The Who

The Who are a rock band formed in London, England.
==History==
===Formation===
Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, and John Entwistle knew each other during their childhood as they all attended Acton County Grammar School together. Townshend's father, Cliff, played saxophone, and his mother, Betty, had sung in the entertainment division of the Royal Air Force during the second World War. Townshend and Entwistle eventually befriended each other and formed a trad jazz band. Entwistle played the French Horn with a local youth symphony orchestra. Both Townshend and Entwistle were interested in rock music as Entwistle took an interest in playing the guitar, but his fingers were so large that he stopped on a dime and switched over to the bass. Lacking the finances to purchase a bass from any known dealer, Entwistle decided to build one on his own. After finishing school, Townshend attended Ealing Art College.
Daltrey later moved to the Shepherd's Bush district of London, a higher-class working area. He was unfamiliar with the college life, later discovering gangs and rock music. At age 15, Daltrey was expelled from Ealing Art College and decided to take a job at a building site. In 1959, Daltrey started a band known as The Detours. The Detours played professional gigs, such as corporate and wedding functions. Daltrey had to supervise on the finances and band in order to keep it going.
One day, Daltrey spotted Entwistle equipped with a bass, giving an opportunity to recruit him with The Detours. By mid-1961, Entwistle suggested Daltrey to be on lead guitar, Entwistle on bass, Harry Wilson on drums, and Colin Dawson on vocals. The Detours did covers by The Shadows and The Venture, all instrumental. They also did a variety of pop and trad jazz covers. Wilson was dismissed in early 1962 and replaced by Doug Sandom. Even though Sandom was older than the other band members, his experience in the music industry was seemingly more proficient, even though he had only two years of experience in music.
Sandom resigned after briefly having an argument with Daltrey, and the next drummer on board was Gabby Connolly. Under the recommendation of Townshend's mother, the band received a management contract with local promoter Robert Druce, who booked the band as a support act. In February 1964, the Detours became aware of the group known as Johnny Devlin and the Detours. They had to act swiftly to change the band name, and they finally settled in on The Who, which came to birth.
With the band officially born as The Who, they booked gigs regularly at Oldfield Hotel in Greenford, the White Hart Hotel in Acton, the Goldhawk Social Club in Shepherd's Bush, and the Notre Dame Hall in Leicester Square. The band parted ways with Druce as their manager and found a new one named Helmut Gorden, with whom they secured an audition with Chris Parmeinter for Fontana Records. Seemingly inexperienced in music, Parmeinter had trouble with drumming, and Daltrey intended to dismiss him if he did not improve his skill.
In April 1964, The Who met Keith Moon, who was an experienced drummer, and had been doing so since 1961. At the time, Moon was a member of an amateur circuit band known as The Beachcombers. While Moon sampled with The Who for the first time, he played so hard that a bass pedal broke and a drum skin tore up. The other band members were mightily impressed with his skill, despite some equipment difficulties, and offered him to join the band. Moon played a few more shows with The Beachcombers, but conflicts caused him to resign and join The Who. On the other hand, Sandom traded spaces as well, going with The Beachcombers, who were uninspired by his abilities, and turned him away.
The Who parted ways with Gorden and tabbed Peter Meaden as their next manager. The Who recorded their first single titled "Zoot Suit"/"I'm the Face", but it failed to make the top 50 in music charts. The next gigs for The Who were mired by risky moves as Daltrey would whip his mic stand, Moon threw his drumsticks up in the air during mid-beats, and Townshend would hold his guitar in the stance of a machine gun.
The Who parted ways with Meaden and replaced him with Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, who both also had experience in filmmaking. The newly hired duo previously saw the band perform at the Railway Hotel in the Wealdstone district of London. In June 1964, during one performance at at the Railway Hotel, Townshend accidentally broke the head of his guitar on the low ceiling of the stage. Humiliated by the laughing audience, Townshend smashed the guitar and picked up a fresh new one. A week later, the audience from the same place was looking to see destruction from the band again, which resulted in Moon kicking his drum kit across the scene.
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