The Who’s Pete Townshend recalls moment he decided to leave Roger Daltrey-fronted band

Veteran guitarist and long-time member of The Who, Pete Townshend, knew when to leave the Roger Daltrey-fronted group.

He summarised his desire to leave the group as “fuck it, it’s over” and believed it was one moment in the early 1980s that convinced him it was time to go. Townshend would share as much in an interview with David Sheff, confirming he had “great difficulty riding the serpent.” It appeared to hit the peak of its trouble, however, following the band’s 1982 tour. Townshend says he was “really bereft” after this experience and had finally found the courage to quit the group entirely, leaving behind The Who and carving out a series of solid solo albums through the 1980s and 1990s. The Who would get back together on more than one occasion, but it marked a major change for Townshend, who would quit the band.

In the years after leaving The Who, Townshend would take the band’s album, Tommy, to Broadway. Townshend said: “It’s difficult to talk about this without sounding unbelievably conceited, but in my life I’ve had great difficulty riding the serpent. We made big mistakes with the Who in the Seventies, and I had my personal collapse.

“But after finishing the 1982 tour and being confronted with going to the studio yet again with his band, which I thought was really bereft, I had the courage to say, ‘Fuck it, it’s over.’ From that moment on I’ve been in complete control of my life.

“I’ve had time to sit and look at which part of my life I want to turn into a continuum and which part of it I want to leave behind. It has been done by choice, with a plan, and Tommy on Broadway is part of it.” Elsewhere in the interview, Townshend would confirm he felt held back by Daltrey while in The Who.

Though Townshend would get back together with The Who several times over his career, he believes the band did not aid him as well as it could have. Asked if looking back at his time in The Who was a reminiscent, “good old days” feeling, Townshend says he felt “fettered” by frontman Daltrey.

He said: “Under the so-called democracy of The Who I felt very fettered by Roger, but at the same time it was wonderful to share the weight of a concert with him. I was somewhat held back by John Entwistle’s tendency to play too loud, but equally I miss his backstage wit and the fact that we have been friends since we were 11 years old. So it’s mixed.”

Townshend would garner a reputation for smashing guitars during his time with The Who, something he says is an “embarrassing” part of his performance. He said: “Well you have to remember I’m not angry all the time.

“Even now I occasionally get frustrated on the stage with guitars and want to smash them. I tend not to do it, but the opportunity’s always there. I smashed a guitar on the Psycho Derelict tour and it was great fun.”