZONIC]

I can comfortably say that they're starting to resemble a nostalgia band. It's very clear to see that Daltrey has lost a few steps and thats kind of sad, because I always thought he was a great frontman, along with Pete.

Gotta say that Zak Starkey is a good drummer and light years better than his dad ever was. And is that Townsend's son playing 2nd guitar? He sure looks like him.

I saw this line up at the Arena in Verona, Italy last June 2007.

My sis and I were lucky enough to get particular plastic green "bracelets" that some security guards were giving away at random. These granted us front stage standing!!! I remember a middle aged guy with his teenager son asking us if we could give him the bracelets because he thought we wouldn't be interested. Yeah, sure!

The atmosphere was there, lots of entusiastic fans mostly in their 40-50s but there was still quite a few twenty year old something too, the open setting was perfect, it seemed a good night to rock 'n roll.

Then they started to play a couple of songs, maybe three and the pandemonium happened.

All of a sudden there was a storm and rain came pouring down!

The band informed they would suspend the concert for a while. So, unfortunately all the audience had to find a shelter from the rain and wait for the weather to settle. After probably half an hour, people were screaming Roger and Pete's names because we all wanted them to coma back and play. It still rained a bit but not as hard as earlier and finally the band came back on stage, but what happened was even worse. Roger had lost almost 80 % of his voice. To cut a story short, the show appeared to be over.

But as the audience was getting very upset and screamed for the show to go on, Pete, I must say very professionally, announced that he wanted the concert to continue even if that meant helping out Roger on the vocals. In the end, the concert was a bit of a mess. But we all appreciated good old Pete professionalism and loyalty to the fans.

Pete is still a very good guitar player and he moves on stage like thirty years ago! Roger has lost a bit of his typical voice (he definitely had that night! ) but he still has charisma and good stage appearance. And yes, the drummer is definitely a good one!

[MadScreamingGallery]

I saw this line up at the Arena in Verona, Italy last June 2007.

My sis and I were lucky enough to get particular plastic green "bracelets" that some security guards were giving away at random. These granted us front stage standing!!! I remember a middle aged guy with his teenager son asking us if we could give him the bracelets because he thought we wouldn't be interested. Yeah, sure!

The atmosphere was there, lots of entusiastic fans mostly in their 40-50s but there was still quite a few twenty year old something too, the open setting was perfect, it seemed a good night to rock 'n roll.

Then they started to play a couple of songs, maybe three and the pandemonium happened.

All of a sudden there was a storm and rain came pouring down!

The band informed they would suspend the concert for a while. So, unfortunately all the audience had to find a shelter from the rain and wait for the weather to settle. After probably half an hour, people were screaming Roger and Pete's names because we all wanted them to coma back and play. It still rained a bit but not as hard as earlier and finally the band came back on stage, but what happened was even worse. Roger had lost almost 80 % of his voice. To cut a story short, the show appeared to be over.

But as the audience was getting very upset and screamed for the show to go on, Pete, I must say very professionally, announced that he wanted the concert to continue even if that meant helping out Roger on the vocals. In the end, the concert was a bit of a mess. But we all appreciated good old Pete professionalism and loyalty to the fans.

Pete is still a very good guitar player and he moves on stage like thirty years ago! Roger has lost a bit of his typical voice (he definitely had that night! ) but he still has charisma and good stage appearance. And yes, the drummer is definitely a good one!

Thanks for sharing that. That was probably right before the Who concert we were to attend which was canceled because of Roger's voice.

[AMAZONIC]

Thanks for sharing that. That was probably right before the Who concert we were to attend which was canceled because of Roger's voice.

No problem, MSG. It was the first and only WHO concert I attended. So you can imagine how sad I felt after that . The WHO were a good bad and I wished I could have experienced the original line up back in their days, but then again as with ZEP, they were so much before my time. .

I anyway had the chance to see 70's bands such as Pink Floyd, The Eagles, Doobie Brothers , etc later in my life. Some people might call them the "nostalgia bands". To me these are still great groups and professional, talented musicians. Without them music is not the same anymore.

And when they reform or reunite they are always welcome, especially for people like me who haven't seen them before either because we were too young or not even born yet or some of these bands never made it to places like Italy.

The Zep played in Italy only once in 1971 and it was a complete mayhem. They sadly never came back after that unfortunate event...

[Hickory Man]

I've enjoyed this VH1 show...I really enjoyed the Flaming Lips set, and of course the Who set sounded as good as ever.

[mightyzep247]

I definitely want to go see them on this tour. I saw them in 2006 and it was one of the best concerts that I've ever been to.

[mightyzep247]

No problem, MSG. It was the first and only WHO concert I attended. So you can imagine how sad I felt after that . The WHO were a good bad and I wished I could have experienced the original line up back in their days, but then again as with ZEP, they were so much before my time. .

I anyway had the chance to see 70's bands such as Pink Floyd, The Eagles, Doobie Brothers , etc later in my life. Some people might call them the "nostalgia bands". To me these are still great groups and professional, talented musicians. Without them music is not the same anymore.

And when they reform or reunite they are always welcome, especially for people like me who haven't seen them before either because we were too young or not even born yet or some of these bands never made it to places like Italy.

The Zep played in Italy only once in 1971 and it was a complete mayhem. They sadly never came back after that unfortunate event...

I'm with you there. I'm only 13 and I love going to concerts but I cant see a lot of my favorite bands because they dont play anymore. I've been to 36 concerts and my next big one is Journey, Heart, and Cheap trick in Woodstock, New York. I've gotten see some good older bands, though. Some are The Who, Rush, Eric Clapton, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ian McLagan(The Faces), Ringo Starr(All Starr Band with Billy Squier, Edgar Winter, Hamish Stuart, Colin Hay, Gary Wright, and Greg Bissonette), Def Leppard, Bryan Adams, Y&T and some more that I cant think of at the moment. ha ha

[beatbo]

I definitely want to go see them on this tour. I saw them in 2006 and it was one of the best concerts that I've ever been to.

how was roger on that tour? maybe the 'honors' performance was a bad throat night...