December 27, 2005

The Who will launch a world tour this summer that will bring the band to North America for its first extended trek in nearly four years. “We plan to visit the USA, Europe, Japan, Australia and also South America,” manager Bill Curbishley says.

The group — which now consists of Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend backed by bassist Pino Palladino, keyboardist John “Rabbit” Bundrick, drummer Zak Starkey and guitarist (and Pete’s brother) Simon Townshend — was forced to take a hiatus in 2005 due to Starkey’s touring commitments with Oasis and Palladino’s stint with the John Mayer Trio.

“I don’t want to stop, and I don’t think Pete does,” frontman Roger Daltrey told Rolling Stone in the fall. The Who have been working on a new album, Who2, on and off for the past decade and are scheduled to go back into the studio in February. There’s no word on whether the summer tour will feature new songs, but in March guitarist Pete Townshend posted in his online diary, “I feel I can’t tour any more with the Who without a new record.”

Townshend’s girlfriend, singer-songwriter Rachel Fuller, may open some dates on the tour.

Source rollingstone.com.