Less than four days after the news of Zak Starkey’s exit from seminal rock band The Who, it appears the band has backtracked. In a statement released yesterday, Saturday 19 April, the situation was labelled “a misunderstanding”, and Starkey’s reinstatement as the band’s drummer was confirmed.
The so-called confusion came after a performance at the Teenage Cancer Trust shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall, during which frontman Roger Daltrey blamed Starkey for a miscued key change, telling the crowd that all he could hear was “boom, boom, boom”. The situation bubbled up earlier this week when the drummer took to Instagram to tell followers that he was about to “get the Zak”, adding that he was facing “formal charges of overplaying.” The band then made an official statement on 15 April confirming the 59-year-old had left the band. The decision was met with confusion by the wider music community, especially considering the various ties between Starkey and the band’s original drummer, Keith Moon.
Just as the ordeal seemed to come to an end, The Who did a U-Turn, reversing their earlier decision. Pete Townshend took to social media on 19 April, sharing a post which read “News Flash! Who Backs Zak!”. Less than three hours later, a full statement was released, clarifying the situation and telling fans “Zak is not being asked to step down from The Who,” and blaming the misunderstanding on a “breakdown of communication”.
“There have been some communication issues, personal and private on all sides, that needed to be dealt with, and these have been aired happily,” the statement read. Penned by Townshend, he shared that the March shows had been “tricky” for him too, following a knee replacement surgery, and asked himself, “Why did I ever think I could land on my knees?”
Starkey’s contribution to the band was praised, and Townshend had confirmed that the drummer agreed to “tighten up his latest evolved drumming style” for shows that didn’t feature an orchestra alongside the band. Having worked together for three decades, the guitarist said, “We are a family. This blew up very quickly and got too much oxygen. It’s over. We move forward now with optimism and fire in our bellies.”
The full statement was shared on Zak Starkey’s own Instagram page, with the drummer adding his own message. “Very grateful to be part of The Who family. Thanks Roger and Pete xx”.
Townshend also took the opportunity to address rumours that began to swirl regarding a replacement, with Roger Daltrey’s solo drummer, Scott Devours, being heavily linked with a seat behind the kit. He apologised to Devours for not rubbishing the rumours sooner, adding that the drummer “has been hurt by this” and was owed a long drink and a hug.
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Despite the reconciliation, some fans on Reddit are sceptical about the reasons behind it. One user wrote “seems to me like Pete had to step in to resolve it after so much support for Zak.” Regardless, Starkey is set to pick up the sticks for The Who once again for their upcoming shows in Italy.
