The Who singer Roger Daltrey likened The Rolling Stones‘ music to that of a “mediocre pub band” in a new interview with The Coda Collection.
In another portion of the same talk, the classic rock legend admitted that he didn’t know if The Who would ever make new music again.
Daltrey’s dig against the Stones follows a similar slight from former Beatle Paul McCartney. Last month, Sir Paul took the Mick Jagger-led band down a peg by saying the Stones were akin to a “blues cover band” and claiming The Beatles‘ proverbial net was cast “wider than theirs.”
It seems Daltrey feels much the same. Although, he made clear that he means the Stones’ music only — not their charismatic frontman.
“You can not take away the fact that Mick Jagger is still the No. 1 rock ‘n’ roll showman up front,” Daltrey said. “But as a band, if you were outside a pub and you heard that music coming out of a pub some night, you’d think, ‘Well, that’s a mediocre pub band!'” [via NME]
The 77-year-old rocker added, “No disrespect.”
That being the case, one might wonder where Daltrey lands in listening preference regarding the Beatles–Stones rivalry. But that’s like comparing apples and oranges. Or apples and cheese?
“They’re both really tasty,” The Who singer said. “But the cheese does one thing and the apple does another.”
However, Daltrey did concede that the Stones wrote “some great songs, but they are in that blues format.”
We guess he won’t get fooled again.
The Who’s most recent studio album, simply titled Who, came out in 2019. The influential English rock group still includes founding members Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend.
You can check out Daltrey’s full interview with The Coda Collection here.
