1961 – James Brown and The Famous Flames release the original version of “I Don’t Mind.” The Who later record it for the My Generation LP. You can listen to it on YouTube here
1961 – The Regents’ “Barbara Ann,” originally recorded in 1958, hits the U.S. charts where it peaks at #13. The Who will record it for the Ready Steady Who EP and The Kids Are Alright movie. You can listen to it on YouTube here
1964 – The Who play the Glenlyn Ballroom in Forest Hill
1965 – Eagle and Boys’ World magazine features an article titled “Who Reads the Eagle? The Who Do — That’s Who!”
Transcript:
WHO READS THE EAGLE? THE WHO DO — THAT’S WHO!
THE WHO
This week’s prize-winning poem was sent in by Graham Hawkins of North London. If you can make up a poem, send it to us. It could win you an E.P. record!
“The Who” are great — with ‘I Can’t Explain’,
I wish I could hear it again and again.
Their style is great — and they are, too;
I wish that I was one of ‘The Who’.
It all began in January. By February they were rapidly increasing — and by March they were everywhere in and around London’s West End. Throughout the maze of narrow back streets around Soho they appeared in their hundreds, hanging on walls and hoardings, and still more in shop windows.
To those outside the pop world, these black and white posters boldly announcing ‘Maximum R&B — The WHO’ seemed very weird — but to the with-it beat fraternity, it was enough to arouse interest and curiosity.
Attendance figures began shooting up at clubs like ‘The Scene’, where The WHO were appearing, and, in a matter of weeks, this way-out foursome were winning a reputation as a group with a big future.
Having built up a large following in the London area, The Who set out to capture the remainder of Britain’s pop fans with their first record, ‘I Can’t Explain’, a number written by their lead-guitarist Pete Townshend.
Appearances on TV shows like ‘Top Of The Pops’ and ‘Ready Steady Go!’ helped to plug the disc, which soon began rocketing up the charts and into the top ten. The Who had made it!
At the time of going to press, Keith, Roger, John and Pete were busy recording an L.P. for the States, an E.P. for France, and a follow-up single to ‘I Can’t Explain’.
When they paid us a recent visit, prior to these recording sessions, they told us that although it had not been decided what their follow-up single would be, it would definitely be a joint composition. If it’s as good as their first, then they can be sure of another big hit.
1965 – The Who play Neeld Hall in Chippenham, Wiltshire
1966 – The New Musical Express Poll Winners concert at the Empire Pool from the 1st is broadcast on ITV. Rumors still circulate that a copy of this show exists but it has never gone public since its initial broadcast.
1967 – Paul McCartney is hanging out with Keith Moon and Eric Burdon at the Bag O’Nails club in London. The young American photographer of The Who’s March visit to New York, Linda Eastman, is there and Paul meets her for the first time. Two years later they will be married. Since Keith and Linda had met two months before, could Keith have been the one who pointed her out to Paul?
1969 – The Who play the Boston Tea Party in Boston, Massachusetts
1970 – The Who play the Great Hall at Lancaster University in Lancaster, Lancashire. Quintessence, Hammer, and Pink Custard are the opening acts.
1970 – Nippon Grammophon in Japan releases paired LP’s in a metal can. One of the first is Battle of The Who & Jimi Hendrix that will become a sought-after collector’s item.
1976 – Keith flies into London to rehearse with The Who before the next leg of the tour.
1987 – The press reports that The Who are planning live shows in Britain in 1988 to commemorate their 25th anniversary. Roger also tells the press he has had meetings with Pete and John to discuss the possibility of a new Who LP.
1990 – Roger is an attendee at the Cannes Film Festival promoting his film Buddy’s Song.
thewhothismonth.com has this listed as being on the 10th – and I usually use Brian’s dates, but in this case Getty’s photos are labeled the 15th, and I found news reports about Roger being at Cannes “yesterday” – so I believe the correct date is the 15th
1992 – Tom Constanten releases the CD Nightfall of Diamonds containing a cover of “Boris the Spider”. You can listen to it on YouTube here
2009 – Green Day includes a cover of “A Quick One While He’s Away” as an iTunes bonus for their new album 21st Century Breakdown. Listen to it on YouTube here
2013 – Roger visits the SiriusXM studios in New York and is interviewed on The Howard Stern Show.
2015 – The Who play the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio
2016 – The Who play the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington
2019 – Pete and Roger appear on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. You can watch it on youtube here
2022 – The Who play TQL Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio