News : The Who’s Pete Townshend “couldn’t see anything wrong” with gig that caused Zak Starkey’s firing: “I have to be careful what I say about Roger or he’ll be sacking me next”

The Who‘s Pete Townshend has said he “couldn’t see anything wrong” with the gig that resulted in Zac Starkey’s firing from the band.

In April – amid the lead-up to The Who’s US farewell tour – Starkey publicly confirmed that he had been kicked out of the group, after being part of their line-up since 1996. Just days later, however, Pete Townshend denied this, confirming that he was “not being asked to step down” and very much still part of the line-up.

Things got even messier on May 18, when Townshend then officially announced Starkey’s departure from the band, stating that “the time has come for a change”. He also cited Starkey’s “new projects” as an added reason for him to leave, concluding: “I wish him the best.”

Roger Daltrey would then confirm the news, but explain that it wasn’t a case of Starkey being “fired” from the group, but rather him “retiring”. This, he said, was so he could focus on his work with supergroup Mantra Of The Cosmos, who have a new song coming out soon that was penned by Noel Gallagher.

Starkey later denied that he was retiring, again stating that he was “fired” from the band.

It came after The Who performed at the Royal Albert Hall in March, as part of this year’s Teenage Cancer Trust gig series. It was here that frictions between Starkey and the rest of the band appeared to emerge, after Daltry publicly called out Starkey mid-show for allegedly overplaying during ‘The Song Is Over’.

In a new interview with the i Paper, Townshend has commented on the Albert Hall incident, saying: “It’s been a mess.”

“I couldn’t see anything wrong,” he continued. “What you see is a band who haven’t played together for a long time. But I think it was probably to do with the sound. I’ve lost my sound man as a result.”

“I think Roger just got lost. Roger’s finding it difficult,” Townshend added. “I have to be careful what I say about Roger because he gets angry if I say anything about him at all. He’ll be sacking me next. But that’s not to say that he sacked Zak. It’s a decision Roger and I tried to make together, but it kind of got out of hand.”

When asked if it was a difficult decision to let Starkey go, Townshend responded: “Well, I’ve never been a huge… I didn’t invite him in, right? Roger invited him. And at that time, I don’t know quite why he chose Zak, but Zak is another Keith Moon. He comes with real, real bonuses and real, real difficulties.”

He went on to say: “I will miss Zak terribly,” adding, “But quite what the story is, I don’t fucking know. I really don’t know.”

When the news announcing Starkey’s ‘retirement’ was shared, The Who also confirmed that Scott Devours would be taking on the role of drummer for their farewell tour. He has previously worked with Daltrey as part of the singer’s solo band. Following the news of him joining the line-up, he called the weight of being their new sticksman “enormous”, and added that he understood if fans were “gutted” by Starkey’s loss.

Ringo Starr also recently weighed in on his son being fired from the band, reportedly saying: “I’ve never liked the way that little man runs that band,” seemingly a reference to frontman Daltrey.

The Who’s farewell tour is set to begin in Florida on August 16, and other shows across the month include stops in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and New York. Visit here for tickets.

In other The Who news, Daltrey has been awarded a Knighthood in King Charles III’s Birthday Honours list.

Meanwhile, Starkey’s group Mantra Of The Cosmos have teamed up with John Lennon’s son Sean Ono Lennon and Paul McCartney’s son James McCartney on a new song, ‘Rip-Off’.