Roger Daltrey on Wild Beatles Fans, Eddie Vedder, Teen Cancer Charity

What does a fest like that say about the artists?
I think it’s a wonderful accolade to the music – here they are all of these years later, 50-plus years later, still drawing massive audiences, still out there playing, and the music seems to be meaning as much to a younger generation as well for all those artists that are on there as it did in the day. I think that’s a remarkable achievement for any musician.

Getting back to the auction, there’s a replica Keith Moon drum kit that you and Pete signed up for auction. How badly would he beat those up?
It’s very hard to damage a bass drum unless you put a bomb in it. As the Smothers Brothers found out, that damaged the bass drum.

It damaged everything, looking at the footage.
We had no inclination it was going to be that big a bang. No inclination of how dangerous it really, really was. When you study the video and you watch Pete’s reaction, and he’s patting his head, and the reason he’s patting his head is because his hair is alight. His hair was smoldering. The blast blew me over. I went flat on my face. It stunned me [laughs].

In 2013, you had teased this trek as the Who’s last big tour. Does it have a sense of finality?
Yes and no. It’s the end of this type of tour, I’m sure. We’ll take a break for a couple of years, and by the time that’s over I’ll probably be 74, getting on 75. I don’t know if I can physically do what I’m doing now at 75. That’s an impossible question to answer. I don’t feel it.

I know how much I’m putting into it and how much it’s taking out of me. Only I know that. I’m just being honest. I can look very lively on the stage but when I come off I can hardly walk. It’s killing me.

What are your immediate plans for when the tour is over?
Sleep [laughs]. I don’t make plans. Something will come through that I’m interested in and I will do it. The other part of my life, which is the charities, is a full-time job in itself. I don’t need any more work that’s for sure.

Are you working on music?
I’m working on a solo project but I don’t know whether I’ll ever release it. I’m working on a biography; I don’t know if I’ll ever release that. I’ll only release it if it’s a good book. I don’t care how long it takes.

I won’t sign a publishing deal. People sign a publishing deal and they have to put it out because they’ve taken the money. Well, bollocks to the money, I don’t care about the money I want a good book. If it takes five years, then it takes five years to write it.

What makes a good memoir in your opinion?
It’s about getting an angle that carries the reader with you. You can’t do just a series of events. Most of the rock biographies that I’ve read I kind of got bored with about halfway to two-thirds of the way through. I hope not to fall into that trap.

What does your solo album sound like?
I don’t talk about albums until they’re done. I’ve got five great tracks; I’m looking for another five. Finding great tracks is really difficult; I don’t want anything mediocre on it. A lot of albums exist today but I don’t want to record shitty music. You know, I started off as a soul singer. I’ve never done a soul album. I’m playing some stuff like that. I’ve got ranges in my voice that people have never, ever heard. We’ll see.