Zak Starkey is “surprised and saddened” about his departure from The Who after almost 30 years as the band’s drummer.
Zak Starkey is “surprised and saddened” about his departure from The Who.
The 59-year-old drummer parted ways with Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend after almost 30 years following their two Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at London’s Royal Albert Hall last month and in a statement, he has revealed how upset he is at the development.
He told The Mirror: “I’m very proud of my near thirty years with The Who. Filling the shoes of my Godfather, ‘uncle Keith’ has been the biggest honour 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.
“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, but what can you do? I plan to take some much needed time off with my family, and focus on the release of Domino Bones by Mantra Of The Cosmos with Noel Gallagher in May and finishing my autobiography written solely by me. Twenty-nine years at any job is a good old run, and I wish them the best.”
A spokesperson for the ‘Pinball Wizard’ group previously said: “The band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall. They have nothing but admiration for him and wish him the very best for his future.”
According to Metro, during The Who’s London show on 30 March, Roger stopped the performance multiple times and complained he was unable to hear over the sound of Zak’s drumming.
Stopping the concert during the final track, ‘The Song Is Over’, the 81-year-old rocker told the audience: “To sing that song I do need to hear the key, and I can’t. All I’ve got is drums going boom, boom, boom. I can’t sing to that. I’m sorry guys.”
Zak Starkey ‘surprised and saddened’ over The Who departure
