The Who: The Show Must Go On
Smashing equipment and causing deafness for band members is only part of The Who’s onstage experience package. In November 1973, the band was riding the success wave after their rock opera masterpiece, Quadrophenia. However, their tour for the album proved to be disastrous from the get-go.
Photo by Chris Morphet / Redferns / Getty Images
The lowest point came on the tour’s opening night when, before going on stage, Keith Moon took PCP to calm his nerves. Midway through the track Won’t Get Fooled Again, Moon literally slumped over the drums and passed out. But, of course, the show must go on. Townshend asked the crowd: “Can anybody play the drums?” That’s when 19-year-old Scot Halpin took to the stage and played drums with the band for the rest of the show.