Who-Townshend Amazed They’re Still Together

The Who's Pete Townshend is surprised that nearly 50 years after first connecting with Roger Daltrey, the Who is still alive and well and delivering on stage. Townshend, who just wrapped the Who's 2013 North American dates and will reconvene with the band this spring to tour Europe, told Spinner.com that he's proud that the band has survived this long, saying, "It is amazing. What's more amazing is that Roger and I are on tour together at the moment. I think it's astonishing. Bands are peculiar things. It could be magic in a way, two musicians performing together; it doesn't necessarily mean they will be friendly. There have been exceptions. . . You can walk onstage with a bunch of people that you hate and produce fantastic music."

Townshend spoke about writing about the band's early days on the road with co-founders John Entwistle and Keith Moon: "There was a lot of hatred and uneasiness in the early Who that we tended to cover up with crazy behavior and just start losing ourselves in a kind of a running comedy act. Keith, as I mentioned many times in the book, kept the atmosphere light. There's a sense that the destruction of hotel rooms was in some way very, very dark. . . But there was always a strong possibility of the band flying apart at any moment. I'm surprised that didn't happen."