Pete Townshend: Last News

The Who kicked off the 2024 Teenage Cancer Trust concert series in London with a special orchestral show last night (March 18). See footage, images and the full setlist below.This year’s edition of the charity’s annual run of gigs – curated by The Who frontman Roger Daltrey – is taking place at the historic Royal Albert Hall this week, with Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, The Chemical Brothers and more also on the line-up.Following an opening set from Squeeze, yesterday’s audience was treated to The Who’s first live show of 2024.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Despite and also because of its puzzling inside-joke name, Trouser Press was one of the greatest music magazines in history. It existed for just a decade — from 1974 through 1984 — but in the process, it nurtured the careers of thousands of musicians and exponentially more fans, future musicians, writers, music executives and others.

Mark Knopfler’s re-recorded version of his song ‘Going Home’ has been shared, starring contributions from some of the biggest names in the rock world. Check it out below.After being teased earlier this year, the track officially dropped today (March 15), and sees all funds raised being donated to the Teenage Cancer Trust and Teen Cancer America.A new take on Knopfler’s solo hit, the 2024 edition runs across nine-minutes, and sees the Dire Straits frontman join forces with rock icons including Queen‘s Brian May, Bruce Springsteen, Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, Eric Clapton, Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood and many more.It also includes the last ever recording by guitar virtuoso, Jeff Beck – which he laid down for the track shortly before his death in January 2023.As well as the truly astonishing number of renowned guitarists on the track, Knopfler also enlisted The Beatles’ Ringo Starr on drums, Sting on bass, and The Who frontman (and Teenage Cancer Trust patron) Roger Daltrey on harmonica.The charity track was recorded at British Grove Studios in West London, and produced by Knopfler’s longtime collaborator Guy Fletcher.

The Who‘s Roger Daltrey has opened up about the one time he smashed a guitar and compared it to “killing his wife”.The rock icon has shared that he has only broken one of his instruments in his life which he regrets and likened the moment to the idea of murdering his wife. While appearing as a guest on Shawn Keaveny’s Daily Grind podcast, the 80-year-old musician said: “[Fans] never came to hear the music, they came to see the guitar being broken.”He continued: “The trouble is the guitar was worth 50 gigs.

Roger Daltrey has opened up about the future of The Who, saying that he is “happy” that “that part of my life is over”.The legendary frontman spoke to The Times about the band’s status, stating that ultimately any decision about calling it a day would have to be made alongside Pete Townshend. But for now, it appears he is in no rush to get back on the stage.“I don’t write the songs.

Pete Townshend of The Who has admitted that “all guitarists are intimidated” by the young guitarists who post videos of themselves shredding on social media.Speaking to Guitarist – per Guitar.com – in an interview, Townshend spoke of using the guitar as a technical tool when it comes to composing music. “I think one of the things that all guitarists of today are intimidated by is these young guys on Instagram that shred to hell and back, or to heaven and back, I should say, who started when they were six.

The Who frontman Roger Daltrey has announced that he will be stepping down as the curator for the Teenager Cancer Trust gigs.The announcement was made today (January 8) via BBC, and comes following the rock veteran acting as the curator for the annual charity gigs for over two decades.The benefit shows have been taking place at the Royal Albert Hall since 2000 – although took a break in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. Since its initiation, it has raised more than £32million in ticket sales and has gone on to support those struggling with cancer.Daltrey will be stepping down from the role after this year’s set of concerts.For the 2024 instalment – due to take place between March 18 and March 24 – Daltrey and The Who will open the series with two gigs on March 18 and 20, and an evening of comedy is scheduled in between.Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds will appear on the Thursday (March 21), featuring support from Blossoms, and performances from The Chemical Brothers and Young Fathers are lined-up on the following two nights.The series will draw to a close with a celebration of the series, titled ‘Ovation’, starring some huge names from across the rock world.

Teenage Cancer Trust gig series in London.This year’s edition of the charity’s annual run of concerts – curated by The Who’s Roger Daltrey – is due to take place at the Royal Albert Hall between March 18 and March 24.Daltrey and The Who will open the series with two gigs on March 18 and 20, with an evening of comedy in between the two shows. Gallagher will be supported by Blossoms for his gig on March 21, before gigs from The Chemical Brothers and Young Fathers on the following two nights.The series will then close on March 24 with a special gig titled ‘Ovation’, which will celebrate 24 years of Teenage Cancer Trust gigs.On the line-up for that show will be Daltrey, Kelly Jones, Robert Plant with Saving Grace, Pete Townshend, Eddie Vedder and Paul Weller.See the full line-up below.

The original Chicago cast of the newly reimagined The Who’s Tommy will join star Ali Louis Bourzgui when the musical revival opens on Broadway in March.

Elton John has allegedly completed a new album with Brandi Carlile.During a recent roundtable conversation with Clash Music, The Who‘s Pete Townshend – who has been close friends with the ‘Tiny Dancer’ singer for over 50 years now – shared that John has been at a loss following the end of his farewell tour. He ended up reaching out to Carlile to begin working on a project.“Elton is so fraught with loss at not knowing what to do next.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Elton John and Brandi Carlile apparently have recorded a new album together, according to an interview with Elton’s longtime friend, the Who’s Pete Townshend, that was published by Clashmusic late last month. Speaking about Elton’s plans now that he’s retired from touring, Townshend said, “Elton is so fraught with loss at not knowing what to do next.

My Life With The Walter Boys has been released – check it out below.Based on Ali Novak’s 2014 novel of the same, the Netflix series follows teenager Jackie Howard (Nikki Rodriguez) who relocates from Manhattan to rural Colorado after losing her entire family in a car accident. She is taken in by the Walters, only to become entangled in a love triangle between two brothers.Alongside Rodriguez, the show stars Marc Blucas, Alisha Newton, Sarah Rafferty, Noah LaLonde, Ashby Gentry and Johnny Link.Brian H.

Pete Townshend has said The Who will have talks about where they go next.The legendary band wrapped up their final orchestral tour date at the Sandringham Estate over the summer.Now, Townshend said he is looking at meeting up with frontman Roger Daltrey about their future plans.He told Record Collector: “I think it’s time for Roger and I to go to lunch and have a chat about what happens next. Because Sandringham shouldn’t feel like the end of anything but it feels like the end of an era.”Townshend added: “It’s a question of, really, what is feasible, what would be lucrative, what would be fun? So, I wrote to Roger and said, come on, let’s have a chat and see what’s there.”It comes after he recently revealed that he is currently working on creating a new rock opera, that will see him take his novel The Age Of Anxiety to the stage, and see it performed alongside a variety of new songs.The novel was released by Townshend in 2019 and explored themes of societal anxiety, triggered by things such as global warming and the threat of terrorism.

Ali Louis Bourzgui will reprise his acclaimed performance as the title character in The Who’s Tommy when the musical moves from Chicago to Broadway this spring.

Bob Dylan voiced his support for Rolling Stone founder Jann Wenner at a show in New York, amid a series of controversies surrounding the writer.Wenner was in attendance at the gig on Thursday (November 16) and Dylan, who doesn’t frequently speak between songs at his shows, took a moment to shout him out towards the end of the performance.“All right, l’d like to say hello to Jann Wenner, who’s in the house. Jann Wenner, surely everybody’s heard of him,” Dylan said.“Anyway, he just got booted out of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame – and we don’t think that’s right.

The Who‘s Tommy is set to return to Broadway in 2024.The musical, featuring music and lyrics by Pete Townshend, started as a concept album in 1969 and debuted on Broadway in 1993.It’s now set to return for a new run – a reimagined version of the classic from director Des McAnuff and Townshend – at New York’s Nederlander Theatre in March 2024.Previews are due to start on March 8 before the official opening on March 28. Tickets will be available to purchase here from Friday, November 10 at 10am local time.Check out a teaser below.“In 1969, when I originally wrote TOMMY with The Who, nobody had ever written popular music songs about trauma, nobody talked about bullying, domestic sexual abuse was a subject that was virtually censored,” Townshend shared in a press statement.“Then, in 1993, working with Des on the staged theatre piece, we broke the established rules for a musical show.

Pete Townshend of The Who has revealed that he is currently working on creating a new rock opera.Opening up about the upcoming project in a new interview, the rock veteran confirmed that it will see him take his novel The Age Of Anxiety to the stage, and see it performed alongside a variety of new songs.The novel was released by Townshend in 2019 and explored themes of societal anxiety, triggered by things such as global warming and the threat of terrorism. It also saw the musician depict the detrimental consequences of social media on modern life, and how mental health issues are becoming more prominent across younger generations.Speaking with The Sun’s Bizarre column, the 78-year-old guitarist confirmed that the book is currently being remade as a rock opera and that he is “still developing the score and recording the music” for production.He also revealed that he is creating a making-of programme about its development, and speculated it may be another couple of years before either is officially complete.“I am also working on a documentary about the project, from its inception in 2007 until today,” he told the outlet.

Johnny Marr has said that gifting Noel Gallagher with an expensive guitar – after he smashed the previous one – is partly what motivated him to stop drinking.Marr previously recalled the time he gave a young, “skint” Gallagher his guitars before the pre-Oasis guitarist could afford his own.“He was just this guy who I recognised was intense and really serious about what he was doing, and he was skint and I had a load of guitars and I thought, ‘right OK well I’ll give him this guitar’,” he told Radio X.The Smiths guitarist gave Gallagher a 1960 Gibson Les Paul – which can be heard on The Smiths’ 1986 album ‘The Queen Is Dead’, and was formerly owned by The Who‘s Pete Townshend – only for him to smash it while dealing with a stage invader during a gig in Newcastle.Gallagher called Marr to ask for a replacement, after which the guitarist gifted his black 1978 Gibson Les Paul Custom.Marr also gave his 12-string sunburst Gibson 335, which features in the video for ‘Sheila Take a Bow’, to former Suede guitarist and producer Bernard Butler.“It’s just to be nice,” Marr told The Guardian. “As simple as that.

Pete Townshend of The Who has revealed Keir Starmer was the lawyer who challenged him in Townshend’s infamous child pornography case.In 2003, it was discovered that Townshend had paid to view a child pornography site, which prompted a police investigation. The Who star claimed that it was research for a campaign against pedophilia for his memoir, where Townshend believed he may have been sexually abused as a child: “You have to know what’s out there.”Shortly before his memoir was published in 2012, Townshend elaborated on the incident.

Rolling Stone magazine has issued a statement following the recent controversial comments made by its founder Jann Wenner.The founder faced a wave of backlash last week after an interview for his new book titled The Masters saw him conduct discussions with seven “philosophers of rock”, all of whom were white and male.These included Bono, Bob Dylan, the late Jerry Garcia, Mick Jagger, the late John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen and Pete Townshend, and when interviewed by David Marchese of The New York Times, Wenner stated:“Joni [Mitchell] was not a philosopher of rock’n’roll. She didn’t, in my mind, meet that test.

Jann Wenner, who co-founded Rolling Stone magazine and also was a co-founder of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, has been removed from the hall’s board of directors after making comments that were seen as disparaging toward Black and female musicians. He apologized within hours.