‘I was fired’: Drummer for legendary rock band refused to say he quit before farewell tour
A legendary rock band has fired its drummer for a second time prior to its farewell tour .
The Who's guitarist, Pete Townshend, announced the split on Sunday via Instagram, stating that Starkey would not be joining the band for their "The Song is Over North America Farewell Tour."
"After many years of great work on drums from Zak, the time has come for a change. A poignant time," Townshend wrote on Instagram . "Zak has lots of new projects in hand and I wish him the best."
In a counter-statement also posted on Instagram , Starkey called Townshend's announcement a lie.
"I was fired two weeks after reinstatement and asked to make a statement saying I had quit The Who to pursue my other musical endeavors‚" Starkey wrote. "This would be a lie. I love The Who and would never had quit. So I didn't make the statement... quitting The Who would also have let down the countless amazing people who stood up for me..."
Starkey clarified that although he does have other projects, it would not have interfered with the tour and cited other points in time when he would balance both plans, from the 1990s through 2020.
"None of this has ever interfered with The Who and was never a problem for them," Starkey said. "The lie is or would have been that I quit The Who-I didn't. I love The Who and everyone in it."
Starkey was initially fired in April following a "huge fall out" that originated during The Who's two Royal Albert Hall shows in March, according to The Sun .
A review of the band's March gig in the Metro implied that Daltrey openly bashed Starkey's performance while on stage.
While performing "The Song Is Over," Daltrey stopped and said, "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,'" according to the review.
Starkey, who is the son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and Maureen Starkey said in a statement to Rolling Stone in April that he was "surprised and saddened anyone would have an issue with my performance that night."
The drummer even said his playing has been unaffected by "a serious medical emergency with blood clots in my right bass drum calf" that he experienced in January.
Starkey returned to The Who shortly after the initial announcement in April; the band cited "communication issues" as the reason for his leave, according to a statement from The Who.
Although the farewell tour was expected to have Starkey in it, a replacement has already been found.
"Scott Devours who has worked with Roger's solo band will join The Who for our Final shows," Townshend said on Instagram. "Please welcome him."
"The Song Is Over North America Farewell Tour" will feature 16 shows, including a concert at Fenway Park in Boston on Tuesday, Aug. 26.
A full list of shows is below:
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Aug. 16 — Sunrise, Florida at Amerant Bank Arena
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Aug. 19 — Newark, New Jersey at Prudential Center
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Aug. 21 — Philadelphia, Philadelphia at Wells Fargo Center
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Aug. 23 — Atlantic City, New Jersey at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall
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Aug. 26 — Boston, Massachusetts at Fenway Park
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Aug. 28 — Wantagh, New York at Northwell at Jones Beach Theater
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Aug. 30 — New York City, New York at Madison Square Garden
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Sept. 2 — Toronto, Ontario, Canada at Budweiser Stage
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Sept. 4 — Toronto, Ontario, Canada at Budweiser Stage
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Sept. 7 — Chicago, Illinois at United Center
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Sept. 17 — Los Angeles, California at Hollywood Bowl
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Sept. 19 — Los Angeles, California at Hollywood Bowl
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Sept. 21 — Mountain View, California at Shoreline Amphitheatre
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Sept. 23 — Vancouver, British Columbia at Rogers Arena
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Sept. 25 — Seattle, Washington at Climate Pledge Arena
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Sept. 28 — Las Vegas, Nevada at MGM Grand Garden Arena
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Read the original article on MassLive .
