<\/p>\n
\n\tFour months on from the shows that sparked Zak Starkey\u2019s departure from The Who, Roger Daltrey<\/a> has attempted to set the record straight.<\/p>\n \n\tStarkey and The Who have been in and out of the spotlight since April following the back-and-forth that Starkey had been fired<\/a> from the group, only to be welcomed back<\/a> ahead of his eventual departure<\/a> \u2013 which Starkey clarified<\/a> was not him being \u201cfired\u201d but rather \u201cretired.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tInitially, a spokesman for The Who had claimed that \u201cthe band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall,\u201d referring to a pair of gigs the month prior.<\/p>\n \n\tAddressing the gigs in an interview in June, Starkey detailed<\/a> his version of what had happened at the shows in question. \u201cWhat happened was I got it right and Roger got it wrong,\u201d he told The Telegraph<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\tAccording to a report<\/a> from The Who\u2019s Royal Albert Hall shows, the recently-knighted<\/a> Daltrey had stopped several songs mid-performance, citing difficulty hearing the band over the drums. Per Starkey\u2019s recollection, the group played the rarely-performed \u201cThe Song is Over,\u201d and a lack of rehearsal meant that Daltrey \u201ccame in a bar early.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe result was a call from band manager Bill Curbishley who shared the bad news with Starkey. \u201cHe says, \u2018It\u2019s my unfortunate duty to inform you,’\u201d Starkey remembered. \u201c\u2018That you won\u2019t be needed from now on. Roger says you dropped some beats.’\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThough Starkey would admit to having dropped the beats, Daltrey himself has attempted to set the record straight in a new interview with The Times<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAn audience can see what\u2019s happening on stage and have a complete misunderstanding of what\u2019s actually going on,\u201d he said in relation to the Royal Albert Hall gigs, before turning his attention to Starkey\u2019s comments. \u201cIt was kind of a character assassination and it was incredibly upsetting.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAccording to Daltrey, the moment that inspired the troubles is related to the technical setup of The Who\u2019s live show, which features electronic drums piped in through in-ear monitors.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt is controlled by a guy on the side, and we had so much sub-bass on the sound of the drums that I couldn\u2019t pitch,\u201d Daltrey explains. \u201cI was pointing to the bass drum and screaming at him because it was like flying a plane without seeing the horizon. So when Zak thought I was having a go at him, I wasn\u2019t. That\u2019s all that happened.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAs Daltrey concluded his focus on the topic, he also gave a brief insight into how it was that Starkey\u2019s membership in the band was left under a cloud of confusion for a number of weeks.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cPete [Townshend]<\/a> and I retain the right to be the Who,\u201d he explained. \u201cEveryone else is a session player. You can\u2019t replace Keith Moon. We wanted to branch out and that\u2019s all I want to say about it. But [Starkey\u2019s reaction] was crippling to me.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIn late July, The Who hit the stage in Italy as part of their The Song Is Over Tour, which touches down in North America<\/a> later this month. \u201cThis is certainly the last time you will see us on tour,\u201d Daltrey confirmed to The Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n