Roger Daltrey, at 80, readying for life after the Who: 'Every dog has its day, and it was wonderful'

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

Considering that he has devoted much of the past 60 years to his career as the lead singer in the Who, you wouldn't expect to hear Roger Daltrey laughing uproariously over the apparent demise of the band long synonymous with his name. Especially not just a day after Who co-founder Pete Townshend stated in a podcast he was "not doing" a farewell tour that he himself had proposed only three weeks earlier.

But Daltrey, who performs a solo show May 6 at the Shell in San Diego ahead of a June tour, laughed so hard during a recent interview you might have thought he was watching a favorite film comedy. The singer's long burst of "ha ha has" was in response to his interviewer noting that — more than anyone — Daltrey knows just how prone the mercurial Townshend is to changing his mind in a near-instant.

After pausing to contain his laughter, the veteran singer grew more serious.

"If Pete doesn't want to tour, I don't want to be back with the Who on the road, at 81, with someone who doesn't want be there — if that's what he's saying," said Daltrey who turned 80 on March 1. "But you know, every dog has its day and it was a wonderful ride."

Whether this dog has truly had its day remains to be seen, particularly since Daltrey — in a 2000 San Diego Union-Tribune interview — referred to Townshend as "a habitual liar."

Regardless, Townshend sounded less than enthused when he told the New York Times in March: "I don't get much of a buzz from performing with the Who. If I'm really honest, I've been touring for the money. My idea of an ordinary lifestyle is pretty elevated."

Such statements don't encourage Daltrey to think another reunion trek seems feasible. With the Who down to two members — drummer Keith Moon died in 1978, bassist John Entwistle in 2002 — touring as a one-man version of the Who, minus Townshend, is not a viable option.

"I won't do it with someone who is halfhearted about it," Daltrey said. "The music is too important to me. The reason the Who was so powerful is because we meant it. We took your face off when we played; we didn't swan about on stage."

'Putting me in a corner'

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