In the ever-evolving landscape of British rock and rhythm and blues, few names echo with as much resonance as The Who and Manfred Mann. On October 18, 2025, two icons from these legendary bands—Pete Townshend and Paul Jones—shared candid reflections on their storied careers, offering fans a rare glimpse behind the curtain at the personal and professional crossroads that shaped their music, their friendships, and their legacies.
Pete Townshend, guitarist and principal songwriter for The Who, did not mince words when recalling one of the band’s earliest and most pivotal decisions: the sacking of their original drummer, Doug Sandom. As Townshend recounted to Playboy Magazine, the band was on the brink of signing a coveted record deal with Philips in the early 1960s. Yet, there was a catch—Philips’ representatives made it clear that Sandom’s age, then 36, was a sticking point. The rest of the band, all around 20 years old, faced a gut-wrenching choice.
“We met a while later. We were struggling to get a record deal. We had a very good drummer, but he was much older, about thirty-six. We were about to get a record deal with Philips, and the record company guy told us, ‘Listen, we’ll give you a deal, but you have to get rid of the drummer,’” Townshend recalled. The loyalty among the bandmates—Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle, and Townshend himself—made the decision agonizing. “It was a big question of loyalty because this guy was somebody we loved very much. And at that moment, my heart turned to stone, and I said, ‘I’ll go tell him.’”
Townshend delivered the news to Sandom himself, a moment that would cast a long shadow. “And I went out and said, ‘He said he would give us a record deal but not if you’re in the group, so you’re out.’ And this guy Doug didn’t talk to me for 30 years. Quite rightly.” The move, while instrumental in securing the band’s future, left a personal scar that would not heal for decades. According to Playboy Magazine, Townshend acknowledged the pain of that moment, recognizing Sandom’s silence as justified.
The Who would go on to become titans of rock, but the internal dynamics never truly settled. Townshend described his relationship with frontman Roger Daltrey as both collaborative and constraining. “Under the so-called democracy of The Who I felt very fettered by Roger, but at the same time it was wonderful to share the weight of a concert with him. I was somewhat held back by John Entwistle’s tendency to play too loud, but equally I miss his backstage wit and the fact that we have been friends since we were 11 years old. So it’s mixed,” he admitted, capturing the bittersweet nature of lifelong creative partnerships.
Meanwhile, Paul Jones, the charismatic frontman for Manfred Mann and its current incarnation, The Manfreds, offered his own perspective on the enduring camaraderie—and chaos—that defined the 1960s music scene. Speaking from his home near Saffron Walden, Jones, now 83, reflected on his preparations for a ‘Best of Paul Jones’ compilation album and the upcoming Manfreds tour, which includes a highly anticipated stop at the Cambridge Corn Exchange on October 23, 2025.
Jones’ career, like Townshend’s, is marked by pivotal choices and memorable tours. He famously turned down an invitation from Brian Jones to join the fledgling Rolling Stones, instead finding success with Manfred Mann, pioneers of the British rhythm and blues movement. The original band, fronted by South African-born keyboardist Manfred Mann, dominated the charts from 1962 to 1969. After a hiatus, the group reformed as The Manfreds in 1991, minus their namesake, and continues to tour and record with an ever-evolving line-up.
Touring, Jones noted, brings its own set of challenges and joys. “It’s interesting because they said that the real reason that they were calling it a day was because they could no longer face the travel, because the motorways are either jammed with traffic because of too much traffic, or they’re jammed with traffic because of roadworks. And you can’t get anywhere; you’ve got two hours to do a gig and what, six hours to get to it and six hours to get back?!” Despite these obstacles, Jones remains undeterred: “So they’ve got a point, but so far I have found the pleasure of performing and playing music with a wonderful band – honestly, these guys are amazing – outweighs the yawn of the travel.”
Jones also reminisced about a particularly wild tour in the late 1960s with The Who and The Small Faces, traversing Australia and New Zealand. The experience, he suggested, was anything but ordinary. “It was quite hairy, because, well, I don’t need to go into detail, but we got back from it to England and Roger [Daltrey] and I were on a television programme hosted by Tim Rice. Tim was asking about the tour because it did have some strange, newspaper front page-creating events in it. So Tim was curious about all that and Roger and I said, ‘Actually Tim, we can’t really comment much on that because we are the only two sane people who were on that tour’.” When pressed about possible involvement from The Who’s notorious drummer Keith Moon, Jones replied with a coy, “Could have been, I’m not saying.”
The Manfreds’ 2025 tour showcases both legendary and fresh talent, featuring guest singer Noel McCalla. Over the years, the band has welcomed an array of acclaimed guests, including Georgie Fame, PP Arnold, and Chris Farlowe. This year’s setlist promises a blend of classics—“Pretty Flamingo,” “5-4-3-2-1,” “The One in the Middle,” “Mighty Quinn,” and the ever-popular “Do Wah Diddy Diddy”—as well as lesser-known gems. “Of the lesser-known ones, I really like Oh No Not My Baby,” Jones shared, “And I’ve got great fondness for 5-4-3-2-1, of course, because that launched the whole thing.”
Jones’ career has spanned far beyond music. After leaving Manfred Mann in the mid-60s to avoid the band’s shift toward pop, he became an accomplished actor, broadcaster, and harmonica player. His credits include film, television, and stage roles with the Royal National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company. He even co-wrote the signature tune for TV’s Ready Steady Go! and hosted radio and television programs for the BBC and Channel Four. As president of The National Harmonica League, he has recorded with artists ranging from Tina Turner and Percy Sledge to The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, cementing his place as a multi-talented force in British entertainment.
Both Townshend and Jones, in their own ways, underscore the complexity of musical collaboration and the personal costs that often accompany artistic ambition. For Townshend, the price of The Who’s meteoric rise was the loss of a friend and the enduring tension with his bandmates. For Jones, the joy of performing persists despite the physical toll of touring and the bittersweet passage of time as fellow musicians retire or move on.
As The Manfreds prepare to take the stage in Cambridge and The Who’s legacy continues to inspire new generations, these stories serve as a reminder that rock history is as much about the people behind the music as the songs themselves. The bonds, the breakups, the laughter, and the regrets—they’re all part of the soundtrack.
