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A new photo book capturing highlights of The Who’s late-1960s U.S. tours will be published this spring. Their Generation: The Who in America 1967-69 features images shot by the band’s official U.S. tour photographer, Tom Wright.
Wright, who also served as The Who’s U.S. tour manager during the late ’60s, shot the British rock legends while they were performing, as well as off stage in candid moments. The photos document The Who’s very first U.S. road trips. At the time, the group was enjoying the success of its hit single “I Can See for Miles” and then the landmark rock opera Tommy.
Their Generation will be released on May 1. The book also features text written by veteran rock author Andy Neill. A limited number of copies signed by Who guitarist/songwriter Pete Townshend are available for pre-order at OmnibusPress.com and RoughTrade.com.
Their Generation features a foreword by Townshend. He and the Alabama-born Wright became friends when they both attended Ealing College of Art in London in 1964. A 2022 obit for Wright posted on TheWho.com explains that Tom owned a huge record collection, and helped introduce Townshend to American blues, R&B, jazz, and folk music.
[RELATED: New Pete Townshend Box Set Gathers Together All of The Who Guitarist/Songwriter’s Solo Studio Albums]
When Wright was threatened with deportation after being arrested for pot possession, he flew home to the U.S., leaving his record collection in the hands of Townshend. Pete credits Tom with helping develop his musical tastes, and thereby influencing the music he created for The Who.
Townshend writes in the foreword, “One thing is certain, had I not met Tom Wright, The Who never would have become successful.”
Camron Crowe’s Comments About Their Generation and Wright’s Photography
An online description of Their Generation features a statement about Wright’s images featured in the book from award-winning filmmaker and former Rolling Stone journalist Cameron Crowe.
“Tom Wright’s intimate collection of photography of The Who in the sixties is as passionate and potent as the band itself. That’s no small accomplishment,” Crowe wrote. “Wright’s work here is a study in sound, fury and heart. In these images, you can feel all the combustible energy and camaraderie that still make The Who one of the greatest bands… if not THE greatest… ever.”
He continued, “Clearly Wright was given the kind of access a documentarian dreams of. He was invited into the eye of the hurricane, and knew exactly where to point the camera. The early explosions of the band onstage, as well as the unique off-stage chemistry and personal charisma of Townshend, [Roger] Daltrey, [John] Entwistle and [Keith] Moon is all thrillingly present in this bounty of mostly unseen photography.
Crowe, concludes, “Soak it up, peek behind the curtain. Feel the music and feel the birth and rocket-like trajectory of all that was to come. Long Live Rock! Long Live The Who!”
More About Wright
After Wright’s stint as The Who’s tour photographer and road manager, he took a job managing the famed Detroit venue the Grande Ballroom. Tom continued to photograph The Who on tour through 1991. He also documented a wide variety of other artists on the road, including The Faces, The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, The James Gang, and Elvis Costello.
Wright died in August 2022 at age 78.
About The Who’s 2025 Performance Plans
The Who currently has four confirmed concerts on its 2025 schedule. First up, The band will perform on March 27 and March 30 at the Royal Albert Hall in London as part of the 2025 Teenage Cancer Trust benefit concert series. The Who also have two shows scheduled in Italy, on July 20 in Padua and July 22 in Milan.
In addition, Daltrey has 13 concerts lined up with his solo band this year. Most of the shows are scheduled for April and early May in the U.K.
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