Page updated September 1, 2024. This is a highly abridged version of all the things that happened to and around The Who in September Click for access to the full history.
September 1951
New music releases: "Sin (It's No Sin)" - Eddy Howard & His Orchestra; "Sin" - Four Aces featuring Al Alberts; "Down Yonder" - Del Wood; "Love's Roundabout" - Teddy Johnson
Six-year old Pete Townshend, unhappy at his school in Acton, moves to St. Saviours in Westgate where his poor reading abilities put him at the bottom of the class.
It is around this time that Pete's parents go on tour and put Pete in the care of his grandmother, a woman Pete later discovered was "clinically insane". Pete believes he suffered abuse at her hands which he subsequently blacked out of his memory but which subsequently influenced his writing of Tommy and other works as well as his path in life.
September 1961
New music releases: The Highwaymen - The Highwaymen; "Big Bad John" - Jimmy Dean; Breakfast at Tiffany's - Henry Mancini; Joan Baez, Vol. 2 - Joan Baez
Pete starts a 2-year introductory course at Ealing Technical College and School of Art. Around this time, John Entwistleruns into Roger Daltrey who recruits him as bass player in his group The Detours. Meanwhile, Keith Moon takes night classes in electronics at Harrow Technical College. Their future manager Kit Lambert returns to England after the disastrous Brazilian expedition that led to his friend's death.
September 1962
New music releases: "Green Onions" - Booker T & The MGs; Joan Baez in Concert - Joan Baez; The Best of Sam Cooke - Sam Cooke; "Bobby's Girl" - Susan Maughan
On the 6th, The Detours get a feature article in the Acton Gazette and Post, their first ever press mention, in a review of the Gala Ball of the 1st. The paper says the "Detours" jazz group provided "the gist of the twist."
John receives his discharge certificate from the Boys Brigade with good conduct.
Pete starts his second year of art school. It is during this year that Pete makes friends with fellow students Richard Barnes (who will name The Who) and Tom Wright, who will turn Pete onto grass as well as record after record of U.S. jazz, blues and R&B.
September 1963
New music releases: "Sugar Shack" - Jim Gilmer & The Fireballs; "Walking The Dog" - Rufus Thomas; The Singing Nun - Sœur Sourire; Surfer Girl - The Beach Boys
On the 7th, Melody Maker runs an ad for Marshall Amps listing the Detours as clients. Marshall will go on to create the stackable cabinet setup at Pete's request that will become the standard for the rock era.
September 1965
New music releases: "Yesterday" - The Beatles; "The Sounds of Silence" - Simon & Garfunkel; Going Places - Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass; Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul - Otis Redding
On the 10th, Life magazine prints an article on The Beatles. Ringo, asked if The Beatles are a "pop-art" band, says that would be The Who. "It's a new group. When they play they slowly smash their instruments to bits."
On the 13th, Ringo unknowingly makes a contribution to that band as his wife Maureen gives birth to their son Zak Starkey. Thirty-one years later, Zak will become The Who's primary drummer.
On the 25th, The Who arrive in Denmark to begin their first Danish tour with a 9pm show at the Folkets Hus in Elsinore then rush 20 miles to Copenhagen to play the KB Hallen at Midnight, this set with loaner equipment from the Swedish band The Lee Kings. According to a member of The Namelosers, a Swedish pop band, Roger bursts into the dressing room after the second show and headbutts Keith in the nose because Keith had been playing too loud.
The next night The Who play an 8pm show at the Aarhus Hallen in Aarhus...or rather they attempt to. The audience pelts the opening acts with bottles and trash and turns into a rioting mob by the time The Who take the stage. The band makes it through half of one song before fleeing for their lives as the audience storms the stage and smashes the instruments. Pete later calls it "the best concert we ever played in Denmark."
Backstage Roger angrily blames the others for the group's problems calling them "pillheads," at the time an accurate description. Roger grabs Keith's supply of speed tablets and flushes them down the toilet. Keith goes for Roger's throat. Security has to be called in to remove the singer's pummeling fists from the drummer. Nevertheless they all rush to Aalborg, taking the Fredrikstorv stage to play a 9:30pm show.
A sullen Who travel back to the U.K. where Pete, John and Keith demand that Roger be kicked out of the Who. The managers talk them into allowing Roger to continue for now while they look for another singer.
September 1966
New music releases: "Knock on Wood" - Eddie Floyd; The Mamas & The Papas - The Mamas & The Papas; Bert Kaempfert's Greatest Hits - Bert Kaempfert and His Orchestra; The Best of The Lettermen - The Lettermen
Wednesday is spent at the Locarno Ballroom in Stevenage (7th) and Friday at the Pier Pavilion in Felixstowe (9th). The latter show and the car ride to it are filmed for the French television programme Seize Millions de Jeunes.
On the 23rd, The Who were to have left for a U.S. promotional tour. The trip, for which The Who had cancelled their British theatrical tour, is itself cancelled due to visa problems.
On the 24th, former Animal Chas Chandler lands in the U.K. with his new American discovery, guitarist Jimi Hendrix. Sometime during the next few days, according to John, Jimi gives a performance at a local club accompanied by John on bass. Perhaps he tells The Who's managers because, on the 27th, they attend a Hendrix performance at the Scotch of St. James Club. Chandler has heard about the Track Records' startup (Hendrix originally wanted to sign with Decca because The Who were on Decca in the U.S.). After hearing Hendrix play, Lambert and Stamp try to talk him into letting them be his managers but Chandler, naturally, refuses so they sign Hendrix as their first act for their new independent label, Track.
With the U.S. tour cancelled and no British shows lined up, The Who return to the studio for more LP work. During this period they record "Showbiz Sonata," an instrumental track credited to Keith Moon but with melody filched by John from a track off The Man From Interpol soundtrack album. It is later retitled "Cobwebs and Strange."
On the 30th, "I'm a Boy" hits its official U.K. chart peak at #2. Jim Reeves' "Distant Drums" keeps it from the #1 spot.
September 1967
New music releases: "What a Wonderful World" - Louis Armstrong; Strange Days - The Doors; "Soul Man" - Sam & Dave; "To Sir With Love" - Lulu
The Hermits' tour reconvenes at the Convention Center in Anaheim, California on the 8th where The Sundowners and The Strawberry Alarm Clock appear before The Who. Both Pete and John smash their instruments at this show. According to the NME: "Although Herman's Hermits were top-billed, their English brethren proved to be the top draw, as a large proportion of the audience left before the Hermits came on, and all but the youngest of those who stayed did so out of curiosity rather than idolatry." The tour winds up with a last show in Hawaii at the Honolulu International Center Arena. While there Keith tries to surf for the first and last time. He manages to stand up for a few seconds before falling off and getting hit in the head by the flying board.
On the 15th, The Who tape their appearance on the U.S. variety show The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour at CBS Studios, Los Angeles. They mime to "I Can See For Miles" and a newly-recorded version of "My Generation" with a little scripted banter with host Tommy Smothers in between.
"My Generation" was to have concluded with an instrument smashing and the usual flashpots going off behind the amps but Keith bribes a stagehand into packing his bass drum with explosives. The explosion blows out the front of the drum kit directly into Pete's head, catching his hair on fire and permanently damaging his hearing. A cymbal knocked backward by the blast hits Keith in the arm, opening a gash. The entire melee airs on the 17th and later opens The Who's film The Kids Are Alright. This was The Who's only appearance on a major U.S. television variety show.
On the 17th, The Who return to London after two months in North America. John borrows $100 to fly home first class. Two months of touring opening for Herman's Hermits paid The Who $40,000. By the time they return home they have burned through all that and are now $5000 in debt.
On the 18th, Decca releases "I Can See For Miles" backed with one of the August takes of "Mary Anne With The Shaky Hands." Decca gives the single a huge push, rushing it to stores to capitalize on the Smothers Brothers appearance and sending 250,000 color portraits of the band to radio stations. It becomes the biggest hit single of their career in the U.S. reaching #9 in the Billboard charts and #8 in Cash Box as well as hitting #1 on many regional charts.
September 1968
New music releases: "All Along the Watchtower" - The Jimi Hendrix Experience; "Little Green Apples" - O.C. Smith; "Magic Carpet Ride" - Steppenwolf; "Stormy" - Classics IV
Early in the month, photos are taken by Australian photographer Barry Peake of The Who gathered around a psychedelic bus. Pete later says he was told by Decca/MCA that the pictures were to promote "Magic Bus". They are in fact for the promotion of a record called "Magic Bus", but it is for an album Decca is currently assembling.
After a reorganization of Decca Records initiated by their new owners MCA, two sales conferences are held, one in New Orleans (12-13) and one in Montreal (17-18). During at least the latter meeting, Bill Gallagher, MCA Leisure Time vice-president, shows off Decca's "New Directions" promotion, 32 new albums by Decca stars. One of them is a new Who album, Magic Bus - The Who on Tour, a compilation album hastily assembled and mastered by Decca from singles and album cuts and, apparently, without the input of The Who or their management. The album is scheduled to be released to stores by the end of the month.
On the 19th, The Who begin what will ultimately become six months of recording sessions for Tommy. One of the songs definitely recorded around this time during sessions in IBC Studio A, London are various takes of Mose Allison's "Young Man Blues," probably intended as a single. The takes come out after the release of Tommy, the first on the 1969 Track Records compilation The House That Track Built.
On the 21st, Melody Maker prints an interview with Pete where he comes out for the first time as being against LSD: "Before I took LSD, I tried to imagine what it would be like and when I did it was as big as I expected and blew my head off. So, if I could imagine what it would be like, what is the point of taking it? All drugs do is strengthen the illusion of what you see around you. If you see a piece of orange peel lying on the pavement, it's stupid to try and see it as anything other than a piece of orange peel. Things do tend to get out of perspective." He also mentions the planned Live at the Fillmore album: "it came out pretty badly. We’re not as good as [Cream]. We jump about too much, which people expect from us on stage, and you can't play so well."
September 1969
New music releases: Abbey Road - The Beatles; Through The Past, Darkly (Big Hits Vol. 2) - The Rolling Stones; "Wedding Bell Blues" - The 5th Dimension; Get Ready - Rare Earth
On the 13th, The Who appear at The Belfry in Sutton, Coldfield with The Herd opening, then on the 21st Fairfield Hall in Croydon. There is no support on this last gig so The Who provide an extended set. The hall provides excellent acoustics and Pete later calls this The Who's best live performance of Tommy. Alan Lewis, attending this show for Melody Maker, agrees saying The Who are the band to which all others must now be compared. Elton John is in the audience.
On the 29th is the first of Who manager Kit Lambert's attempts to ram Tommy down the throats of the highbrows by having The Who perform it at famous opera houses and concert halls. The Who's show at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam is partly filmed and broadcast on the show Journaal for Dutch television while the entire concert is simulcast on AVRO radio. Bootlegs of this simulcast are released under a wide variety of titles.
September 1970
New music releases: Abraxas - Santana; Paranoid - Black Sabbath; After The Gold Rush - Neil Young; "Wild World" - Cat Stevens
The Who stay in a hotel in Frankfurt where Pete picks up hotel stationary on which he writes the original draft of the song "Love Ain't For Keeping." He also writes "Pure and Easy" around this time, called "The Note" at this early stage.
On the 26th, "See Me Feel Me" backed with "Overture From Tommy" hits the U.S. charts. The 16-month old A-side is released to cash in on the popularity of the movie Woodstock and becomes one of The Who's biggest U.S. hits reaching #12 in Billboard and #8 in Cash Box.
Starting on the 28th and ending on the 30th, Pete writes out the scenario for The Who's next project, the film Life House. "OVERTURE: The farmers — Life — Beauty — Celebration, LIFEHOUSE: The City — Rock — Youth against finance — Individuals working for the whole, GLORIFICATION: They disappear — they triumph, leaving everyone behind." He sends a copy to co-manager Chris Stamp along with details on how the members of The Who would fit into the movie and how filming might be handled.
September 1971
New music releases: Imagine - John Lennon; Santana III - Santana; Greatest Hits, Vol. 2 - Johnny Cash; "Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves" - Cher
On the 9th, International Times magazine publishes a statement attacking the song "Won't Get Fooled Again" for its negative view of the Revolution. "...the danger in the new single seems to be that it fails to differentiate between the megalomanias and the courageous individual who is prepared to stand up and voice the sentiment 'fuck you' to authority."
A Who conference is held at Roger's home in Burwash, Sussex. The meeting is filmed in colour by Richard Stanley and Chris Morphet as The Who talk about the possibility of a Who movie. In many of the scenes, Pete talks about his fears that The Who is becoming a cabaret act with stage business that is overshadowing their music. Several such scenes, appearing in black-and-white, will later be used in the movie The Kids Are Alright.
On the 18th, two months after George Harrison held a similar event at Madison Square Garden, The Who hold a benefit concert for Bangladesh at the Kennington Oval Cricket Ground in London. The Who's roadies wear cricket uniforms and Keith plays the drums at one point with a cricket bat. The opening acts are The Faces, Mott the Hoople, Atomic Rooster, Quintessence and others. Thirty-five thousand attend and £15,000 is raised with £9,148 coming directly from the Who. The concert is recorded but unlike Harrison's show is never released after negotiations between the various groups break down.
On the same day Who's Next hits #1 in the British charts; The Who's only official #1 in Britain. Meanwhile, "Won't Get Fooled Again" peaks at #15 on the U.S. Billboard charts, repeating in the same position the next week.
On the 23rd, International Times prints Pete's response to the attack on "Won't Get Fooled Again". He describes the song as "...mainly a song which screams defiance at those who feel that any cause is better than no cause, that death in a sick society is better than putting up with it or resigning themselves to wait for change."
Also on the 25th in Melody Maker, Pete warns of a change coming soon in rock but doesn't know what direction it will be. "I don't think rock music is keeping up with the audience's demands. Nowadays there are different kinds of audience: the ones who like rock because of its glamour, the extreme left-wingers who use it as a political vehicle and the intellectuals who see in rock a high intellectual content. There is definitely a need for the barriers between an audience and the group to breakdown." In the same issue a fan attacks The Who for their high ticket prices calling them capitalists hiding behind a banner of anti-materialism. The letter is sparked by the outrageous ticket prices for The Who's upcoming tour, some as high as £3.50.
September 1972
New music releases: Summer Breeze - Seals & Crofts; Rocky Mountain High - John Denver; Close To The Edge - Yes; Black Sabbath - Vol. 4 - Black Sabbath
The Who continue their European tour stopping at the Stadthalle in Vienna on the 2nd and the Deutsches Museum in Munich on the 4th. Munich is later released on bootlegs under the titles Live In Munich and Who Is This? The Munich concert coincides with the Olympics and The Who are honored as "Star of the Week" by the Munich Abendzeitung who declare them "extraordinary performers in the cultural and political field." By horrible coincidence, within hours of the concert Palestinian terrorists seize the living quarters of the Israel Olympic team. Eleven of the athletes are later murdered by the terrorists.
On the 9th, The Who are the main performers at Fete de l'Humanité, an annual event sponsored by the chief newspaper of the French Communist Party. Four hundred thousand attend and the concert is filmed by Freddy Hausser. Pete takes Eric Clapton with him as part of his effort to get him off heroin and back in circulation. During The Who's set, Eric is mistaken for a fan and is escorted from the wings by one of the stage crew.
Pete meets with William David Ormsby-Gore, 5th Baron Harlech whose daughter is Eric Clapton's girlfriend and also a heroin user. Lord Harlech is organizing events commemorating England's entry into the Common Market and, as part of it, he and Pete set up a concert for Eric at the Rainbow Theatre in London. It is hoped that the pressure of preparing for a live show will force Eric to clean up.
On the 25th, The Who purchase an abandoned warehouse at 115 Thessaly Road in Battersea to turn into a recording studio and a storage shed for their thirty tons of touring equipment. It will eventually be named Ramport Studios.
On the 29th, Pete releases the album Who Came First as a solo album although it is primarily a compilation of demo tracks recorded over the past two years for The Who and previously released selections from the Meher Baba albums Happy Birthday and I Am. Most reviewers find it pleasant listening with Records and Recording magazine praising Pete for a religious album that is not insipid. The album reaches #30 in the U.K. In the U.S., Who Came First is not released until early November where it peaks at #69.
September 1973
New music releases: "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" - Elton John; "The Way We Were" - Barbra Steisand; "Let Me Be There" - Olivia Newton-John; "Y Viva España" - Sylvia (Vrethammar)
On the 6th, a group meeting of The Who is held at the offices of Goodman, Michaels, and Rosten at Sparc House, 86 Gloucester Place, London. Roger announces that he has had an independent accounting survey made of The Who's managers Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp and has found significant mismanagement and fraud. Roger follows it with an ultimatum: either they go or he goes. This sparks a three-year financial war between The Who and their management and a long-simmering antagonism between Roger and Pete, the latter trying to delay the severing of ties to The Who's management for as long as he can.
On the 29th, Keith's wife Kim, finally having had enough of his insane way of living, leaves him and takes their seven year old daughter, Mandy. It makes the London papers the next day.
September 1975
New music releases: Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd; Windsong - John Denver; Ted Nugent - Ted Nugent; "Mamma Mia" - ABBA
On the 16th the new Who album, originally to be entitled "Car Tunes" but with the title changed to The Who By Numbers, receives its final mastering at IBC Studios, London. John, referring to the album's generally downbeat tone, later says the title was changed because "basically the songs weren't the kind you'd play in the car unless you wanted to drive off a bridge."
September 1976
New music releases: Songs In The Key of Life - Stevie Wonder; Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap - AC/DC; The Song Remains the Same - Led Zeppelin; One More From the Road - Lynyrd Skynyrd
On the 24th, Polydor Records releases The Story of The Who worldwide except for the U.S. and Canada. The "story" is a bit limited as none of the 1965 tracks produced by Shel Talmy are included and neither are any tracks from Quadrophenia. Nevertheless the album reaches #2 in the U.K. charts. To promote the album, The Sun runs a contest to "Win The Who's Pinball Machine" to be presented personally by John.
September 1977
New music releases: The Stranger - Billy Joel; Elton John's Greatest Hits Volume II - Elton John; Simple Dreams - Linda Ronstadt; Aja - Steely Dan
On the 5th, Pete's album made in conjunction with Ronnie Lane, Rough Mix, is released in the U.S. The U.K. release follows on the 16th. Dave Marsh in Rolling Stone calls it a successful blend of spiritual feelings and art. Positive reviews also come from Phil McNeill in New Musical Express, John Swenson in Circus, David Sargent in Vogue, Steve Simels in Stereo Review and Billy Altman in Creem who calls it one of the year's best albums. It reaches #44 in the U.K. charts and #45 in the U.S.
On the 12th, Keith ends his three year on-and-off residency in Los Angeles for good. After his arrival in London he tries to go cold turkey from alcohol and drugs to prepare for the upcoming Who recording, but it prompts another seizure and he has to be hospitalized for a few days. When he comes out his beard of the recent year has been shaved off.
On the 17th, Pete and Ronnie Lane discuss their new album and their love of Meher Baba in Melody Maker. Pete also blasts the punk rock group The Stranglers who had been critical of The Who but shows his sympathy with punk rock. "In my imagination I invented punk rock a thousand times. I thought the hypocrisy of the position we were in was just unbelievable."
On the 19th, The Who reunite at Ramport Studios in London to begin rehearsals for the Who Are You album.
September 1978
New music releases: "Le Freak" - Chic; Pieces of Eight - Styx; Parallel Lines - Blondie; Living in the USA - Linda Ronstadt
On the 6th, Keith and his girlfriend Anette Walter-Lax attend a party held by Paul McCartney at Peppermint Park, London. They share a table with the McCartneys, David Frost, John Hurt, and Kenney Jones.
At midnight, they attend the London premiere of the new film The Buddy Holly Story at the Odeon in Leicester Square where Keith and Anette are photographed as they enter. After 45 minutes, Keith tells Anette he wants to go home and they leave. Pictures of Keith leaving will be his last.
When they get home Anette cooks a meal of lamb cutlets. Keith goes to sleep watching a video of The Abominable Dr. Phibes. On the 7th, around 7:30am Keith wakes up and demands that Anette cook him a steak. He watches some more Phibes while he eats. After he finishes he goes right back to sleep. Anette awakes from the couch at 3:40pm and goes into Keith's bedroom finding him face down on the bed. She is unable to awaken him so she calls Keith's doctor Geoffrey Dymond who administers CPR, which also fails. Keith Moon is pronounced dead on arrival at Middlesex Hospital, Westminister. He is 32 years old.
On the 8th, twenty-four hours after Keith's death, Pete, John and Roger have a meeting at Shepperton Studios and afterwards, Pete puts out a press release stating that The Who will carry on without Keith. "We are more determined than ever to carry on, and we want the spirit of the group to which Keith contributed so much to go on, although no human being can ever take his place".
On the 13th, Pete, Roger and John attend Moon's funeral at Golders Green Crematorium. Also there are Eric Clapton, Charlie Watts, Bill Wyman, Keith's mom, ex-wife Kim and daughter Mandy. Anette collapses during the service and has to be helped away. Roger sends a floral tribute representing a champagne bottle through a television screen. Wreaths are also sent by Oliver Reed, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Fleetwood Mac and Keith's favorite charity, Make Children Happy.
On the 18th, the coroner's inquest into Keith's death is held. It is determined that death was caused by an accidental overdose of prescribed Heminevrin tablets, that there had been a "minimal" amount of alcohol in his bloodstream, and that Moon was not in a suicidal state at the time of his death. There were 26 undissolved Heminevrin tablets found in his stomach out of a total of 32 Keith ingested that night.
On the 21st, principal photography begins on the film version of Quadrophenia.
September 1979
New music releases: The Long Run - The Eagles; Head Games - Foreigner; Kenny - Kenny Rogers; Eat to the Beat - Blondie
On the 10th, the new Who with Kenney Jones on drums and John "Rabbit" Bundrick on keyboards and a horn section, makes its U.S. debut at the Capitol Theater in Passaic, New Jersey. This show features the live premiere of John's "Trick of the Light". Another show follows there the next night.
Having prepped the show for Manhattan, The Who move to Madison Square Garden for a five night stand on the 13th, 14th, 16th, 17th and 18th. On the second night The Who are awarded the Gold Ticket for selling over 100,000 tickets at the venue.
September 1980
New music releases: Kenny Rogers' Greatest Hits - Kenny Rogers; Guilty - Barbra Streisand; Blizzard of Ozz - Ozzy Osbourne; "Crazy Train" - Ozzy Osbourne
On the 3rd and 4th The Who and manager Bill Curbishley quietly return to Cincinnati to give their depositions in a $1.2 million lawsuit brought by Todd Volkman, a survivor of the crush outside Riverfront Coliseum before The Who's 1979 concert. The depositions are held at the Cincinnati Club. The proceedings get very emotional with John reduced to tears at one point. Pete later says he found it odd that Volkman's attorney questions him as if he were some stereotypically moronic rock star. Another oddity is that just as the band are giving their testimony a group of women in a building across the street, visible only to those sitting in the chair to be questioned, begin parading around naked! The next day Volkman's attorney is interviewed in The Cincinnati Enquirer. He says that the 14 lawsuits against the Coliseum, the promoters and The Who could total "substantially over $100 million."
On the 20th, Roger's second single from his McVicar LP hits the U.S. charts. The gentle ballad "Without Your Love," a cover of a Billy Nicholls' song from Pete's Meher Baba tribute LP With Love, becomes Roger's biggest solo hit in the U.S. peaking at #20 in Billboard and #23 in Cash Box. The flip side is "Escape Part 1."
September 1982
New music releases: Hank Williams Jr.'s Greatest Hits - Hank Williams, Jr.; "Rock the Casbah" - The Clash; Love Over Gold - Dire Straits; Olivia's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 - Olivia Newton-John
Roger Daltrey tells Rolling Stone that the upcoming Who tour will be the last one as The Who need to step aside for newer acts.
On the 3rd, The Who's last studio album for the next 24 years, It's Hard, is released. The reviews are wildly uneven. Parke Puterbaugh in Rolling Stone calls it The Who's best work since Who's Next. Joining him in that assessment is Lloyd Sachs in Chicago magazine and John Milward in High Fidelity. On the other end of the scale is Lynden Barber in Melody Maker ("rock 'n roll menopause"), Kurt Loder in Musician ("pure blather") and Jon Pareles in The New York Times ("Adolescence mars The Who's new disk"). The album peaks at #11 in the U.K. and #8 in the U.S.
On the 4th, the first single from the new album, "Athena" backed with "It's Your Turn", hits the U.S. charts. It reaches #28 in Billboard and #31 in Cash Box. It is the last Who single to hit the American Top Forty.
The Who start their tour with their only two dates in the U.K. at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham on the 10th and 11th. The supporting act is Midnight Oil. These will be the last Who shows in the U.K. until Live Aid in 1985.
On the 19th, MTV airs a film made to promote Pete's All The Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes. It contains several videos shot at Pete's home and in his neighborhood.
On the 21st, The Who hold a press conference in Landover, Maryland as they begin their North American tour. The next day The Who record performance videos to promote "Eminence Front" and "It's Hard," the latter used in a television ad for Schlitz Beer.
September 1983
New music releases: "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" - Cyndi Lauper; Sports - Huey Lewis & The News; The Big Chill - Various Artists; "P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)" - Michael Jackson
Rolling Stone reports that, except for one lawsuit, the Cincinnati concert disaster case of 1979 has been settled out of court. Details of the settlement are never publicly announced.
Pete has a meeting with Mo Ostin, chairman of Warner Brothers Records. Pete tells him he is incapable of writing another Who album and begs him to find a way to release The Who from their contract.
September 1985
New music releases: In Square Circle - Stevie Wonder; Hounds of Love - Kate Bush; World Machine - Level 42; Alabama Christmas - Alabama
On the 12th, Under a Raging Moon, the LP is released in the U.S. The U.K. release follows on the 21st. In the U.S., the album peaks at #42 while in the U.K. it goes up to #52.
On the 13th, the first single from Under a Raging Moon is released in the U.K. The A-side, "After the Fire" is written by Pete who offers it to Roger after The Who fail to perform it at Live Aid. The B-side is "It Don't Satisfy Me" while the 12" version adds "Love Me Like You Do." In the U.K. charts the single peaks at #50. In the U.S. it peaks at #48 in Billboard and #59 in Cash Box.
September 1988
New music releases: New Jersey - Bon Jovi; ...and Justice For All - Metallica; Watermark - Enya; A Fresh Aire Christmas - Mannheim Steamroller
On the 12th, John auctions off his Rolls Royce Silver Estate and some of his bass guitars at a Rock & Roll Auction at Sotheby's. John nets £30,000. As he leaves the auction with his girlfriend, he says he is disappointed that the Rolls went for only £13,500. He also sells 12 of his bass guitars but says he still has 160 more at home. Although not announced at the time, John is auctioning items to pay a massive tax bill that threatens to bankrupt him.
During this month, Pete and Who manager Bill Curbishley explore the possibility of recording a new Who album. "My first suggestion to Bill was to make a record with Chris Thomas producing, and maybe record songs not written by me but selected among the favourites John, Roger and I might bring to the table. Bill approached MCA Records, who still owned the majority of The Who's back catalogue. They offered $1 million for a new record, which didn't seem enough to me...Chris Thomas's manager asked for a high percentage and a very large advance. Bill Price's engineering would cost at least as much over a twenty-four week schedule, possibly more. Studio charges, even if we used Eel Pie at cut rates, would take care of what was left."
On the 22nd, Bill Curbishley reports back to Pete about what he has learned by asking his promoter friends in the States: "Bill told me that most American promoters he'd spoken to thought there was no need for a new Who album... They predicted The Who would be the number one ticket in 1989, overtaking Led Zeppelin... The offers of sponsorship were very good, which meant we could afford to have a larger band like the one I'd used with Deep End, which had created an immensely forceful sound, but at decibel levels less than half those produced by The Who."
September 1989
New music releases: Pump - Aerosmith; Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 - Janet Jackson; Dr. Feelgood - Mötley Crüe; Foreign Affair - Tina Turner
The North American 25th Anniversary Who tour wraps up with a Texas swing as The Who and friends play the Houston Astrodome on the 2nd and finish up at the Dallas Cotton Bowl on the 3rd. This final show is later bootlegged under the titles Magic Bus and Where Are The Kids. Supporting The Who at both shows are Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble and The Fabulous Thunderbirds.
September 1991
New music releases: Nevermind - Nirvana; Ropin' The Wind - Garth Brooks; Stars - Simply Red; Blood Sugar Sex Magic - Red Hot Chili Peppers
On the 11th, John makes his longtime girlfriend Maxene the second "My Wife" in a ceremony in Las Vegas. Their witness is an Elvis impersonator.
On the 13th, while Pete is on holiday with his family on the Isles of Scilly, he pitches over the handlebars of his bicycle on a bumpy road, stopping his fall with his right hand. The bones in his wrist and arm are badly broken and he has to be flown out for medical treatment. A metal plate is put in his wrist and he is told he may never play the guitar again.
On the 28th, country singer Garth Brooks scores his first #1 album in the U.S. charts. The extremely popular crossover artist often climaxes his shows by smashing his guitar.
Another act, roaring out of Seattle, is Nirvana who also sometimes end their act with Who-like destruction.
September 1998
New music releases: "...Baby One More Time" - Britney Spears; Vol. 2... Hard Knock Life - Jay-Z; Dizzy Up the Girl - Goo Goo Dolls; Step One - Steps
During this month, Pete has a 3-CD retrospective of his music solo and with The Who pressed. Known as the Windswept Pacific set, it is designed to promote Pete's songs for use in film soundtracks and commercials.
September 2000
New music releases: Music - Madonna; Greatest Hits - Kenny Chesney; Aaron's Party (Come and Get It) - Aaron Carter; "If You're Gone" - Matchbox 20
On the 24th, The Who begin the third leg of their North American tour at Mars Music Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach, Florida. It is followed by the Ice Palace in Tampa, Florida (26th), the Philips Arena in Atlanta (28th) and the Gund Arena in Cleveland (30th).
On the 27th, Pete writes a long diary entry called "Dampa Tampa." Towards the end he levels a stinging attack on Rolling Stone for publishing an article listing all the times Pete had said he would never tour again with The Who: "Between 1982 when I left The Who (with Roger's uneasy blessing) and last year, there have been two reunions. Count them. Two. That is, one every nine years. Hardly a cynical exercise in comebacks whenever we needed to make money."
September 2001
New music releases: Silver Side Up - Nickleback; Toxicity - System of a Down; The Blueprint - Jay-Z; Greatest Hits - Martina McBride
On the 8th, Pete Townshend responds on his website to an angry letter by a fan denouncing him for allowing the song "Bargain" to be used selling Nissan SUV's: "...despite the enormous sums lavished on us, because of punitive U.K. taxes in our most exhaustively active years (98% at one point!), our fans didn't make us rich - not directly. If we are wealthy today it is because of the success of various major secondary 'Tommy' ventures, sponsorship during our 1982 Farewell and 1989 anniversary tours, TV and radio commercial and movie soundtrack licensing - and finally, back catalogue CD sales stimulated by the latter..."
On the 27th, Pete's website announces that The Who will perform at Madison Square Garden Oct. 20 as part of Paul McCartney's benefit concert for New York City's police, firefighters and their families.
September 2002
New music releases: ELV1S: 30 #1 Hits - Elvis Presley; Forty Licks - The Rolling Stones; "Work It" - Missy Elliott; "Sk8er Boi" - Avril Lavigne
On the 11th, the Las Vegas coroner releases his final report on John Entwistle's death. He confirms that John suffered a heart attack after taking cocaine. His night's companion, stripper Alycen Rowse, remembers his last words as a request that she not let him sleep on his back since fellow rock stars Jimi Hendrix and John Bonham had died choking on vomit in their sleep.
On the 14th, The Who return to play the date at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas that had to be postponed after John died there. They then proceed to another postponed show, the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Irvine, California (15th), then the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles (17th) where a record is set with a gate of $795,000, the highest in the venue's history.
Also on the 17th, President Bush appears to quote The Who in a speech at the East Literature Magnet School in Nashville, Tennessee. "There's an old saying in Tennessee -- I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee -- that says, fool me once, shame on -- shame on you. Fool me -- you can't get fooled again."
On the 23rd, CBS-TV premiers their first CSI: Crime Scene Investigation spin-off, CSI: Miami, this time using "Won't Get Fooled Again" as the theme. Star David Caruso's opening remark followed by Roger's scream will later become a popular meme on the Internet.
September 2008
New music releases: "Poker Face" - Lady Gaga; Only by the Night - Kings of Leon; "Love Story" - Taylor Swift; "Hot n Cold" - Katy Perry
On the 9th, Roger Daltrey and Pete are announced as recipients of 2008 Kennedy Center Honors to be awarded at the White House. Pete responds, "This is a great thrill. Since The Who began in the early '60s we have loved American music and audiences and have made deep and lasting friendships with everyone involved in the industry there. Roger and I both feel our work in the United States has been as important as our work at home. Because our medium, rock music, is quintessentially American music with broad and deep international and multicultural roots, this honour is especially meaningful to us Brits." Roger Daltrey adds, "As a teenager growing up in the austerity of post war England, it was the music I heard emanating from America that gave me a dream to hang my life on. That dream was to make music and make it there. I am deeply touched at receiving this honour. The warmth and affection I feel from our US audience is humbling indeed. To be added to the list of past recipients of this award makes that dream come true."
On the 13th, Saturday Night Live pokes fun at the honors announcement by showing pictures of Pete and Roger alongside fellow recipients Morgan Freeman and Barbra Streisand, calling it "the worst version of The Who ever."
September 2012
New music releases: "Diamonds" - Rihanna; "Don't You Worry Child" - Swedish House Mafia featuring John Martin; "Girl on Fire" - Alicia Keys; Night Visions - Imagine Dragons
On the 25th, Mojo magazine reviews the forthcoming Pete autobiography Who I Am calling it "the most self-denigrating rock bio ever." Rolling Stone gives it four stars and says it "could be the most conflicted rock memoir of all time."
On the 30th, The Sunday Times has a special section with revelations from Who I Am.
September 2015
New music releases: "7 Years" - Lukas Graham; Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording) - Original Broadway Cast; "Cake by the Ocean" - DNCE; "Die a Happy Man" - Thomas Rhett
The Who were to have started the second leg of their Who Hits 50! North American tour at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego on the 14th. However, that and all the following dates of the tour are relisted as postponed.
On the 18th, the reason for the postponed Who dates is revealed. Roger has been battling a case of viral Meningitis. The press release downplays the seriousness of the illness but Roger will later admit that he came close to losing his life to the disease.
September 2017
New music releases: "Perfect" - Ed Sheeran; "Rockstar" - Post Malone featuring 21 Savage; "Die for You" - the Weeknd; "Let You Down" - NF
On the 21st, The Who open their South American tour at Allianz Park in São Paulo, Brazil. On the 23rd they open for Guns 'n Roses at the Rock in Rio Festival at Barra Olympic Park in Rio de Janeiro.
Still opening for Guns 'n Roses, The Who finish up Brazil on the 26th at Anfiteatro Beira-Rio in Porto Alegre. On the 29th, they are in Chile performing at Estadio Monumental in Santiago.
September 2019
New music releases: "Memories" - Maroon 5; "Party Girl" - StaySolidRocky; Hollywood's Bleeding - Post Malone; "Even Though I'm Leaving" - Luke Combs
On the 1st, The Who open the second leg of their "Movin' On" tour of North America at Madison Square Garden. The other dates this month are the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto (3rd), the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul (6th), the Alpine Valley Music Theatre in Elkorn, Wisconsin (8th), the Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio (10th), Fenway Park in Boston (13th), Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh, New York (15th), the State Farm Arena in Atlanta (18th), the States BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida (20th), the Amalie Arena in Tampa (22nd) and the Toyota Center in Houston (25th). Opening acts are Leslie Mendelson (1st), Moon vs. Sun (3rd), Reignwolf (6th, 15th through 25th), Dead Horses (8th), and Peter Wolf (10th, 13th). All shows feature a locally sourced orchestra playing with the band at the beginning and end of the concert.
On the 9th, Roger attends the ribbon cutting for a new Teen Cancer Center at Rainbow Babies and CHildren's Hospital in Cleveland.
On the 12th, Pete and Roger perform a four-song acoustic set at the opening of the Pace Gallery's Chelsea flagship. Preceding their set is Questlove of The Roots spinning a DJ mix. Watching from the audience is artist Chuck Close in his last public appearance.
On the 13th, the first single from the Who's newly recorded album is released. The song is "Ball and Chain," having undergone a name change from "Guantanamo," its name when Pete performed it on his recent solo album. The name of the new Who album is publicly announced at the same time. It will be called WHO in all caps.
On the 14th, Pete and Roger attend the Banquet of the Golden Plate ceremony at the Achievement Summit in New York. Peter Gabriel presents the duo with a Golden Plate Award.
The show at the Toyota Center in Houston on the 25th is cancelled 45 minutes into the show due to Roger's inability to sing. He blames coming to Houston "during ragweed season". Subsequent shows in Dallas (27th) and Denver (29th) are also cancelled. A later announcement says these concerts are postponed until The Who's return in April. However, the Houston concert is not rescheduled and the Dallas and Denver concerts will not occur until 2022 for reasons neither the Who or the world could guess.
