Classic rockers the Who celebrated their 50th anniversary roughly a decade ago, touring the world on their “The Who Hits 50” tour, which ran from 2014 to 2016. But, that wasn’t it for the band, and the guys still had a lot of life left in them.
Today, the Who is still celebrated, but they’re winding down their touring days. On May 8, the legendary classic rockers announced their goodbye tour, dubbed the “This Song Is Over” farewell tour.
The Who’s Farewell Tour
The Who’s 16-date trek will begin August 16 in Sunrise, Florida, and run through a September 28 date in Las Vegas, Nevada. Hardcore fans of the band will note that the trek is is named after a song from the band’s 1971 album, “Who’s Next.” Find the full roster of date for the trek on the Who’s official website.
When announcing the tour, longtime band member Pete Townshend was open and honest about his experience with touring. While he says he wasn’t always a fan of being on the road, it’s still been the best job ever for him. His bandmates would likely agree. Who wouldn’t want to tour the world as a rock star for a living?What’s funny is that the Who actually had their first farewell tour more than 40 years ago, wrapping it up on December 17, 1982 in Toronto. But, seven years later, they went on the road again, this time with a huge, 15-piece band. That’s wasn’t embraced by fans, but that’s all history now.
Of course, legendary Who bass player John Entwistle passed away in 2002. Since then, surviving founding members Townshend and Daltrey toured together extensively and released two new albums: 2006’s “Endless Wire” and 2019’s “Who.”
In March, Townshend told the New York Times that he was ready for a farewell run, stating, “It feels to me like there’s one thing the Who can do, and that’s a final tour where we play every territory in the world and then crawl off to die. I don’t get much of a buzz from performing. If I’m really honest, I’ve been touring for the money.”
Meet the expert – Charles Ken is a trending news writer for Audio Ink Radio. He is a graduate of Michigan State University, where he studied writing and history.