[151], By September 1978 Moon was having difficulty playing the drums, according to roadie Dave "Cy" Langston. The drummer may have earned himself the undesirable moniker of Moon the Loon after some unmentionable acts of debauchery but we shouldnt forget that he was an untamed beast behind the drum kit. I figured that was it. [13] He also admired Elvis Presley's original drummer DJ Fontana, the Shadows' original drummer Tony Meehan[14] and the Pretty Things' Viv Prince. [175] The Jam paid homage to Moon on the second single from their third album, "Down in the Tube Station at Midnight"; the B-side of the single is a Who cover ("So Sad About Us"), and the back cover of the record has a photo of Moon's face. We can feel the fear Tommy feels as he goes to visit The Acid Queen, partly because Moons epic drum track gives the song a palpable sense of terror. He became an acquaintance with Daltry. oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['size'] = 'medium'; Who producer Jon Astley said, "You didn't think he was keeping time, but he was. Technical ability is another thing. [8] He was interested in practical jokes and home science kits, with a particular fondness for explosions. In 2016, the same magazine ranked him No. I have favourite drum pieces and thats it. I was working during the day, selling plaster. Keith Moon drumming style analysis - YouTube [19] In December 1962 he joined the Beachcombers, a semi-professional London cover band playing hits by groups such as the Shadows. Required fields are marked *. "; [24]:7:44, Although Moon was known for kicking over his drum kit, Haynes claimed that it was done carefully and the kit rarely needed repairs. var oneSignal_options = {}; [139], Guitarist Joe Walsh enjoyed socialising with Moon. Keith Moon: The Different Drummer - Rolling Stone At the end of the 1976 US tour in Miami that August, Moon became delirious and was treated in Hollywood Memorial Hospital for eight days. [61] Townshend later said, "A set of skins is about $300 [then 96] and after every show he'd just go bang, bang, bang and then kick the whole thing over. [119][120], Before the 1998 release of Tony Fletcher's Dear Boy: The Life of Keith Moon, Moon's date of birth was presumed to be 23 August 1947. function documentInitOneSignal() { When staying in Toronto we ran into Moonie in the Hotel elevator. He was more like three people in one. (Learning the drums was her idea). Keith Moon circa mid 1960s LFI/Photoshot. "[142], Peter "Dougal" Butler began working for the Who in 1967, becoming Moon's personal assistant the following year[143] to help him stay out of trouble. 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"[24]:52:29, Moon's arrival in the Who changed the dynamics of the group. He's dead, so what? [29] Moon's recklessness with money reduced his profit from the group's 1975 UK tour to 47.35 (equivalent to 423 in 2021). His 21st birthday party in Flint, Michigan, has been cited as a notorious example of decadent behaviour by rock groups. 'jetpack-lazy-images-js-enabled' [109], During the opening date of the band's March 1976 US tour at the Boston Garden, Moon passed out over his drum kit after two numbers and the show was rescheduled. oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['text']['tip.state.blocked'] = 'Oh, dont do that, please'; 2 in their list of the 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time, behind John Bonham. I think a lot of my lunacy is because I want to do some film work. He played with every instrument playing on stage, and he managed to make it work, Daltrey continued. [Townshend]. The band stopped playing, and a group of roadies carried Moon offstage. ( No we werent groupies) He arrived full of energy after the concert. "[92], In a limousine on the way to the airport, Moon insisted they return to their hotel, saying "I forgot something." [160] Keyboardist John "Rabbit" Bundrick, who had rehearsed with Moon earlier in the year,[115] joined the live band as an unofficial member. In addition to his talent as a drummer, Moon developed a reputation for smashing his kit on stage and destroying hotel rooms on tour. A furious Holiday Inn management presented the groups with a bill for $24,000, which was reportedly settled by Herman's Hermits tour manager Edd McCann. "[84] She begged Malibu neighbour Larry Hagman to check Moon into a clinic to dry out (as he had attempted to do before), but when doctors recorded Moon's chemical intake at breakfast a bottle of champagne, Courvoisier and amphetamines they concluded that there was no hope for his rehabilitation. [135], In 1975 Moon began a relationship with Swedish model Annette Walter-Lax, who later said that Moon was "so sweet when he was sober, that I was just living with him in the hope that he would kick all this craziness. [3][4] Moon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990 as a member of the Who. I just want to play drums for the Who and that's it. At the hotel he ran back to his room, grabbed the television and threw it out of the window into the swimming pool below. Her parents, who were furious, met with the Moons to discuss their options, and she moved into the Moon family home in Wembley. The Keith Moon of years past would have . As McCartney recalled in an interview with Record Collector Magazine back in 1997, Moon even praised his drum skills once. Ill never forget the scene in the film The Kids Are Alright Keiths headphones gaffered to his head playing along to the synthesizer sequence. [58] From 1967 to 1969 Moon used the "Pictures of Lily" drum kit (named for its artwork), which had two 22-inch (56cm) bass drums, two 16-inch (41cm) floor toms and three mounted toms. He was discovered by manager Bill Curbishley, who took him to a hospital, telling him "I'm gonna get the doctor to get you nice and fit, so you're back within two days. oneSignal_options['subdomainName'] = "https://rockgarage.os.tc"; [161][162], Jones left the Who in 1988,[163] and drummer Simon Phillips (who praised Moon's ability to drum over the backing track of "Baba O'Riley") toured with the band the following year. "[183], In 2008, English Heritage declined an application for Moon to be awarded a blue plaque. and was carried offstage for good. in Bournemouth. "I loved Keith Moon. After an investigation, the coroner ruled Boland's death an accident; Moon, having been charged with a number of offences, received an absolute discharge. Keith Moon's 10 Wildest Pranks - Rolling Stone While Moons contributions to individual tracks have been monumental, perhaps the best way to understand just how powerful a musician he was is to simply watch him play for five uninterrupted minutes. In April 1964, aged 17,[22] he auditioned for the Who as a replacement for Doug Sandom. [116] Daltrey later denied threatening to fire him, but said that by this time Moon was out of control. Watts was very sad at Moon's funeral back in 1978 Right after the news of Charlie Watts' passing in August, 2021 at the age of 80, The Who guitarist Pete Townshend recalled on his Instagram that the drummer wept at Keith Moon's funeral back in 1978: "Full Moon. I'd say Phil Collins was equally. oneSignal_options['notifyButton']['showCredit'] = true; Moon (or Entwistle) remarked that a particular suggestion had gone down like a "lead zeppelin" (a play on "lead balloon"). That was a personality. Another huge admirer among his peers was Led Zeppelins John Bonham, who would always watch Moon as closely and as often as he could. 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time - Rolling Stone Id like to play Hamlet, but he wasnt a drummer, was he? said Moon. He provided humorous commentary during song announcements, although sound engineer Bob Pridden preferred to mute his vocal microphone on the mixing desk whenever possible. The Whos Keith Moon was unique in every single way, for better and worse. Paul McCartney's opinion on Keith Moon As the drummer for The Who, he was an unstoppable. I said: 'Nothing.' [53] In 1973 Premier's marketing manager, Eddie Haynes, began consulting Moon about specific requirements. Keith Moon once praised Paul McCartney skills as a drummer The two artists were good friends and had the opportunity to hang out many times. Moon's drumming style affected the band's musical structure; although Entwistle initially found Moon's lack of conventional timekeeping problematic, it created an original sound. Hes notKeith Moon. Kenney Jones' Top 10 Keith Moon Drum Tracks | Louder - loudersound OneSignal.SERVICE_WORKER_PATH = "OneSignalSDKWorker.js.php"; My cousin had a knack for finding out where The Who stayed at many of the concerts we attended. In 2000, the book was released in the US as Moon (The Life and Death of a Rock Legend). Bill Curbishley remembered that "he wouldn't walk into any room and just listen. } "A lot of guys, . [91] These acts, often fuelled by drugs and alcohol, were Moon's way of demonstrating his eccentricity; he enjoyed shocking the public with them. For The Who, Keith Moon was the best drummer, but he never was heard to play in any other band or genre of music, so who knows whether he was technically versatile. [96] David Puttnam recalled, "The drinking went from being a joke to being a problem. "[143] Townshend agreed, saying that by 1975 Butler had "no influence over him whatsoever. His performance on "Bell Boy" (Quadrophenia, 1973) saw him abandon "serious" vocal performances to sing in character, which gave him (in Fletcher's words) "full licence to live up to his reputation as a lecherous drunk"; it was "exactly the kind of performance the Who needed from him to bring them back down to earth. If you remove Keith Moon from the Who equation, it's not the Who. At the end of the song, the drums go nuts. He proved that there was another way of doing things, Moon was unconventional on-stage and even more atypical once he stepped foot off it. [79] Moon's next film role was J.D. Bonzo sat in on the entire Wont Get Fooled Again recording session. "[26] Moon later claimed that he was never formally invited to join the Who permanently; when Ringo Starr asked how he had joined the band, he said he had "just been filling in for the last fifteen years.