"He's not Keith Moon, but he's pretty close" — that's Roger Daltrey's most candid assessment of Zak Starkey right now. The remark came during an interview with LifeMinute, where he discussed a recent Who rehearsal in which Starkey sat back behind the kit.
Starkey, son of Ringo Starr, joined The Who as touring drummer in 1996 and stuck around for nearly three decades. The relationship first cracked last March, when the band was playing a Teenage Cancer Trust charity show at London's Royal Albert Hall—Daltrey stopped mid-performance of "The Song Is Over," complaining he couldn't hear the key over the drums. Reports of a falling-out followed, and Starkey was let go from the band.
At the time, Starkey said he was "shocked and saddened" by the decision and didn't believe his performance was the issue. Days later, Pete Townshend briefly clarified that Starkey "hadn't been asked to leave." But by May, The Who confirmed the drummer's departure was official, with the band's stated reason being that "the time for a change had come." Starkey pushed back on the narrative that he'd quit voluntarily, claiming he'd been asked to "lie" and say he was leaving to pursue other projects. "I love The Who and would never have walked away," he wrote at the time.
Last month, Starkey was spotted back on stage rehearsing with The Who, and both he and Daltrey confirmed it. Now Daltrey is opening up further about the band's feelings toward him. When directly asked whether a touring reunion with Starkey might happen, Daltrey said: "I don't know. We had a rehearsal recently, and Zak was the drummer for that rehearsal. We love Zak, but touring life isn't always kind to Zak. Sometimes the pressure gets to him, and things get difficult."
He went on to explain the purpose of the rehearsal: "He was playing drums at the rehearsal—we rehearsed to see whether shows might be possible next year. He still nails the accents, still has that drive. Who music needs a massive amount of drive; without it, we'd just be Herman's Hermits without Herman."
Speaking to NME last June, Starkey revealed he'd stayed in touch with his former bandmates but was confused about where things stood. "I still talk to Roger on the phone every week, and I'm constantly texting Pete," he said. "A few weeks ago I was talking to Roger and he said, 'Don't take your drums out of storage just yet, in case we need you.' What the hell is going on? That's basically where we are right now."
Neither side has confirmed whether a tour will actually happen—Daltrey's comments remain firmly in "maybe" territory for now.
