DALTREY, Roger (Harry) 1944-

PERSONAL: Born March 1, 1944, in London, England; married Jacqueline Rickman (divorced); married Heather Taylor, 1971; children: Simon (first marriage); Mathias (previous relationship); Rosie, Willow, Jamie (second marriage).

ADDRESSES: Home—Sussex, England. Offıce—WEA/Atlantic, 75 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10019-6908. Agent—Gold/Marshak/Liedtke & Associates, 3500 West Olive Ave., Suite 1400, Burbank, CA 91505.

CAREER: Singer, songwriter, and actor. Former sheet metal worker. Founding member, with John Entwistle, of rhythm and blues/dance band the Detours, early 1960s; Founding member and vocalist, with Entwistle (bass), Keith Moon (drums), and Pete Townshend (guitar, keyboard, and songwriter), of the Who (formerly the High Numbers), 1965—. Recorded albums with the Who, including The Who Sings My Generation, Festival, 1966; A Quick One/Happy Jack, Reaction, 1966; The Who Sell Out, Decca, 1967; Magic Bus—The Who on Tour, Decca, 1968; Tommy, Decca, 1969; Live at Leeds, Decca, 1970; Who's Next, Decca, 1971; Meaty, Beaty, Big, and Bouncy (greatest hits), Decca, 1971; Quadrophenia, MCA, 1973; Odds and Sods, MCA, 1974; Tommy (original soundtrack), Polydor, 1975; The Who by Numbers, MCA, 1975; Who Are You, MCA, 1978; The Kids Are Alright (original soundtrack), MCA, 1979; Face Dances, Warner Bros., 1981; It's Hard, Warner Bros., 1982; Who's Last, 1984; Two's Missing, Polydor, 1987; Who's Better Who's Best, 1989; The Blues to the Bush (live album), 2000; and various "greatest hits" compilations, including Thirty Years of Maximum R&B and Ultimate Collection.

Recorded albums as a solo artist, including Daltrey, MCA, 1973; Ride a Rock Horse, MCA, 1975, Lisztomania (original soundtrack) A&M, 1975; One of the Boys, MCA, 1977; McVicar (original soundtrack), Polydor, 1980; Best Bits (greatest hits), MCA, 1983; Parting Should Be Painless, Atlantic, 1984; Under a Raging Moon, Atlantic, 1985; Can't Wait to See the Movie, Atlantic, 1987; and Rocks in the Head, Atlantic, 1992. Performer on The Chieftains: An Irish Evening. Appeared in music video for Barbra Streisand's song "Emotion."

Actor in films, including (with the Who) Monterey Pop, 1969; (with the Who) Woodstock: Three Days of Peace and Music, Warner Bros., 1970; (as Tommy Walker) Tommy, Columbia, 1975; (as himself) Ride a Rock Horse, 1975; (as Franz Liszt) Lisztomania, Warner Bros., 1975; (with the Who) The Kids Are Alright, New World, 1979; (as Clive Jackson) The Legacy (also known as The Legacy of Maggie Walsh), Universal, 1979; (as John McVicar) McVicar, Crown International, 1980; (as himself) Profiles in Rock, 1981; (as himself) Concert for Kampuchea, 1981; (as himself) The Who Rocks America 1982, 1982; (with The Who) Ready Steady Go, Volume 1, 1983; (as himself) Cool Cats: Twenty-five Years of Rock 'n' Roll Style, 1983; (as producer) Pop Pirates, 1984; (as Roger) Murder: Ultimate Grounds for Divorce, 1984; (with the Who) Ready Steady Go, Volume 2, 1985; Bitter Cherry, 1985; (with the Who) Casey Kasem'sRock 'n' Roll Goldmine: The Sixties, 1986; (as himself) The Magic Years, Volume 1 (also known as The Foundations), 1987; (as himself) The Magic Years, Volume 2 (also known as Live Killers in the Making, 1987; (as himself) The Magic Years, Volume 3 (also known as Crowded in Glory), 1987; (with the Who) Rolling Stone: The First Twenty Years, 1987; (as Jeb Macklin) The Little Match Girl, 1987; (as the barrister) The Hunting of the Snark, 1987; (as Colin) Gentry, 1987; (as himself) The Who: Who's Better Who's Best, 1988; (with the Who) The Who Live at Giants Stadium, 1989; (as street singer) Mack the Knife (also known as The Threepenny Opera), 1989; (as Keith Gibson) Cold Justice, 1989; (as Terry Clark) Buddy's Song, 1990; (as himself) An Irish Evening: Live at the Grand Opera House Belfast, 1991; (as Blade) If Looks Could Kill (also known as Teen Agent), 1991; (as himself) Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert (also known as Concert for Life: A Tribute to Freddie Mercury), 1992; (as John T. Coles) Lightning Jack, 1994; (as himself) Thirty Years of Maximum Rhythm & Blues, 1994; (as himself) Celebration: The Music of Pete Townshend and the Who (also known as Celebration: The Music of the Who and Daltrey Sings Townshend), 1994; (with the Who) The History of Rock 'n' Roll, Volume 3 (also known as Britain Invades, America Fights Back), 1995; (with the Who) The History of Rock 'n' Roll, Volume 4 (also known as Plugging In), 1995; (with the Who) The History of Rock 'n' Roll, Volume 6 (also known as My Generation), 1995; Bad English I: Tales of a Son of a Brit, 1995; (with the Who) The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (documentary), Abkco Films, 1996; (with the Who) Listening to You: The Who at the Isle of Wight Festival (documentary), 1996; (with the Who) Message to Love: The Isle of Wight Festival (documentary), Castle Music Pictures, 1997; (with the Who) Legends: The Who (documentary), 1997; (as Kelvin) Like It Is, First Run Pictures, 1998; Classic Albums—The Who: Who's Next, ILC Music, 1999; (as himself) British Rock Symphony (documentary), WLIW-21, 1999; (as Rodney Marsh) Best, Optimum Releasing, 2000; (as Nehemiah Peoples) Chasing Desting, Artist View Entertainment, 2000; The Chemical Wedding, 2001; (as Ben) .com for Murder, 2001; (as host) The Who Weekend, 2002; and (as himself) Brian Wilson on Tour, 2003.

Other film work includes (as executive producer and musical director) Quadrophenia, 1979; (as producer) McVicar, Crown International, 1980; (as vocalist) Quicksilver, 1986; (as producer and musical director) Buddy's Song, 1990; and (as soloist) The Messiah XXI, 2000.

Actor in television specials, including (as Macheath) The Beggar's Opera, British Broadcasting Company (BBC), 1983, then Public Broadcasting System (PBS), 1984; (as Dromios) BBC Television Shakespeare: The Comedy of Errors, BBC, then PBS, both 1984; Driving Force '86, 1986; The Noel Edmonds Show, American Broadcasting Companies (ABC), 1986; Atlantic Records Fortieth Anniversary: It's Only Rock 'n' Roll, Home Box Office (HBO), 1988; (with the Who) MTV Rocumentary: The Story of The Who, 1988; Fox Presents Tommy Performed by the Who, Fox, 1989; (as Tommy Walker, Mr. Walter, Mrs. Walker, narrator, and specialist) The Who Live, Featuring the Rock Opera Tommy, 1989; The Chieftains in Concert with Roger Daltrey and Nanci Griffıth, PBS, 1992; (voice of Barnaby the stableboy) The Real Story of Happy Birthday to You, HBO, 1992; (with the Who) The Who's Tommy, the Amazing Journey, Disney Channel, 1993; (as the Tin Woodsman) The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True, TNT, 1995; Roger Daltrey: The Music of the Who, Disney Channel, 1995; (as Jimmy) Mastercard Masters of Music Concert for the Prince's Trust, 1996; (as William Dampier) Pirate Tales, Turner Broadcasting System (TBS), 1997; (as host) Rockstock, 2000; (with the Who) Piped Dreams, 2000; and (with the Who) Concert for New York City, 2001.

Actor in television series, including One of the Boys, 1977; and (as Terry Clark) Buddy, 1986; host of Strange Frequency, VH1, 2001. Actor in made-for-television movies, including (as Howard Storm) Forgotten Prisoners: The Amnesty Files, Turner Network Television (TNT), 1990; (as Vlad/Jame Blood) Vampirella, Showtime, 1996; and (as King Janos) Dark Prince: The True Story of Dracula, 2000. Guest star on shows, including (as Hugh Fitzcairn) Highlander, 1993-98; (as Nobby Clegg) Rude Awakening, 1999-2000; (as voice of himself) The Simpsons, 2000; and (as music teacher) That '70s Show, 2002.

Played Scrooge in the play A Christmas Carol, Madison Square Garden, New York, 1998. Played Judas in a radio production of Jesus Christ Superstar, BBC, 1996.

AWARDS, HONORS: Golden Globe nomination, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, for Tommy.

WRITINGS:

lyricist

(With others) One of the Boys, MCA, 1977.

(With others) Under a Raging Moon, Atlantic, 1985.

(With others) Can't Wait to See the Movie, Atlantic, 1987.

(With Gerard McMahon and others) Rocks in the Head, Atlantic, 1992.

other

Author of foreword for Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the Who, 1958-1978, by Andy Neill and Matt Kent, Sterling Publishing, 2002.

WORK IN PROGRESS: A film about former Who drummer Keith Moon.

SIDELIGHTS: Roger Daltrey is best known as the lead vocalist for the Who, the British Invasion-era rock band that also included guitarist and songwriter Pete Townshend, drummer Keith Moon, and bassist John Entwistle. At one point listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's loudest band, the Who was known for their riotous performances, but also for their innovations in the still relatively young genre of rock. In 1969 they released the first-ever rock opera, Tommy, about a deaf, blind, and mute pinball champion, and over the years the Who's songs "would do as much for the acceptance of rock music as a valid art form as the Beatles did," Jeff Miers noted in the Buffalo News. Even though Townshend wrote the Who's lyrics, the band's original manager, Chris Stamp, told Peter Castro of People that "I think Townshend's voice as a writer would never have been heard without Roger's interpretation. . . . I don't think Pete has that sensibility of carrying off those characters he creates. I think Pete understands that because in his solo stuff he never gets to that 'self' that is so clear when he's writing for Roger. It only jells when he knows that voice is coming out of Roger's mouth."

For most of his professional life Daltrey has sung songs written by others—usually Townshend—but as he established himself as a solo artist in the late 1970s and early 1980s, during the Who's multiple apparent break-ups, Daltrey began to collaborate with other songwriters in creating lyrics for his own songs. "I'm a very strict taskmaster when it comes to lyrics, because I have sung the best in rock 'n' roll," Daltrey told Craig Rosen of Billboard, referring to Townshend's lyrics for the Who. Because he was so used to excellent lyrics, Daltrey explained, it took him many years to be satisfied with his own writing efforts; it wasn't until his 1992 album Rocks in the Head that he thought he had it right. After that, he told Rosen, "My ambition totally in life is to write a hit song [for the Who]." That did not happen, since The Who never recorded another album after that, but Daltrey and the other surviving members of the band continued to tour together intermittently into the twenty-first century.

When Daltrey isn't singing, he can often be found acting. In addition to his numerous film and television roles, which have ranged from a rock star to the king of the fairies, he also played Scrooge in the Madison Square Garden's stage production of A Christmas Carol in 1998. "I have no regrets [about my career] at all," Daltrey told Denis Hamill in the Buffalo News. "I think I've made the most of what small talent I have. I've been incredibly lucky. Looking back, I've won the lottery every day of my life."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

books

Contemporary Musicians, Volume 3, Gale (Detroit, MI), 1990.

Contemporary Theatre, Film, and Television, Volume 34, Gale (Detroit, MI), 2001.

Gammond, Peter, The Oxford Companion to PopularMusic, Oxford University Press (Oxford, England), 1991.

Neill, Andy, and Matt Kent, Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the Who, 1958-1978, forewords by Roger Daltrey and Chris Stamp, Sterling Publishing (New York, NY), 2002.

Strong, Martin C. The Great Rock Discography, Canongate Books (Edinburgh, Scotland), 1998.

periodicals

Austin American-Statesman (Austin, TX), February 18, 1997, Stacy Jenel Smith, "Rock Hero Morphs into Sci-Fi Heavy: The Who's Roger Daltrey Finds Work in Fantasy Roles," p. E3.

Billboard, August 8, 1992, Craig Rosen, review of Rocks in the Head, pp. 13-14; April 13, 2002, Carla Hay, "Daltrey on 'That '70s Show,'" p. 72.

Buffalo News, November 3, 1996, James Heaney, review of the Quadrophenia tour, p. E1; December 6, 1998, Denis Hamill, "Roger Daltrey, This Year's Rock 'n' Roll Scrooge" (interview), p. F4; September 22, 2002, Jeff Miers, review of Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere: The Complete Chronicle of the Who, 1958-1978, p. F1.

Entertainment Weekly, August 20, 1999, review of Like It Is, p. 132; July 12, 2002, Chris Willman, "Who Are You?: A Decimated Band's Decision to Tour Despite the Tragic Death of Its Bassist, John Entwistle, Left Many Fans Wondering," p. 44.

Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service, September 26, 2002, Malcolm Mayhew, "With the Who Down to Two, This Really Could Be Band's Farewell Tour," p. K1240.

Los Angeles Times, November 5, 1999, Susan King, "Roger Daltrey, Former Lead Singer for the Who, Loves Acting," p. 1; August 17, 2001, Emanuelle Soichet, "Q&A: Drama for VH1's Generation: The Who's Roger Daltrey Explains Why He Took on Host Duties for (and Even Acted in) the Network's First Horror Series," p. F2.

People, January 16, 1984, Fred Hauptfuhrer, "With a Little Help from the Bard, Roger Daltrey Faces Forth and a Future without the Who," pp. 78-79; November 25, 1985, David Hiltbrand, review of Under a Raging Moon, pp. 31-32; August 3, 1987, David Hiltbrand, review of Can't Wait to See the Movie, pp. 25-26; February 28, 1994, Peter Castro, "Jammin' with . . . Roger Daltrey," pp. 84-85; August 27, 2001, Tom Gliatto, review of Strange Frequency, p. 27.

San Francisco Chronicle, August 20, 2000, Aidin Varizi, "Q & A with Roger Daltrey," p. 40.

Sarasota Herald Tribune, August 15, 1997, Philip Booth, review of Quadrophenia tour, p. 7.

Time, August 3, 1992, review of Rocks in the Head, p. 75.

online

Rolling Stone.com,http://www.rollingstone.com/ (March 20, 2003), "Biography: Roger Daltrey."*