MUSIC
What is Pete Townshend’s net worth? The Who’s guitarist’s income from music and writing
One of the two surviving members of the 60s mod combo, the axe-wielding guitar god has done well financially out of his career.
Pete Townshend is celebrating 60 years since his band The Who were renamed and set the world alight. Townshend, bass player John Entwhistle and singer Roger Daltrey had been gigging in and around London as The Detours until it was discovered there was already another band with the same name. In early 1964, they became The Who, then the High Numbers, then settling for The Who again in November.
“Moon the Loon” joins
The band’s raw, energetic live show became even more frenetic, bordering on unhinged when drummer Keith Moon in the spring of 1964. The Who were the loudest, most unpredictable band on the scene in Swinging London, and joined the Beatles, Rolling Stones, the Kinks and the Yardbirds as the leading lights of the British Invasion, which conquered the US.
Like Lennon and McCartney and Ray Davies, Townshend was a talented songwriter and started churning out hit after hit: My Generation, Substitute, A Legal Matter, The Kids are Alright, Pictures of Lily, Pinball Wizard… most of them making the UK Top 10 and their biggest hit, My Generation, going gold.
Not that Townshend was seeing much economic reward for his writing credits - the group’s early days were fraught with financial and contractual problems. As the main songwriter, Pete was still earning more than the rest of the band but when their involvement with American producer Shel Talmy ended in the summer of 1966, Townshend was able to negotiate a new publishing deal - just in time for his next venture, a rock opera.
Townshed strikes gold with Tommy and Quadrophenia
Tommy went gold in the UK, France, New Zealand and double platinum in the US. Townshend boosted his income in other ways - a weekly column in Melody Maker and essays for Rolling Stone. He was also occasionally writing songs for other artists and bands, such as It Was You by the Naturals.
By the late 60s, the Who had established themselves as one of the greatest live acts on the planet. Their performances at Monterey Pop Festival, supporting Jimi Hendrix, Woodstock and the Isle of White brought the band exposure and more followers.
Moon died in 1978 and Entwhistle in 2002, leaving Townshend and Daltrey as the only surviving members of the original group. They continue to tour (there’s one live date in the UK scheduled for May) and Townshend has published several books, including his autobiography Who Am I in 2012.
In January of that year, he announced that he would be selling all of the publishing rights to his 400+ songs to the Spirit Music Group. Details of the deal are not known but it is estimated that Townshend would have received a figure somewhere around the $100 million mark.
Spirit CEO Mark Fried said at the time: “The songs of Pete Townshend are the soundtrack of our lives. They’ve been a mirror to decades of cultural growth and change, challenging our sensibilities, inspiring engagement and forever redefining rock and roll song craft and musicianship. We’re thrilled and humbled to have the opportunity to work closely with Pete in the caretaking and promotion of his life’s work, and to help inspire his future successes.”
In September 2021, Townshend sold his six-bedroom Grade I listed Georgian house in Richmond, London, The Wick for $21 million (£15 million). According to Celebrity Net Worth, Townshend’s estimated personal fortune stands at around $150 million.