Backstory: Who Are You?
“Who Are You” is based on a day in the life of Pete Townshend. This song was one of the band’s biggest hits in North America and is the title track on The Who’s 1978 album, Who Are You. It is the last album released by the group before Keith Moon’s tragic death in September of the same year. On August 20th, 1978, “Who Are You” by The Who entered Billboard’s Hot Top 100 chart at position #70; and on October 29th, 1978 it peaked at #14 {for 2 weeks} and spent 15 weeks on the Top 100. The documentary, “The Kids Are Alright” shows The Who in a studio recording this song.
“Who Are You” isn’t a question, it’s a statement.
Legend says that Pete Townshend departed from a long, grueling meeting, months in the making, finally freeing The Who from the clutches of super-group manager, Allen Klein at ABKCO. They’d already been screwed by their previous manager, Peter Meadon, and the band consensus was that Klein was screwing them too, a common practice during the period with extraordinarily little recourse. Their instincts were confirmed in 1977, when Klein and ABKCO’s former head of promotion, Pete Bennett, were each charged with three felony counts of income tax evasion for 1970, 1971, and 1972. The result of this particular meeting made the entire band solvent millionaires for the first time and secured a financial future that insulated them from those particular sharks.

Townshend wandered from the meeting into SOHO and preceded to get drunk at a well-known club. Steve Jones and Paul Cook of the Sex Pistols, who thought highly of him for paving the way for punk rock music, were also at this club. Townshend started to preach to them from the voice of experience and the loose lips that go along with alcohol. There’s a picture of this supposed evening memorialized HERE.

Cook and Jones quizzed Pete about sports cars, exotic birds, flying first class, and all the other extravagances that being a rock star affords a person. Sources (probably Cook and Jones) insist that Townshend, deep in his cups, continued after numerous corrections to call them both “Johnny” and “Rotten” assuming he was speaking to John Lydon, who might have been more interested in taking over the metaphorical torch from Townshend’s generation.
Maybe, after finally being paid what he was worth compared to the new, gritty, punk bands like the Sex Pistols, he felt like a sell-out after his million-dollar meeting? Maybe he was mad at all the crappy management and game playing in the music industry? Maybe he was frustrated that he was trying to share valuable insight and the punks were acting like, well, punks? For whatever reason, Pete Townshend had enough of the Sex Pistols that night. There is no definitive information on whether they came to blows, but Townshend let his obvious disappointment be known, and “Who Are You” was born.

The Who were Original Punks. There would be no, Sex Pistols. No, Clash. No, insert name, if Pete hadn’t smashed up guitars while Moon beat the shit outta those drums, Roger screamed, and John kept plucking.
Related Posts
Latest News
-
Prog Acoustic Guitarist Mark Vickness, with his musical collective MVI releases instrumental LP ‘In The Rain Shadow’
Progressive Acoustic Guitar Virtuoso Mark Vickness recently announced his dynamic new instrumental...
- Posted December 6, 2023
- 0
-
Canadian Indie Rock Trio The Dark Fruits release new LP “Warm Weather Starter Pack”
Award-winning Canadian Indie Rock Trio The Dark Fruits have announced the release...
- Posted December 5, 2023
- 0
-
Night Wilds continue single releases ahead of 2024 ‘All That Should Have Been’ album drop
Night Wilds are a new band, led by Seattle native...
- Posted December 4, 2023
- 0
-
The James McGowan Ensemble release 16-track inner journey, ‘Reaching In’
The James McGowan Ensemble is a 13-piece group consisting of...
- Posted November 29, 2023
- 0
-
Brooklyn-Austria-based power indie rockers superWAV release aTypical, a heady, bluesy EP
Brooklyn-and-Austria-based power indie rock band superWAV are back with aTypical, a heady,...
- Posted November 28, 2023
- 0
-
California Independent songwriter Patrick Ames releases two new powerful singles
At age 69, Songwriter Patrick Ames Grows Ever More Determined...
- Posted November 27, 2023
- 0
-
Ava Della Pietra’s Latest Single ‘talk it out’ – A Heartfelt Exploration of Emotional Connections
Ava Della Pietra, a name swiftly gaining traction in the...
- Posted November 10, 2023
- 0
Like us on Facebook
Latest Backstories
-
The Real Story behind the song, “Mr. Bojangles”
In our continuing weekly series, we examine the backstory...
- September 6, 2023
- 0
-
RIP Robbie Robertson.
Canadian, Robbie Robertson, legendary lead guitarist of “The Band”...
- August 9, 2023
- 0
-
Celebrate Good Times: The Story Behind Kool and the Gang’s Hit Song
If you have ever been to a wedding, a...
- July 12, 2023
- 0
-
Gold Dust Woman: The Story Behind Stevie Nicks’ Signature Song
The song was written earlier in her life in...
- July 6, 2023
- 0
-
Stevie Nicks Honors Tom Petty at Emotional Louisville Show
Stevie Nicks, the High Priestess of Rock and Roll...
- June 28, 2023
- 0
Latest Photo Galleries
-
The Zombies in Nashville, Indiana 10.19.23
The Zombies are one of the most enduring and...
- October 20, 2023
- 0
-
Barry Manilow in Louisville, Review and Photos
If you are a fan of pop music, you...
- August 24, 2023
- 0
-
Post Malone delivers in Indianapolis
Ruoff Music Center was electric as Post Malone brought...
- July 10, 2023
- 0
-
Peter Frampton Rocks the House at the PNC Pavilion in Cincinnati
Peter Frampton is a living legend, and he proved...
- June 29, 2023
- 0
-
The Doobie Brothers Celebrate 50 Years of Rocking Down the Highway
The Doobie Brothers have been on the road for...
- June 29, 2023
- 0
0 comments