The Who was the British rock group, among the most popular and influential bands of the 1960s and '70s, that originated the rock opera.
Though primarily inspired by American rhythm and blues, the Who took a bold step toward defining a uniquely British rock vernacular in the 1960s. Shunning the Beatles' idealized romance and the Rolling Stones's cocky swagger, the Who cut themselves down to actual size, dealing with teenage travails. At a time when rock music was uniting young people all over the world, the Who were friendless, bitter outsiders.
Pete Townshend and John Entwistle joined Roger Daltrey in his group, the Detours, in 1962; with drummer Doug Sandom they became, in turn, the Who and the High Numbers. Keith Moon replaced Sandom in early 1964, after which the group released a self-consciously mod single ("I'm the Face") to little notice and became the Who again in late 1964. The West London quartet cultivated a pop-art image to suit the fashion-obsessed British mod subculture, and matched that look with the rhythm-and-blues sound mod youth favored. Townshend ultimately acknowledged that clothing made from the Union Jack, sharp suits, pointy boots, and short haircuts were a contrivance, but it did the trick, locking in a fanatically devoted core following. Fashion, however, was strictly a starting point for the Who; by the late `60s the mods were history, and the Who was long past needing to identify itself with the uniform of any movement.
The band's early records dealt with alienation, uncertainty, and frustration, lashing out with tough lyrics, savage power-chords and squalling feedback by guitarist-songwriter Townshend, the kinetic assault of drummer Moon and bassist Entwistle, and the macho brawn of singer Daltrey. The four singles that introduced the Who between January 1965 and March 1966--"I Can't Explain," "Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere," "My Generation," and "Substitute"--declared themselves in an unprecedented fury of compressed sonic aggression, an artistic statement matched and intensified onstage by Townshend's habit of smashing his guitar to climax concerts. While other groups were moving toward peace-and-love idealism, the Who sang of unrequited lust ("Pictures of Lily"), peer pressure ("Happy Jack"), creepy insects (Entwistle's "Boris the Spider"), and gender confusion ("I'm a Boy"). As one instrument after the next ended in splinters, the Who firmly declared themsleves proponets of making violent rage a form of rock catharsis.
Until the 1967 release of The Who Sell Out, a sardonic concept album presented as a pirate radio broadcast, the Who was primarily a singles group. They were, however, more successful in this regard in Britain (eight Top Ten hits between 1965 and 1967) than in the United States. ("I Can See for Miles," released in 1967, was the group's only Billboard Top Ten single). It was the 1969 rock opera Tommy--and a memorable performance at Woodstock that summer--that made the Who a world-class album-rock act. In the process, Townshend was recognized as one of rock's most intelligent, articulate, and self-conscious composers, one whose polar arrogance and self-doubt made the Who's records at once inspiring and emotionally true.
The Who cemented its standing with Who's Next (1971), an album of would-be teen anthems ("Won't Get Fooled Again," "Baba O'Riley") and sensitive romances ("Behind Blue Eyes," "Love Ain't for Keeping"), all reflecting Townshend's dedication to his "avatar," the Indian mystic Meher Baba. That same year, Entwistle released a solo album, the darkly amusing Smash Your Head Against the Wall; Townshend issued his first solo album, Who Came First, in 1972; and Daltrey offered his, Daltrey, in 1973. Still, the Who continued apace, releasing Townshend's second magnum rock opera, Quadrophenia, in 1973, The Who by Numbers in 1975, and Who Are You in 1978.
The irrepressible Moon died of an accidental drug overdose in 1978 and was replaced by Kenny Jones (formerly of the Faces and the Small Faces). So constituted, the Who released Face Dances (1981) and It's Hard (1982) before disbanding in 1982. Daltrey pursued acting while letting his solo career taper off. Entwistle released occasional records to little effect. Townshend busied himself as a book editor while undertaking a variety of solo ventures, from fine Who-like rock records (1980's Empty Glass) and outtake collections (1983's Scoop) to convoluted exercises (1989's The Iron Man) that reflected a growing interest in musical theater that culminated in his triumphant delivery of Tommy to Broadway in 1993. Townshend, Daltrey, and Entwistle reunited for tours in 1989 and 1996-97.
Tommy remains the Who's most enduring creation. On its way to the theater, Tommy became an all-star orchestral album in 1972 and a garish film with Daltrey in the title role in 1975. Quadrophenia also was made into a 1979 film and revived by the touring Who as a stagy rock spectacle in the 1990s.
Principal Members
Pete Townshend, guitar
b. May 19, 1945, London, England
Roger Daltrey, vocals
b. March 1, 1944, London, England
John Entwistle, bass
b. October 9, 1944, London, England
Keith Moon, drums
b. August 23, 1946, London, England
d. September 7, 1978, London
Later Member
Kenny Jones, drums
b. September 16, 1948, London, England
