With The Who set to play its first concert of 2025 tonight (March 27) at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the band’s longtime keyboard tech, Brian Kehew, has shared an update about the group’s preparation to return to the stage.
Videos by American Songwriter
In a blog post on TheWho.com on March 26, Kehew also revealed that founding Who guitarist/songwriter Pete Townshend is recovering from a recent operation.
“Pete is in with an update; a new knee has been installed!” Kehew wrote. “About a month back, he’d had the replacement surgery, which is quite common now – one of our sound guys has also just done it. Pete admits it was long overdue, and explains that for the past few years, he’s been onstage playing through some pain.”
According to Kehew, “the results are great, [Townshend’s physical therapy] has been great and he moves about just as normal.” He added, “Still, there’s some medication to get through it, which he’s says can affect his focus a bit.”
As previously reported, the March 27 concert is the first of two shows The Who will play at the Royal Albert Hall in the coming days. The second will be Sunday, March 30. Both gigs are part of the 2025 edition of the annual Teenage Cancer Trust benefit concert series.
About The Who’s Plans for Their Set
As Kehew explained in an earlier blog post, The Who will be playing the two concerts with a stripped-down lineup and without an orchestra (the band’s tours since 2019 had all featured orchestral accompaniment).
Brian noted that because of the change, a new set is being put together. For now, Kehew reported, The Who is basing its set on the ones the band played at the 2016 Desert Trip festival in Indio, California.
“[I]t’s a stock Who show, the one you’re probably seen a lot, all the usual bits,” he maintained. “I’d mentioned on the last blog some surprises but at this moment, it’s decided that newness can only come after getting the band to sound good, to play well together, and these basic Who [classics] will need to be in the show; so we’re going to focus on them.”
Having said that, Kehew revealed that several deep cuts and rarities were being rehearsed, and some may make their way into the set.
“I’d say about four to five older songs (ones not usually in any Who setlist in the last 20 years) have been tried,” he noted, “and one even that I know has never been played live before. I think it may stay.”
Brian also shared that Townshend expressed interest in playing keyboards on a song or two.
Meanwhile, Kehew marveled at how well Who frontman Roger Daltrey was singing at age 81.
“He’s in such good shape and sound,” Brian enthused. “His entire generation of singers is done, basically. … But here is the one left who could (a) ever sing like this and (b) still be doing it like he is 20. Amazing.”
The Who’s Other 2025 Performance Plans
So far, The Who only have two other confirmed concerts lined up in 2025. Those shows are scheduled for July 20 in Padua, Italy, and July 22 in Milan, Italy.
Daltrey’s 2025 Solo Tour Plans
Daltrey, meanwhile, has more than a dozen 2025 concerts scheduled with his solo band, all in the U.K.
Roger has a 10-date spring trek that runs from an April 20 show in Brighton, England, through a May 5 Performance in Cheltenham, England. Daltrey also has three additional U.K. concerts scheduled in late July and early August.
Read Brian Kehew's Backstage Blog from The Who's rehearsals https://t.co/T4zSHuRKJh pic.twitter.com/yG1eC0Ew5U
— The Who (@TheWho) March 26, 2025
(Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images)
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Leave a Reply
Only members can comment. Become a member. Already a member? Log in.