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Saturday, September 21st, 1968

Melody Maker features an interview with Pete by Chris Welch as well as a short note about "Magic Bus" and a full page ad for Marshall - mentioning The Who as a client

 

Transcript:

Bus ride back to Pop 30 for Who

By Chris Welch

THE STATES are where the Who now have their biggest hits, most fan fever, and excitement.  Pete Townshend, Keith Moon, Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle flew back last week for a holiday before offering their wares to the home market.

“Magic Bus,” due for release on September 27, is an exciting reversal to the Who’s old sound although Pete prefers to call it a completion of full circle.

New generation

There is a heavy Bo Diddley beat, some screaming guitars, and insistent, chanting chorus.  Simple but tremendously effective, and high in the American Hot 100.

But how far will the “Bus” ride as new groups and a new generation of fans move in?

Over lunch, Pete talked — as lucidly and as honestly as ever — about the group, TV and radio, America, and the perennial topic of drugs.

“The English scene for us, unfortunately, doesn’t compare with America.  I don’t think our old fans will care for that statement and new pop fans won’t care at all.  But the States offer us more money, fans and excitement.

“When the Who started off here the business was much more exciting, there were more good TV shows and radio was better.  Pop was a new exciting industry

“For us, reaching a stage of planing off, just getting number nine records and interviews on BBC2, the States becomes a more exciting place. We’ve been getting the adoration of the masses once again and it has helped us extend our life’s work.

“A couple of years ago I didn’t figure we would last this long, and I didn’t think pop would last as long as it has.

Drama

“I hate Radio One, it’s basically a ‘light’ music station, except on Sunday’s when it gets a bit interesting.  I’d sooner listen to the Home Service with Mr.s Dale and the Archers — Seriously.

“And the drama is getting better.  I really like radio plays. They’re much better than all that rubbish on Radio One.”

How does Pete feel about ‘Magic Bus?’

“In the States everyone says it sounds like ‘My Generation’ and that we are reversing to our old style.  But we have just gone full circle, or looped the loop.

“We like to play it on stage because the rhythms are ones we play well. It cheers us up and gives us a kick in the pants.  It is an old song, written at the time of ‘Generation’ and it was recorded by an American group called the Pudding in 1966 — it flopped.

“I don’t think we will get the legendary number one hit, though.  We’ve never had a proper number one in England. ‘I Can See For Miles’ was a potential number one.

“I hope ‘Bus’ will do very well, but I’m not really too bothered because we start working on our next album soon and we are very keep and excited.

What are Who future plans?

“Our biggest project will be the album, apart from the single of course.  We start work on September 22 and we’ll have it out on September 24.  Well - we want it out before Christmas.

Hard

“We’ll be doing the operatic thing we have been talking about for so long. We all like working and we’re going to do some University dates during the recording period.

“We’ve also got another single in the bag that hasn’t been written by the group.  We’ve worked so hard on the album and touring the States that we have had to be less proud and do somebody else’s song.

“We did a ‘live’ album at the Fillmore recorded by the  same people who did the Cream.  But it came out pretty badly. We’re not as good as them.

“We jump around too much, which people expect from us on stage, and you can’t play so well trying to be windmills.”

The conversation moved onto the continually agonizing subject of drugs, which has now moved out of the realms of glib talk about expanding minds and into the realities of eleven year-olds turning on.

“Among mostt of my friends there is a strong movement against drugs of all types.  There is a guy called Dr Alan Cohen who lectures at the Arts Lab and could explain it better than me. He is against drugs, not only for the physical reasons but because they are an impediment to spiritual advancement.

“Human being have the highest consciousness in the universe and some drugs can give extra enlightenment. But the person who takes LSD every day for six months for entertainment is really avoiding the gift of LSD.

“The best way to enjoy life is by not being selfish  and just saying: ‘I’m Pete. I want to get the most outa life.’ You should enjoy it by selflessness and doing your job properly and giving benefit to other people.

Drugs

“Before I took LSD I tried to imagine what it would be like and when I did it was as big as I expected and blew my head off. 

“So if I could imagine what it would be like, what is the point of taking it? All drugs do is strengthen the illusion of what you see around you.

“If you see a piece of orange peel lying on the pavement, it’s stupid to try to see it as anything other than a piece of orange peel.

“Things do tend to get out of perspective.”

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