One of classic rock’s biggest stars says managers stole money from band’s record sales….
The Who is one of the most influential rock band’s in history and reportedly sold more than 43 million albums during their long career.
But according to the group’s principal songwriter and guitarist, Pete Townshend, very little money from the sales made it into his pockets or that of his bandmates.
“The Who never made any money from f—ing records anyway,” Townshend tells NME in a recent interview. “Our managers were criminals. … There are black swans in our business and they’re the ones that always mop up all the money.
“Look at the legendary Jimi Hendrix, I saw him in LA in the last two weeks of his life. He was happy, he was really nice to me, and he hadn’t been always in the past. I said, ‘How you doing?’ and he said, ‘Pete, I’m broke’. He was huge, and he was broke.”
It’s unlikely Townshend is hurting for cash, though. In 2021, he sold his home in London for 15 million pounds (nearly $19 million in U.S. currency). And the band has toured regularly since the late 1990s.
Townshend spoke to NME to promote a new ballet based on The Who’s album “Quadrophenia,” which was released in 1973 and sold 1.2 million copies. “Quadrophenia, A Mod Ballet” will tour the United Kingdom in 2025, NME reports.
The Who’s biggest-selling album is “Tommy,” which has sold 20 million copies since its release in 1969. A Broadway play based on “Tommy” was revived in March and will wrap up its run in New York on July 21. A national tour of the musical will begin next year.
Earlier this year, Townshend, 79, suggested The Who might go on a final worldwide tour. He later backtracked, saying he was “being sarcastic.” Townshend and singer Roger Daltrey are the two surviving original members of the band. Original drummer Keith Moon died in 1978 and bassist John Entwistle died in 2002.
