50 Fun Facts About The Who

Who was the Who's lead singer?

Daltrey started the Detours in 1959 and ran the band until he was briefly sacked in 1965 for punching Moon.

Which instrument did Keith Moon play?

He auditioned in 1964 by breaking a bass drum pedal and tearing a drum skin, and got the job.

What was the band called before they became the Who?

They changed the name in February 1964 after discovering a rival act called Johnny Devlin and the Detours.

Under what name did the band briefly record the mod single "Zoot Suit" in 1964?

Manager Peter Meaden rebranded them for the mod scene; when the single flopped they went back to the Who.

What was the Who's first single, a UK top ten hit in 1965?

Townshend wrote it to sound like the Kinks so that producer Shel Talmy would notice; Jimmy Page played on the B-side.

Which Who single peaked at No. 2, their highest UK chart position?

It was written as a slow blues before gaining its famous stutter and Entwistle's bass solo.

What was the Who's only US top ten single?

Townshend called it the ultimate Who record and was disappointed it only reached No. 10 in Britain.

Townshend first smashed a guitar on stage after accidentally breaking its head on what?

It happened at the Railway Hotel in Wealdstone in June 1964; the next week Moon kicked over his kit to match.

Which producer, fresh from the Kinks, signed the Who and produced their early singles?

After falling out with him, the band could not reissue their debut album until 2002 because he held the masters.

Which two filmmakers managed the Who through their 1960s peak?

They founded Track Records, signed Hendrix to it and were the subject of a 2014 documentary.

Which Who song was used as the theme to the TV show Ready Steady Go!?

Its pick-sliding and feedback were so odd that Decca's US arm initially rejected it.

At Monterey in 1967, Townshend argued with which guitarist over who should smash his guitar first?

The Who won the argument and went on first; biographer Tony Fletcher said Hendrix sounded embarrassingly better.

Which pop group did the Who support on their first full US tour in 1967?

Moon learned on that tour that cherry bombs were legal in Alabama, with predictable results for hotel toilets.

What did Moon load into his drum kit on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1967?

A stage hand used ten times the agreed amount; Townshend's hair was singed and his ear was left ringing.

The Who Sell Out parodied what, between its songs?

Offshore pirate stations had just been outlawed by the Marine Broadcasting Offences Act 1967.

Which country's prime minister told the Who never to return after a 1968 tour incident?

John Gorton sent the telegram after an in-flight incident; the band did not go back until 2004.

The 1969 rock opera Tommy tells the story of a boy who is what?

Townshend settled on Tommy after working titles including Deaf Dumb and Blind Boy and Amazing Journey.

Why did Townshend write "Pinball Wizard"?

New York Times journalist Nik Cohn was a pinball enthusiast, and Townshend wanted a good review.

Which spiritual teacher's ideas influenced Tommy and the synthesiser intro on Who's Next?

Townshend programmed the song's synthesiser intro from Baba's vital statistics.

At what time did the Who finally take the stage at Woodstock?

They had demanded $13,000 up front and Daltrey later called it the worst gig they ever played.

Which activist did Townshend kick off the stage at Woodstock mid-set?

Hoffman had grabbed the mic to protest the jailing of John Sinclair.

Which line in "Baba O'Riley" was inspired by the litter after the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival?

The roadies helped clear the rubbish-covered field after what Townshend called a great concert.

Live at Leeds was recorded on Valentine's Day 1970. Where was the back-up show the next night?

Technical problems with the Hull tapes meant Leeds was used; Live at Hull finally appeared in 2012.

The Who were the first rock act to play which New York venue during the Tommy tour?

The tour also took Tommy into European opera houses.

What was the name of the abandoned multimedia project whose songs became Who's Next?

Townshend had a nervous breakdown over it; the Young Vic hosted its experimental concerts.

Who produced Who's Next after Kit Lambert's drug use derailed the New York sessions?

The album reached No. 1 in the UK and has gone triple platinum in the US.

Which organ generated the real-time synthesiser sounds on Who's Next?

On Won't Get Fooled Again it was run through a VCS3 synthesiser as well.

Who played the violin solo on "Baba O'Riley"?

Arbus was a member of East of Eden; the track opens Who's Next.

Quadrophenia is about a mod named what?

Its four musical themes reflect the four personalities of the band members; Phil Daniels played him in the 1979 film.

Who directed the 1975 Tommy film?

Townshend earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Score; Elton John played the Pinball Wizard.

Which singer auditioned for the Tommy film's title role before Daltrey took it?

The cast included Ann-Margret, Oliver Reed, Eric Clapton, Tina Turner and Jack Nicholson.

The Who set a record for the largest indoor concert in December 1975 at which venue?

78,000 people attended; the next year's Charlton show was listed by Guinness as the world's loudest.

Which football ground hosted the 1976 show Guinness listed as the world's loudest, at over 120 dB?

They had played the same ground to 80,000 fans in May 1974.

Keith Moon died in September 1978 after taking what?

He had been at a Paul McCartney party for Buddy Holly's birthday the night before.

Which former Small Faces and Faces drummer replaced Moon?

Phil Collins had offered to leave Genesis for the job, but Townshend had already asked Jones.

Which member of Genesis offered to quit his band to replace Moon?

He later guested on complete Tommy performances during the 1989 anniversary tour.

Who played Jimmy's friend, the Ace Face, in the 1979 Quadrophenia film?

John Lydon was considered for Jimmy before the role went to Phil Daniels.

How many fans died in the crowd crush before the Who's December 1979 Cincinnati concert?

Festival seating and too few open doors caused the crush; the band were not told until after the show.

The Who became the third rock group on the cover of Time in 1979, after the Beatles and which act?

Jay Cocks wrote that they had outpaced, outlasted, outlived and outclassed their contemporaries.

Which band supported the Who on their 1982 farewell tour of North America?

The tour ended in Toronto on 17 December 1982 and was released as Who's Last.

What interrupted the BBC broadcast of the Who's Live Aid set in 1985?

The band had officially split in December 1983 and reunited only for occasional shows.

Which drummer, the son of a Beatle, joined for the 1996 Quadrophenia tour and stayed for decades?

Starkey split his time with Oasis from 2006 and was finally fired in May 2025.

Where was John Entwistle found dead in June 2002?

It was the day before a US tour; Pino Palladino took over on bass and the tour went ahead.

What was the title of the 2006 album, the Who's first new studio record since 1982?

It grew from Townshend's blog novella The Boy Who Heard Music and contained the mini-opera Wire & Glass.

The Who closed which 2012 event with the final performance of the night?

They had played the Super Bowl XLIV halftime show two years earlier.

What was the title of the Who's 2025 farewell tour?

Scott Devours drummed on it after Zak Starkey was fired that May.

Which term did Townshend coin in 1967 to describe the Who's style?

Phil Smee later applied freakbeat to their rawest mid-60s tracks such as The Ox.

Which drummer did the Who fire shortly before Moon joined, after a Fontana audition went badly?

Sandom was older and married; he and Townshend did not speak for 14 years.

What was the first guitar amplification brand the Who adopted, helping popularise its stacks?

Entwistle was the first to get two 4x12 cabinets; Townshend moved to Sound City in 1967 and Hiwatt in 1970.

Which Eagles guitarist gave Townshend the Gretsch 6120 he used in the studio from Who's Next on?

Walsh also gave him the Fender Bandmaster amp and Edwards volume pedal that went with it.