THE WHO 6 p.m. today, Sun Devil Stadium.

By Andrew Means

Republic Staff

The Who, it was announced earlier this summer, is making its final American tour. Long live the Who.

For 20 years, the British quartet has split up and patched up with disquieting regularity. The infighting has become legend. All the members, including the late Keith Moon, have been at one time or another on the point of being thrown out by majority vote.

On more than one occasion, disagreements have led to blows. Singer Roger Daltrey, apparently no ham with the fists, has knocked out guitarist Pete Townshend and former drummer Moon in the heat of disagreement. And as anyone knows who has kept up with the interviews Daltrey and Townshend give, there is remarkably little communication between the band members.

In recent years, the most estranged member appears to have been Townshend. The group’s

The Who, from left: Pete Townshend, guitar; John Entwistle, bass; Kenney Jones, drums; and Roger Daltrey, vocals.

main songwriter and one of rock’s most influential philosophers, he has been through a drug-and-alcohol-induced period of depression and disintegration.

When punk broke in the mid-70s, Townshend was ready to pass on the standard to a new generation. He was very supportive of punk and new-wave innovators, but the new groups coming out of those movements apparently were not interested in taking up the anti-establishment role Townshend had envisioned for them.

Following that, Townshend has become almost psychotic in the extent he questions his own abilities, those of the Who, and the significance and value of rock in general.

The indications are that this will, indeed, be the last American tour by the group. Townshend and Daltrey want it that way. Bass guitarist John Entwistle doesn’t, but says he will quit the group altogether rather than meet for occasional revivals and studio work.

(The Who’s contract with Warner Bros. calls for two more albums, and it seems probable that some live or TV appearances would be required to support these.)

Kenney Jones, who replaced Moon three years ago, seems resigned to the decision and has said he recognized it as a possibility right from the time he joined.

Confirmation of this state of affairs comes from Richard Barnes, the group’s chronicler and longtime friend, who has written about them in The Who Maximum R & B (St. Martin’s, 168 pp., ill., $12.95, paperback).

The publication of his book coincides with the tour, and Barnes has been traveling with the group. He joined them in midtour, and at first was skeptical about its finality. But he

has since changed his mind.

“I thought it probably wouldn’t be because they’re making a lot of money and they’re playing well,” he said in a telephone interview. “But since talking to them I now think it will definitely be their last.

“We aren’t socializing much this tour. Last tour was booze and partying. But now Townshend and Kenney Jones are on the wagon and Roger never did drink. The partying is cut down and they stay in their rooms.”

Reports from the tour so far suggest The Who is going out in style. The group’s performances have been strong, and at one venue apparently outsold last year’s Rolling Stones’ extravaganza. (Conversely, sales for the Sun Devil Stadium have been very slow.)

So far this tour has avoided catastrophes such as the 11 fans trampled to death at a Who concert in Cincinnati in 1979. But there has been the flurry of arrests commensurable with an event of this size. In San Diego, police were extra vigilant, arresting 123 — the majority on drug- and drink-related charges. One attempted rape was reported.

— Who, F2