The Who Return For Twelve Shows In December
Having recently completed seven nights of concerts in the New York area, the Who will return to the U.S. on December 2nd to begin a twelve-date tour of the East Coast and the Midwest. The shows will mark the group’s first major tour of America in three years and the first since the death of drummer Keith Moon.
While in New York, guitarist Pete Townshend remarked on the busy schedule: “I’m glad I’m singing ‘Drowned’ [from Quadrophenia] in the set, ’cause it’s the way I feel. We’ve got movies to promote, a Who album, my solo album and this tour. All because I said, ‘Yeah, I don’t mind doin’ a few dates.’ I don’t want to die, but I do want to drown in a way, go down with the ship.”
The Who to Play Five Shows in New York
The Who recently released the soundtrack to Quadrophenia, scheduled to open at movie theaters on November 1st; The Kids Are Alright, the soundtrack to their biographical film, is still in the Top Thirty. Townshend’s solo LP is nearly completed but will not be released until next year.
In addition to Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and singer Roger Daltrey, the Who now include drummer Kenney Jones and keyboardist John “Rabbit” Bundrick. It is expected that the threeman horn section that backed the band on its New York dates will also appear on this tour.
The dates are as follows: December 2nd, Pittsburgh, PA; December 3rd, Cincinnati, OH; December 4th, Buffalo, NY; December 6th, Cleveland, OH; December 7th, Pontiac, MI; December 8th, Chicago, IL; December 10th, 11th, Philadelphia, PA; December 13th, Largo, MD; December 15th, New Haven, CT; December 16th, Boston, MA; December 17th, Providence, RI.
This story is from the November 1st, 1979 issue of Rolling Stone.