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The Who have parted ways with drummer Zak Starkey just three weeks after they played a pair of shows with him at London’s Royal Albert Hall, Rolling Stone has confirmed. He has performed with them at practically every concert they’re played since he joined the band in 1996, and he appears on 2006’s Endless Wire and 2019’s Who.
“The band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall,” a representative for the band says in a statement. “They have nothing but admiration for him and wish him the very best for his future.”
According to reports, Roger Daltrey was unhappy with his performance at the Royal Albert Hall shows. When the band attempted to play the Who’s Next deep cut “The Song Is Over” for the first time in their history, Daltrey stopped the song after just one verse and vented some frustrations.
“To sing that song, I do need to hear the key, and I can’t,” he said. “All I’ve got is drums going boom, boom, boom. I can’t sing to that. I’m sorry, guys.”
In a statement to fans on Wednesday afternoon, Starkey confirmed that his performance at the Royal Albert Hall was indeed at least one of the causes of his firing. “After playing those songs with the band for so many decades, I’m surprised and saddened anyone would have an issue with my performance that night,” he wrote, “but what can you do?”
He continues: “I’m very proud of my near thirty years with The Who. Filling the shoes of my Godfather, ‘uncle Keith’ has been the biggest honor and I remain their biggest fan. They’ve been like family to me. In January, I suffered a serious medical emergency with blood clots in my right bass drum calf. This is now completely healed and does not affect my drumming or running.”
Starkey is the oldest child of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and grew up around original Who drummer Keith Moon. “Keith was like an uncle, really,” Starkey told Modern Drummer in 2006. “He was one of my dad’s best friends. When my brother, sister, and I used to stay with my dad there, we would occasionally spend a few days at Keith’s house. Keith was the babysitter. We would just hang out and talk about anything, really — girls, surfing, bands, drums. He was a really fantastic guy to hang out with.”
Starkey originally came into the Who’s orbit in 1994, when Daltrey brought him on the road for a solo tour. Two years later, he joined the Who when they reformed for a tour playing Quadrophenia in its entirety. He missed a handful of gigs over the years due to injury or outside commitments, but was behind the kit for virtually every show. He also had the longest tenure in the band of any drummer in its history.
This story was updated on April 16 at 2:30 pm et to include quotes from Starkey’s official statement.
