Photo: Wenn
Roger Daltrey, who is about to embark on a tour to celebrate The Who’s 50th anniversary, has said that this is the last big tour that the band will ever do.
Speaking with Rolling Stone, Daltrey said: "We have to be realistic. I want us to stop at the top of our game when we are still really good at what we do. The quality of the music is really what this is all about."
The North American leg of The Who Hits 50! Tour kicks off on April 15 in Tampa, Florida and runs through November 4 in Philadelphia, PA. The tour will also make a brief stop in Europe from June to July. The band played a rescheduled show date at London’s O2 Arena earlier this week.
The setlist for the 50th anniversary tour focuses on the hits, unlike previous recent The Who tours which have largely focused on whole album playbacks. "We have songs that if we don't play, 85 percent to 90 percent of our audience will be disappointed," Daltrey said. "But we are doing a few obscure ones to please our hardcore fans."
When asked if this tour is an emotional one, Daltrey said that it is “just great to see an audience that goes from the grandchildren to the children of our original fans, with our original fans. It's just great to see that kind of audience at a rock show.”
He also discussed the newfound closeness he has with fellow bandmate Pete Townshend, saying that “after all the testosterone of youth, all of the problems and middle age and drugs and losing people we love, in the end you suddenly realize you deeply love each other. We are like brothers.”
Daltrey also touched upon the loss of John Entwistle, stating that his death woke up the band to their own mortality. “Of course, it's a different world now,” he said. “The horrible shock of 9/11 shocked the world. And then John dying the next year did make us realize we're mortal. If we believed in anything, it was the power of music bringing people together. If we're touring for anything, that's a good enough reason for me.”
The Who’s The Who Hits 50! Tour will be going to the following locations:
North American Tour
April 15 - Tampa, FL Amalie Arena
April 17 - Miami, FL Americanairlines Arena
April 19 - Jacksonville, FL Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena
April 21 - Raleigh, NC PNC Arena
April 23 - Duluth, GA The Arena At Gwinnett Center
April 25 - New Orleans, LA New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival Presented By Shell
April 27 - Austin, TX Frank Erwin Center
April 29 - Houston, TX Toyota Center
May 2 - Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
May 5 - Kansas City, MO Sprint Center
May 7 - St. Louis, MO Scottrade Center
May 9 - Louisville, KY KFC Yum! Arena
May 11 - Nashville, TN Bridgestone Arena
May 13 - Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena
May 15 - Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
May 17 - Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
May 20 - Uniondale, NY Nassau Coliseum
May 22 - Atlantic City, NJ Boardwalk Hall
May 24 - Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun Arena
May 26 - Brooklyn, NY Barclays Center
May 30 - Forest Hills, NY Forest Hills Stadium
European Tour
June 21 - Belfast Odyssey Arena
June 23 - Dublin 3arena
June 26 - London Hyde Park
June 28 - Paris Le Zenith
June 29 - Paris Le Zenith
July 1 - Amsterdam Ziggo Dome
Tour: Pete Townshend’s Classic Quadrophenia
July 5 - London Royal Albert Hall
North American Tour
September 14 - San Diego, CA Valley View Casino Center
September 16 - Anaheim, CA Honda Center
September 19 - Las Vegas, NV Colosseum At Caesars Palace
September 21 - Los Angeles, CA Staples Center
September 23 - Oakland, CA Oracle Arena
September 25 - Portland, OR Moda Center
September 27 - Seattle, WA Key Arena
September 29 - Vancouver, BC Pepsi Live At Rogers Arena
October 1 - Calgary, AB Scotiabank Saddledome
October 3 - Edmonton, AB Rexall Place
October 6 - Saskatoon, SK Sasktel Centre
October 8 - Winnipeg, MB Mts Centre
October 10 - Minneapolis, MN Target Center
October 13 - Milwaukee, WI BMO Harris Bradley Center
October 15 - Chicago, IL United Center
October 17 - Detroit, MI Joe Louis Arena
October 19 - Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
October 21 - Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre
October 23 - Pittsburgh, PA Consol Energy Center
October 25 - Newark, NJ Prudential Center
October 27 - New York, NY Madison Square Garden
October 29 - Boston, MA TD Garden
November 1 - Washington, DC Verizon Center
November 4 - Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
