As he conversed with the audience, Daltrey paid a massive compliment to one of the most beloved groups of all time. It seems that he’s not just a fan, but someone who respects what they do–even seemingly placing them above his own band.
“No one was gonna out-front Mick Jagger,” Daltrey commented about the legendary singer. “They were fantastic in those days, and they still are,” he said confidently, showing that he not only loved the group decades ago, but that he’s still a fan and he remains impressed with what they can do on stage.
A concert attendee asked Daltrey if he had a favorite rock band, and his answer was simple and unambiguous. “There's only one great rock 'n' roll band, that's The Rolling Stones,” the musician stated, according to American Songwriter. Daltrey added to his answer by recalling some of the earliest days of The Who.
Unfortunately, Roger had called the Stones a mediocre pub band just a few years earlier.
In October 2021, Paul McCartney first took a dig at the Stones when, after being asked to compare the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, he said, “They’re a blues cover band, that’s sort of what the Stones are. I think our net was cast a bit wider than theirs.”
In a new interview with the Coda Collection (via NME), Daltrey echoed that assessment when asked whether he heard McCartney’s Stones remarks.
“You can not take away the fact that Mick Jagger is still the number one rock ‘n’ roll showman up front,” Daltrey said. “But as a band, if you were outside a pub and you heard that music coming out of a pub some night, you’d think, ‘Well, that’s a mediocre pub band!'” Daltrey added, “No disrespect.”
Daltrey he had previously declared that he would no longer scream on the song Won't get fooled again and in fact he let the crowd do it for him. (Watch footage below)
“I’m not gonna do the scream,” Daltrey insisted during a recent conversation with Billboard. “I’m gonna get the fucking audience to do the scream. I’ve done that scream for 55 years, and I’ve had enough of it. I don’t even want to try it now; it’s brutal on the vocal cords. They can do the scream, and I’ll do everything else. I’m more into singing these days. At the age of 80, I think I deserve to be.”
Roger Daltrey has added another date to his 2024 US Summer Tour. After the gig in Glenside the Who's singer will also be appearing at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT on Sunday 23 June 2024
Tickets here: https://www.axs.com/events/539480/roger-daltrey-tickets.
Roger Daltrey started the US tour presenting a mostly acoustic set of Who gems, rarities, solo nuggets and other surprises.
With an intimate rock-based band and setting as well as answering questions from the audience, kicking off this very exclusive set of shows on 12 June at Virginia’s renowned Wolf Trap at Filene Center. The nine-city run will continue throughout the month of June (see dates below), wrapping on 29 June at The Pavilion at Ravinia in Highland Park, Illinois.
ROGER DALTREY AND HIS BAND
US TOUR DATES
*KT TUNSTALL https://www.kttunstall.com
**DAN BERN https://danbern.com
• June 16 Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel, NY*
• June 18 The Capitol Theatre, Port Chester, NY*
• June 20 Leader Bank Pavilion, Boston, MA*
• June 22 Tanglewood, The Koussevitzky Music Shed, Lenox, MA*
• June 23 Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, CT*
• June 25 Meadow Brook Amphitheatre, Detroit, MI**
• June 27 Murat Theatre at Old National Centre, Indianapolis, IN**
• June 29 The Pavilion at Ravinia, Highland Park, IL*
During a recent conversation with Billboard, the legendary rocker condemned acts who publicly share their set lists.
“Too many people reveal songs,” Daltrey declared. “There’s no surprises left with concerts these days, ’cause everybody wants to see the set list.”
Daltrey’s reasoning is simple: If fans go online and lookup an artist’s typical set list, they’ll go into a concert with preconceived expectations on what they’ll hear.
“I’m fucking sick of it,” the Who rocker reaffirmed. “The Internet’s ruined the live shows for me. Who wants to know what’s coming next? People forget about surprises. I can’t stand it.”
When it was suggested that fans may want to look up a set list to plan their bathroom breaks in advance, Daltrey offered up some wry wit. “Why not just start to listen to the bloody show in the toilet, then?
Daltrey kicks off a brief U.S. tour on June 10 in Glenside, Pennsylvania. The trek will feature intimate acoustic performances as Daltrey reimagines many Who classics, as well as his solo material.
“I just want to branch out and do something different, where I’ve got different instrumentation and I can stop using tape loops,” the rocker explained. “It just creates a whole new sound and allows me the freedom as a singer to put some other people’s songs in I’ve been fond of over the years. It’s gonna be quite interesting. I’m just determined to enjoy myself and explore the freedom I’ve got to do what I want to do on this tour, and let’s see where it ends up.”
The Singers Talk is a podcast with Jason Thomas Gordon.
In this episode you’re gonna hear Roger talk about the unforgiving nature of being a front man, how he and Pete Townsend work out their songs, singing with your real voice, singing from your guts, the stutter stylings of ‘My Generation,’ why ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again” is his least favorite song to sing.
