Zak Starkey is officially back in The Who.
On Saturday (April 19), the band’s legendary guitarist Pete Townshend took to social media to announce that Starkey — Ringo Starr’s son and the iconic group’s drummer for nearly three decades — had been reinstated after what he described as “communication issues.”
“News Flash! Who Backs Zak! He’s not being asked to step down from The Who,” Townshend wrote on The Who’s Instagram account. “There have been some communication issues, personal and private on all sides, that needed to be dealt with, and these have been aired happily.”
The announcement comes just days after Starkey addressed rumors of his firing, reportedly sparked by singer Roger Daltrey’s dissatisfaction with Starkey’s performance during a Teenage Cancer Trust benefit show at London’s Royal Albert Hall in late March.
Townshend elaborated on the situation in his post, saying, “Roger and I would like Zak to tighten up his latest evolved drumming style to accommodate our non-orchestral line up and he has readily agreed. I take responsibility for some of the confusion. Our TCT shows at the Royal Albert Hall were a little tricky for me. I thought that four and a half weeks would be enough time to recover completely from having a complete knee replacement. (Why did I ever think I could land on my knees?) Wrong!”
He continued, “Maybe we didn’t put enough time into sound checks, giving us problems on stage. The sound in the centre of the stage is always the most difficult to work with. Roger did nothing wrong but fiddle with his in-ear monitors. Zak made a few mistakes and he has apologised. Albeit with a rubber duck drummer. We are a family, this blew up very quickly and got too much oxygen. It’s over. We move forward now with optimism and fire in our bellies.”
Townshend also addressed speculation that Daltrey’s solo drummer, Scott Devours, might replace Starkey in The Who.
“As for Roger, fans can enjoy his forthcoming solo shows with his fabulous drummer, Scott Devours, who it was rumoured might replace Zak in The Who and has always been supportive of the band,” Townshend wrote. “I owe Scott an apology for not crushing that rumour before it spread. He has been hurt by this. I promise to buy him a very long drink and give him a hug.”
Starkey later shared Townshend’s post on his own Instagram, adding, “V grateful to be a part of the who family Thanks Roger and Pete xx. Repost from @officialthewho.”
The Who’s Royal Albert Hall charity shows on March 18 and 20 became a flashpoint after Metro reported that Daltrey grew frustrated during the set and halted several songs, citing issues hearing the band over Starkey’s drumming.
In an April 16 statement to People, Starkey pushed back, expressing surprise that anyone would have a problem with his performance.
“After playing those songs with the band for so many decades, I’m surprised and saddened anyone would have an issue with my performance that night,” the drummer said. “But what can you do?” He also revealed that he had suffered a “serious medical emergency” in January, involving blood clots in his right calf. “This is now completely healed and does not affect my drumming or running,” Starkey noted.
Starkey has been a central figure in The Who’s live lineup since 1996, when he joined the band for their reunion tour, performing their 1973 rock opera Quadrophenia in its entirety.
