Pete Townshend, co-founder, guitarist and principal songwriter of The Who, recently spoke about the band’s future, hinting that they may hit the road for a farewell tour.
While promoting his rock opera “Tommy,” which originally opened on Broadway in 1993 and is returning for a new run this month at the Nederlander Theatre, Townshend spoke in depth with The New York Times in a recent interview.
“It feels to me like there’s one thing the Who can do,” Townshend told the New York Times. “And that’s a final tour where we play every territory in the world and then crawl off to die.”
Townshend, 78, admitted to the publication that a final tour would would be more about finances.
“I don’t get much of a buzz from performing with the Who,” Townshend said in the interview. “If I’m really honest, I’ve been touring for the money. My idea of an ordinary lifestyle is pretty elevated.”
Townshend has previously spoken out about The Who’s future. At the end of last year, he told Record Collector magazine that he and bandmate Roger Daltrey were making plans to get together and figure out a game plan — and that the tour would be dependent on “what is feasible, what would be lucrative, what would be fun.”
In 2022, Townshend once again spoke about his tour life coming to an end in an interview with Rolling Stone.
“I don’t want to be like one of these guys that dies on tour,” he told Rolling Stone. “Roger is of the opinion that he wants to sing until he drops. That’s not my philosophy of life. There are other things that I want to do, still want to do, and will do, I hope. I hope I’ll live long enough to do them.”
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Saleah Blancaflor may be reached at sblancaflor@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @saleyley and Instagram.