<![CDATA[ Latest from Guitar Player in Pete-townshend ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/tag/pete-townshend Thu, 26 Mar 2026 12:42:41 +0000 en <![CDATA[ “You might be wrong.” Roger Daltrey said the record business Is “a joke.” Now Pete Townshend is talking about making another Who album ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/music/you-might-be-wrong-roger-daltrey-said-the-record-business-is-a-joke-now-pete-townshend-is-talking-about-making-another-who-album j6ABcqEc8Ch7P2d4PmfGq6 Thu, 26 Mar 2026 12:42:41 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Our parents f***ed up —and it would be tragic to allow this to happen again.” Pete Townshend says kids today are living a modern version of his rock opera ‘Tommy’ ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-tommys-message-in-modern-society XxsULPdzecyE9WzXmuhjsT Mon, 23 Mar 2026 15:25:52 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I hate the fact that I’m ever even slightly compared to them.” Pete Townshend on rivals, regrets —and what he really thought of Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/does-pete-townshend-really-hate-led-zeppelin HdgRsBSriYwyYPU5rpg7Jf Wed, 18 Feb 2026 17:07:38 +0000 <![CDATA[ “We got the song in three takes, on one track, for 57 bucks. Isn’t God wonderful?” Guitar legend Link Wray on the hit that introduced distortion to rock and roll, inspired Jimmy Page to play guitar — and caused public outrage ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/link-wray-on-the-hit-that-introduced-distortion-to-rock-and-roll-inspired-jimmy-page-to-play-guitar-and-caused-public-outrage 7VoaqG8ueBqaGtLLiWSLhX Tue, 03 Feb 2026 17:49:19 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I’d trade 150 Def Leppards for one R.E.M. It's as simple as that.” Pete Townshend on the music he despises, even though he influenced it with one vital Who album ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/the-who-s-pete-townshend-on-the-genre-of-music-he-despises WCGBKAFE3yvpEjtDtEXcA4 Mon, 26 Jan 2026 15:41:49 +0000 <![CDATA[ “When he showed up and did it all for real, it burst my bubble. I was pissed for a little while.” How Eric Clapton survived rock guitar‘s most transformative eraand found his way to the blues ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/how-eric-clapton-survived-jimi-hendrix DfKtxMLrxZVbjJ7LTCCC4W Fri, 09 Jan 2026 17:04:48 +0000 Fri, 09 Jan 2026 17:08:10 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He said, ‘If you do that again, I’ll break your effing legs!’ He meant it.” Rock royalty's favorite sideman recalls his days with Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townshend, Roger Waters and Bill Wyman ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/andy-fairweather-low-on-eric-clapton-jimi-hendrix-pete-townshend-roger-waters-and-bill-wyman XomQqKyQvkKTxPhm9oc5YC Thu, 08 Jan 2026 17:36:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I’m just standing there strumming a chord. And the audience looks at me and goes, ‘How does he produce that noise?’” Pete Townshend on the Who's real lead guitar player ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-and-the-who-s-real-lead-guitar-player zcDA7phJg9kUb44RviyM89 Thu, 25 Dec 2025 15:21:30 +0000 Thu, 25 Dec 2025 15:51:11 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Pete came in and went, ‘You bastard!’” Pete Townshend claimed this guitar innovation was the Who’s idea. The Rolling Stones’ Ronnie Wood proved him wrong ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-or-ron-wood-who-got-the-first-8x12-marshall-cabinet urX7zCuxkBDWhTqAgZboKQ Mon, 08 Dec 2025 21:53:52 +0000 Tue, 16 Dec 2025 13:28:19 +0000 <![CDATA[ “There might be some hits.” Pete Townshend may borrow an idea from the Beatles as he looks for help polishing rough gems from the Who’s archive ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-interested-in-using-ai-to-finish-songs cAMFgiycWkfNEu4vLJpDPh Tue, 18 Nov 2025 16:58:47 +0000 Tue, 18 Nov 2025 16:59:12 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I left art behind. There was magic happening.” Pete Townshend thought the Who would last two weeks. This was the moment that changed his mind ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-the-formation-of-the-who-and-what-made-him-commit-to-the-band fPXCwtFYxg6UnrC9o8rj7S Thu, 13 Nov 2025 19:43:10 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I got my guitar and smashed it to smithereens. I said, ‘Now will you get out of my effing life!?’” Pete Townshend on the first guitar he ever broke — at age 13 — and John Entwistle's hilarious response ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/why-pete-townshend-smashed-his-first-good-guitar WwFMT62pmY5e6ToBYY5qVV Thu, 16 Oct 2025 18:00:48 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He was hitting me with a guitar at the time.” Roger Daltrey on the day he knocked out Pete Townshend — and how the Who battled on after the sudden death of bass guitarist John Entwistle ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/roger-daltrey-the-time-i-knocked-out-pete-townshend zTFu4JHA28P7Jm7D8RLuKc Mon, 06 Oct 2025 11:00:00 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I said, ‘My god, Pete, it sounds like 50 Marshall stacks!’” Pete Townshend’s guitar secrets revealed by the Who’s substitute guitarist ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshends-guitar-secrets-for-my-generation-and-i-can-see-for-miles-revealed E4yUXtcepMxzaDBp8pS39M Mon, 29 Sep 2025 17:46:16 +0000 Tue, 30 Sep 2025 03:51:37 +0000 <![CDATA[ “When you actually hear the backing tracks of the Beatles without their voices, they’re flippin’ lousy.” The time Pete Townshend trashed the Beatles on television ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/why-pete-townshend-called-the-beatles-lousy 6kFqLrwJ8dybgR2hB2zffb Thu, 25 Sep 2025 17:15:34 +0000 Thu, 25 Sep 2025 17:23:04 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He smashes the guitar to smithereens and walks right over to me. He’s right in my face and says, ‘What the eff are you doing?’” Pete Townshend’s substitute guitarist reveals the highs and lows of his time in the Who ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-substitute-guitarist-steve-bolton-on-the-who-1989-tour JfJkoxqVv6Ef7pSYXZHKRj Sat, 20 Sep 2025 13:25:23 +0000 Sat, 20 Sep 2025 13:28:22 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I’d been clean for over 30 years!” Pete Townshend on the Who’s farewell tour, and the health issues he had to kick to get back on the road ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-this-is-how-rock-stars-die tqiWeoT29L9wAsFPMqX54o Fri, 29 Aug 2025 14:53:49 +0000 <![CDATA[ “We don’t communicate very well. He and I are very different and we have different needs as performers.” Pete Townshend on his and Roger Daltrey's problems as the Who set out on their final tour ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-the-who-s-final-tour kFcRV2Ea4Xi3ShDPmUo2MX Mon, 25 Aug 2025 13:30:33 +0000 Mon, 25 Aug 2025 13:32:56 +0000 <![CDATA[ “We were in London and the Who were playing at the Marquee. Down we went to confront them!” Randy Bachman on Pete Townshend’s hilarious response when the Guess Who told the Who to change their name ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/randy-bachman-pete-townshend-on-the-who-guess-who-confusion Y8FzpXVypuqChyhXirkWXU Tue, 19 Aug 2025 20:04:30 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I raided every music store in the country looking for old Gibson SGs.” Pete Townshend on his desperate search for the guitar behind the Who’s status as rock legends ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitars/electric-guitars/pete-townshend-on-the-gibson-sg-special X5dxwodKofFbYfjDbmJfYn Sun, 20 Jul 2025 15:34:46 +0000 Sun, 20 Jul 2025 15:48:52 +0000 <![CDATA[ “It was just as good, if not better, than Pete Townshend.” Eddie Van Halen could play this Who album note for note says Michael Anthony ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/music/albums-singles/the-gest-who-album-according-to-eddie-van-halen-and-joe-satriani GhgspXBGHtutm4S2bYiaoX Sat, 19 Jul 2025 13:25:24 +0000 Sat, 19 Jul 2025 13:29:20 +0000 <![CDATA[ “When Bob sensed I might refuse to appear, he took the gloves off." For Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page and Bob Dylan, Live Aid was a case of bad vibes for a good cause ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/when-bob-sensed-i-might-refuse-to-appear-he-took-the-gloves-off-for-pete-townshend-jimmy-page-and-bob-dylan-live-aid-was-a-case-of-bad-vibes-for-a-good-cause Dbf85r3HsyrqynsfXgrKDn Sat, 12 Jul 2025 15:53:56 +0000 Sat, 12 Jul 2025 17:57:13 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I feel a bit exposed talking about it now. That song brought me to tears.” Pete Townshend on the Oasis song that made him weep ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshends-favorite-oasis-song XDr3K8q3va2yF55ZrQoBNR Thu, 03 Jul 2025 17:26:46 +0000 Thu, 03 Jul 2025 17:30:12 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Her dress tail hit the G string, and it just stayed there with distortion for about 20 minutes.” Buddy Guy reveals the happy accident that taught him about guitar feedback ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/buddy-guy-on-the-origins-of-his-feedback-methods p7LZYhLSkkyQibm32B9bNS Wed, 02 Jul 2025 15:48:33 +0000 <![CDATA[ “The right method is to bleed. Your hand and pick have to connect with the effing string” The Who's Pete Townshend on the correct way to do a windmill guitar strum — and what Keith Richards says about inventing the move with the Rolling Stones ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/the-right-method-is-to-bleed-you-know-the-whos-pete-townshend-on-the-correct-way-to-do-a-windmill-guitar-strum-and-what-keith-richards-says-about-inventing-the-move-with-the-rolling-stones RDP2fgoL7yd3Fue5AhLp69 Fri, 27 Jun 2025 11:31:23 +0000 Thu, 03 Jul 2025 14:47:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ “The next person that walks across this stage is gonna get effing killed!” Pete Townshend declared war at Woodstock when Abbie Hoffman interrupted the Who in the middle of their biggest gig ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/the-next-person-that-walks-across-this-stage-is-gonna-get-effing-killed-pete-townshend-declared-war-at-woodstock-when-abbie-hoffman-interrupted-the-who-right-in-the-middle-of-their-biggest-gig SwQmw3z5th4GJBu7Fq84yB Sat, 21 Jun 2025 22:20:14 +0000 Sat, 21 Jun 2025 22:29:38 +0000 <![CDATA[ “He decided he didn't want to be the lead guitar player anymore.” Pete Townshend on Roger Daltrey’s career-changing move that made the Who guitarist an axe-wielding icon ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/how-roger-daltrey-pushed-pete-townshend-into-the-spotlight ojXL8Mjbaj3tG9XqwjAtPk Mon, 16 Jun 2025 13:59:13 +0000 Tue, 17 Jun 2025 15:12:36 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Since we don’t have a time machine, this is our best chance to solve a decades-long mystery.” Gibson launches hunt for the 'Back to the Future' guitar that inspired John Mayer and Coldplay's Chris Martin ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitars/back-to-the-future-guitar-search nFn9eTyH7bw625dPWZFsM5 Tue, 03 Jun 2025 17:58:25 +0000 Tue, 03 Jun 2025 18:05:49 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I'm a dangerous f***er.” Pete Townshend says he gets a charge out of working. His latest comments offer a cryptic clue about the Who's future ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-the-whos-future f7FbXKTZHKEYgU5B7Gfmrh Sat, 31 May 2025 13:06:49 +0000 Sat, 31 May 2025 13:07:45 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I’ve been in the Who, I’ve been in the Beatles, and I’ve been in Pink Floyd. Top that!” David Gilmour on his magical duet playing John Lennon with Paul McCartney ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/david-gilmour-in-the-beatles-the-who-top-that Fmd4xqADZanenR9dF5DGfi Mon, 26 May 2025 14:44:33 +0000 <![CDATA[ “One night we were playing and in walks Pete Townshend.” The Doobie Brothers’ Patrick Simmons on the night Townshend picked up a guitar after a gig with the Who ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pat-simmons-doobie-brothers-jam-with-pete-townshend KMe8dmFayvdPZdSQWXjZER Fri, 23 May 2025 12:51:38 +0000 Fri, 23 May 2025 13:02:23 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I’ve always regretted it. I thought, I shouldn’t have done that. That was like killing the wife.” Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey don’t see eye to eye on his guitar-smashing past ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-i-dont-have-a-relationship-with-the-guitar PBHnrEc4FPBm4J8asoM4YS Mon, 19 May 2025 12:51:02 +0000 Mon, 19 May 2025 13:22:19 +0000 <![CDATA[ “It was the reason I did everything.It’s the reason I played the guitar.” Pete Townshend on the awful gift that made the Who one of the world's greatest rock bands ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-the-one-thing-that-made-him-play-guitar i97ZXuyFQLvdqZmvWHXyLo Sun, 27 Apr 2025 15:20:53 +0000 Sun, 27 Apr 2025 15:22:54 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I don’t hate it, but it doesn’t fill my soul in the way that you see some performers.” Pete Townshend says he doesn’t like being onstage, and would rather work alone ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-performing-live-and-collaboration LjFK2a9mx7P4vym824FTBF Sat, 26 Apr 2025 12:46:51 +0000 <![CDATA[ "We tried everything we could to dirty it up." Why the Beatles couldn't have made "Helter Skelter" without the Who ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/paul-mccartney-on-the-who-and-helter-skelter rY3v9tyntNe2KxzntroZNB Thu, 17 Apr 2025 13:21:10 +0000 Sat, 19 Apr 2025 13:11:39 +0000 <![CDATA[ “A lot of Who fans would be really pleased.” Pete Townshend ponders using AI to re-create his ‘70s heyday for fans who prefer the Who's classic songs ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-using-ai-for-new-music-and-jimi-hendrix muEQQLjj8CrAkJAYjAxk3f Fri, 28 Mar 2025 13:32:25 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Jimmy Page’s playing on the first Led Zeppelin album —we just hadn’t heard someone let loose like that.” Phil Manzanera talks Page, Beck, Townshend and the 10 albums that changed his life ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/phil-manzanera-the-10-albums-that-changed-my-life mHjZ77KwVb79q99UVXNgLo Sat, 01 Mar 2025 14:56:15 +0000 Tue, 04 Mar 2025 13:10:44 +0000 <![CDATA[ "It was very strange for Eric Clapton and me. We went and watched Jimi at about 10 London shows together.” Pete Townshend recalled how Jimi Hendrix led him to write ‘Tommy,’ the Who's 1969 breakthrough ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-jimi-hendrix-and-tommy 72AdKLARbQwxRrdfK7mVVm Sat, 22 Feb 2025 15:27:57 +0000 Thu, 31 Jul 2025 14:29:06 +0000 <![CDATA[ "You bury the pick with your thumb and you have all the room you need." Leslie West revealed the picking techniques that made him a singularly great guitar hero to Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhoads and Pete Townshend ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/leslie-west-explains-his-picking-techniques kRChh9qBrWmurRkk6atFmZ Tue, 11 Feb 2025 19:23:01 +0000 Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:19:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ "In that particular area, I don’t think I’m topped.” Pete Townshend said no one can touch him when it comes to one skill — not even the guitarist from whom he learned it ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-keith-richards-and-rhythm-guitar JueUTAoAaSApVr8ZACikH3 Thu, 16 Jan 2025 22:03:13 +0000 Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:19:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Jimi Hendrix was a great player, but he wasn't really creative.“ Pete Townshend talks originality, playing loud and which guitarist was first to use feedback ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/guitarists/pete-townshend-on-using-feedback-1990 x6GY8dzTL72DbxWjRvmQJh Thu, 02 Jan 2025 17:16:56 +0000 Thu, 02 Jan 2025 17:22:33 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I was wearing a ring and did a Pete Townshend windmill.... It was never the same." Myles Kennedy says an onstage disaster forced him to buy a PRS guitar he couldn't afford ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/myles-kennedy-on-his-first-prs-guitar hd7vSEDzWE2icaS2uiQWCA Wed, 23 Oct 2024 15:46:15 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:08 +0000 <![CDATA[ "I played anything I wanted to play… it reminded me that music first has to be fun." See Pete Townshend and David Gilmour team up to perform tracks by the Who, Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup, Screamin' Jay Hawkins and more in 1985 ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/townshend-gilmour-deep-end o6DfKFjuuM5anosEHxkuGZ Mon, 30 Sep 2024 14:19:31 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:26 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Me and Pete Townshend had a rivalry to see who could get the loudest. We kept pushing Jim Marshall to make amps with more watts and volume controls that went up to 12!” Ronnie Wood on the early days of Marshall, and his loudness war with the Who ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/ronnie-wood-marshall-loundness-war-the-who XkB5RsqzJm4A9n74MZm3ri Fri, 24 May 2024 15:13:51 +0000 Fri, 24 May 2024 15:13:55 +0000 <![CDATA[ “Young kids that buy their first really good guitar end up in a love relationship with it – I've never had that”: Why Pete Townshend won't apologize for his '60s-era guitar-smashing antics ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/news/pete-townshend-not-apologizing-for-guitar-smashing 7ynHK9vpw2oNFCVuVnh3B8 Thu, 04 Apr 2024 19:48:19 +0000 Thu, 04 Apr 2024 19:53:37 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I didn’t want to be the flashy lead player. Whether it was Keith Richards, Pete Townshend, David Crosby or Richie Havens, what the left hand was doing was more fascinating to me than what the right hand was doing": The Paul Stanley interview ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/the-paul-stanley-interview-2023 bPYYadqvvpaG4fzfQjPhSP Fri, 08 Dec 2023 14:55:31 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:08 +0000 <![CDATA[ “I’ll Never Be Able to Play the Kind of Leads I Want”: Pete Townshend Discusses Guitar Solos, Gibson SGs and More in This Fascinating Interview From the ‘GP’ Vault ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/pete-townshend-may-1972-guitar-player-interview-extract 9CMtXUwX4k3GVcEcJJ8uBF Wed, 02 Aug 2023 11:35:57 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:09:18 +0000 <![CDATA[ Favored by Angus Young, Pete Townshend and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Here’s How the Gibson SG Came to Be ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/gear/gibson-sg-history 5LmNcJvFaBRBonYYTziKtH Mon, 27 Mar 2023 16:42:45 +0000 Tue, 07 Jan 2025 11:10:09 +0000 <![CDATA[ The 50 Greatest Rhythm Guitar Players of All Time ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/the-50-greatest-rhythm-guitar-players-of-all-time rcguPQUkBtqoyLtD5YJxwR Tue, 27 Dec 2022 12:00:25 +0000 <![CDATA[ Listen to the Who’s Psychedelic Pop Masterpiece, “Dogs” ]]> https://www.guitarplayer.com/players/listen-to-the-whos-psychedelic-pop-masterpiece-dogs V4WRBSWBEznvYHLg6B5cQE Tue, 06 Dec 2022 17:53:45 +0000 Tue, 06 Dec 2022 18:12:18 +0000