Joe Walsh recently appeared as a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live and disclosed the lesson on ‘attitude’ that he learned from the Who’s Pete Townshend.
When Kimmel asked him about his first big tour with James Gang, the guitarist recalled their opening for the Who in Europe during their ‘Tommy Tour’ and said:
“They played ‘Tommy’ in Pittsburgh, and we opened for them because the promoter was our manager. Pete [Townshend] just happened to come early that night and heard 20 minutes of it, and we became really good friends. We became really good friends with the whole band, and they took us to Europe, and that’s really what broke James Gang.”
Lessons From Pete Townshend
Mentioning what Townshend taught him, Walsh went on to explain:
“He taught me how to play guitar in a three-piece band. You have drums and bass, and you. What do you do? And the thing he taught me was to play with an attitude. The attitude is the whole thing, and you can hear that attitude on a lot of my records, but Keith Moon, the Who’s drummer, he taught me how to trash hotel rooms.”
Compliments And Mutual Respect
The friendship of the two continued in the following years, and they said flattering words about each other publicly. Speaking to Rolling Stone in 1975, the Who guitarist shared his admiration for Joe’s playing by stating:
“Joe Walsh is a fluid and intelligent player. There’s not many like that around.”
The Eagles musician also reflected on his musical bond with Pete in the same year to Rolling Stone, noting:
“He really identified with what we were doing. Pete’s a very melodic player, and so am I. He told me that he appreciated my playing. I was flattered beyond belief because I didn’t think I was that good. Pete and I really hit it off. We had the same frustrations about working with a three-piece group.”
Walsh also gave Townshend a 1959 Gretsch 6120 guitar and a Fender Bassman amplifier back in the early 1970s. This combo transformed Pete’s tone, and he used it on every track of ‘Who’s Next.’ It became his favorite and loudest guitar, giving him a signature sound also for ‘Quadrophenia.’
You can watch the rest of the chat below.
