The Who have been making music for 60 years, though most of what fans hear now is the old stuff. The good part is that the older music includes a lot of greatness. The new stuff? Not so much.
Pete Townshend knows it, too. In a recent interview with the New York Times, the iconic guitarist said that playing in the Who now feels like playing in a cover band. Mostly playing the hits or other songs fans know well can get old, but doing something else does a disservice to people who have bought tickets.
And tickets, as we all know, aren't cheap. If we spend good money to hear a beloved musical artist and they are playing songs that few people like and even more don't know well, it feels like we have had our money stolen.
The Who's Pete Townshend might rather just pick up a guitar and play
Townshend told the NYT, "It's a brand rather than a band. Roger (Daltrey) and I have a duty to the music and the history. The Who (still) sells records - the Moon and Entwistle families have become millionaires. There's also something more, really: the art, the creative work, is when we perform it. We're celebrating. We're a Who tribute band."
But things could also be worse. Townshend and Daltrey could still be at the beginning of their careers, trying to impress would-be fans as well as record companies. After all, it takes a long time for a band to become iconic, and most don't. The record execs could stop all that from happening.
Young musical artists are forced to play the game until they build up enough of a catalog and enough success to transcend doing what they are told. Many never reach that level. The Who did decades ago.
That success has also allowed Pete Townshend to give voice to his opinions, for them to matter, and for people to listen. Does it change anything? Not really, but many can empathize with his frustrations.
Townshend added, "The swindle starts when you become a property and don't belong to your fans anymore. You belong to record companies, to promoters, to managers. The audience worships you for what you've done years before."
In other words, sometimes even well-known musicians just want to pick up a guitar and play and have no one listen, or not do it to make money. Maybe everyone should be like Ed Sheeran. He might not be the most brilliant musician ever, but he likes to busk for the fun of it. That's how music should be.