The son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr, it seemed fitting that Zak Starkey would follow in his father’s footsteps when it came to his musician talents. And back in 1996, Starkey first took the stage with The Who during their Quadrophenia world tour. Over the decades that followed, the drummer also took the stage with The Who during their performance at the 2010 Super Bowl and the 2012 London Olympics. Although a longtime member of the band, it appears that Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey decided to part ways with Starkey after two shows at the Royal Albert Hall.
Back in March, The Who entertained fans at the Royal Albert Hall with two shows aimed at raising funds for the Teenage Cancer Trust. During the event, Daltrey paused the concert several times after claiming he couldn’t hear the band over the drumming. When performing “The Song Is Over”, the singer insisted, “To sing that song I do need to hear the key, and I can’t. All I’ve got is drums going boom, boom, boom. I can’t sing to that. I’m sorry guys.”
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With the news of Starkey’s departure, a spokesperson close to The Who told The Guardian, “The band made a collective decision to part ways with Zak after this round of shows at the Royal Albert Hall. They have nothing but admiration for him and wish him the very best for his future.”
Zak Starkey Accused Of Overplaying During Concerts
While the news came as a shock to many fans of The Who, Starkey hinted at the trouble surrounding the group when he posted a picture of himself and Daltrey on Instagram a few days ago. He captioned the post, writing, “Heard today from inside source that Toger Daktrey [sic] lead singer and principal songwriter of the group unhappy with Zak the drummer’s performance at the Albert Hall a few weeks ago is bringing formal charges of overplaying and is literally going to Zak the drummer and bring on a reserve from ‘the burwash carwash skiffle empathy allstars. This has been confirmed by whose long time manager WIllya Youwontyouknow.”
Ending his time with The Who, Starkey not only played with the band for several decades, but he also nurtured a passion for the drums thanks the group’s original drummer Keith Moon. When Starkey was just 8 years old, Moon decided to gift him a drum kit. That kit fueled a young Starkey to follow in the legacy of his father.
Outside of The Who, Starkey is sure to find a new band as he performed with Johnny Marr, Graham Coxon, Paul Weller, and even Oasis over the years.
(Photo by Mindy Small/FilmMagic)