“I’ve never liked the way that little man runs that band”: Ringo Starr slams Roger Daltrey for firing his son from The Who
Following the firing of drummer Zak Starkey from The Who – his second dismissal from the band in the space of a month – his father, Beatles legend Ringo Starr – has commented on the drama.
Starkey was initially fired on 16 April, after his bandmates Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend were said to have been unhappy with his performance during their Royal Albert Hall gig days prior. Days later, it was announced that he was back in the fold, only for him to be let go again in May.
READ MORE: “Pete had to go along with it because he’s had 60 years of arguing with Roger”: Zak Starkey reveals why he was fired from The Who
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Starkey remarks that he’s “been fired more times than [original Who drummer] Keith Moon in 10 days”.
Starkey confesses that he was largely behind the issue gaining the traction and attention it did. “I did that,” he says. “I didn’t want to get walked all over. It’s sort of like the Goons meet Stanley Unwin.
“It was the principal songwriter of The Who, and ‘Todger Daltrey’ – I’m taking the piss – have decided to sack the drummer and bringing formal charges of over-playing, which is what I was told first. The first thing they said is that I was overplaying. “What? I’m just playing what that guy plays, no more.” I don’t think Roger liked that very much.
Starkey still asserts that he was not to blame for the slip up at the Royal Albert Hall. “I love Roger. He never misses a note,” he says. “His voice is still so pure. It’s like a laser beam. He always nails it. They’ve not changed one key since the start of conceptual art as rock & roll. But he just got lost. He blamed it on the drums being too loud, and then it got made into this huge social media thing.”
The drummer jokes now that he’s “the most famous drummer on the dole”.
Now, Starkey’s father Ringo Starr is said to have jumped to his son’s defence, saying (quoted by Starkey): “I’ve never liked the way that little man runs that band,” seemingly referring to Daltrey.
“I’m surprised anyone would have an issue with my performance that night, but what can you do?” Starkey said earlier this year.
Starkey’s latest firing was followed by a statement from Pete Townshend that the band had recruited Scott Devours on drums.
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But despite that announcement, Starkey also tells Rolling Stone that he “spoke to Roger last week: “‘Don’t take your drums out of the warehouse, we might be calling you.’ What the fuck? These guys are fuckin’ insane!” This is in the knowledge that The Who are supposed to be starting a tour on 20 July in Italy.
So, then, whether this is the final straw for Starkey’s relationship with the band is still to be decided. After all, it was not long ago that Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey were not on speaking terms.
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