‘We feel the ghosts’: Pete Townshend on continuing with the Who after losses of Keith Moon, John Entwistle

As Pete Townshend prepares to retake the road with Roger Daltrey, he talked frankly about the Who’s two lost members, drummer Keith Moon and bassist John Entwistle.

A 36-stop tour of North American begins in November, with a show called “Quadrophenia and More” that will feature that 1973 album in its entirety along with a few other Who favorites. Quadrophenia, the Who’s second rock opera, went to No. 2 on the charts in both America and the UK.

Daltrey and Townshend appeared as the Who at halftime of the Super Bowl in 2010, but haven’t toured the US in four years. The last time the band presented Quadrophenia in concert was 1997, though the project was resurrected back in March 2011 at London’s Royal Albert Hall during the Teenage Cancer Trust concerts.

Moon, the band’s co-founding drummer, died back in 1978. He was initially replaced by Kenney Jones for the next decade. Daltrey and Townshend now perform with drummer Zakk Starkey. Entwistle, meanwhile, passed in 2002 after having appeared with Starkey and the Who during those Quadrophenia dates in ’97.

Townshend tells Jann S. Wenner of Rolling Stone, says those twin losses still continue to resonate deeply.

“We feel the ghosts of Keith and John,” Townshend said. “The second phase of the Who in a sense was really when we started to tour again around the year 2000, 2001. We were still able to evoke the sound, particularly with Zak Starkey. Now it’s much more difficult even though Zak’s there. John’s sound was very big and rich and organic. When John died, there was a hole in the sound onstage and I was able to grow into that and find space. And I have to say as a guitar player, I prefer working without John. But as a member of the Who creating the incredible, powerful, driving, visceral sound, he’s gone. I can’t really do that again.”

Quadrophenia received a deluxe reissue just last year, and a new documentary called “The Who: Quadrophenia – Can You Still See the Real Me?” is set to open in theaters on July 24. Pino Palladino has taken over bass for the forthcoming concert dates.

Here are the 2012/2013 dates for The Who’s ‘Quadrophenia and More’ tour …

2012
11/1 — Sunrise, Fla. — BankAtlantic Center
11/3 — Orlando, Fla. — Amway Center
11/5 — Duluth, Ga. — The Arena at Gwinett Center
11/8 — Greenville, S.C. — Bi-Lo Center
11/9 — Greensboro, N.C. — Greensboro Coliseum
11/11 — Pittsburgh, Pa. — Consol Energy Center
11/13 — Washington, D.C. — Verizon Center
11/14 — Brooklyn, N.Y. — Barclays Center
11/16 — Boston, Mass. — TD Garden
11/20 — Montreal, QC — Bell Centre
11/21 — Ottawa, ON — Scotiabank Place
11/23 — Toronto, ON — Air Canada Centre
11/24 — Detroit, Mich. — Joe Louis Arena
11/27 — Minneapolis, Minn. — Target Center
11/29 — Chicago, Ill. — Allstate Arena
12/2 — Nashville, Tenn. — Bridgestone Arena
12/5 — New York, N.Y. — Madison Square Garden
12/6 — Newark, N.J. — Prudential Center
12/8 — Philadelphia, Pa. — Wells Fargo Center
12/9 — Uncasville, Ct. — Mohegan Sun Arena

2013
1/28 — Anaheim, Calif. — Honda Center
1/30 — Los Angeles, Calif. — Staples Center
2/1 — Oakland, Calif. — Oracle Arena
2/2 — Reno, Nev. — The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
2/5 — San Diego, Calif. — Valley View Casino Center
2/6 — Glendale, Ariz. — Jobing Center
2/8 — Las Vegas, Nev. – The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
2/12 — Denver, Colo. — Pepsi Center
2/14 — Tulsa, Okla. — BOK Center
2/16 — Louisville, Ky. — KFC Yum! Center
2/17 — Columbus, Ohio — Schottenstein Center
2/19 — Hamilton, ON — Copps Coliseum
2/21 — Uniondale, N.Y. — Nassau Coliseum
2/22 — Atlantic City, N.J. — Boardwalk Hall
2/24 — Manchester, N.H. — Verizon Wireless Arena
2/26 — Providence, R.I. — Dunkin’ Donuts Center