RIP Moon the Loon...."Not to be taken away..."

When he lived, he did a lot of living.

And so when he died, Keith might have been the oldest looking 32-year old guy on the planet.


One could say that this is actually the day that The Who died, despite their best efforts to carry on.


At least Ian McLagan was a good dad to Keith's daughter, Mandy, whom he wrote this song for:

Greatest Drummer Ever.

Keith Moon's last interview, 1978.





And what is probably his funniest interview, recalling a classic hotel story, 1977.







Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012-09-07 04:27 by stonesnow.

The Who indulge Keith in one of his favorite covers at Shepperton Studios, London, July 21, 1977 (this clip featured in the movie The Kids Are Alright).

Keith with Paul and Linda McCartney. He died a few hours later.

Gone too soon... only 32 years old



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012-09-07 08:12 by Max'sKansasCity.

The decline of Keith Moon was horrible to watch.
Death was the most merciful thing that could happen to him.

The Ox might have been John Entwistle, but Keith steals the show here on this one from 1965.



(From the second to last Keith performance)

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stonesrule
The decline of Keith Moon was horrible to watch.
Death was the most merciful thing that could happen to him.

What a sad and ignorant thing to say.

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whitem8

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stonesrule
The decline of Keith Moon was horrible to watch.
Death was the most merciful thing that could happen to him.

What a sad and ignorant thing to say.

it even mentions in the reissue of WHO ARE YOU how bad moons drumming had declined in less than 2 years. he was so bad by the time they started recording WHO ARE YOU that the band removed some drums from his set. his parts were also removed or never used for a few songs on that album because he never got the parts right

I knew Keith Moon for the last ten years of his life. It was heartbreaking to see his decline.

I'm Keith Moon, What's Your Excuse? - Phil Daniels

Phil Daniels remembers The Who's drummer Keith Moon, who died of an overdose on 7 September 1978. With input from friends and colleagues and a rare archive interview.

Broadcast BBC Radio 2, 6 September 2011.

I'm
Keith
Moon

56 min. @ 128kbps.

Thanks for Final 24, stonesnow. Interesting series.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012-09-07 08:10 by belubettlo.

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stonesrule
I knew Keith Moon for the last ten years of his life. It was heartbreaking to see his decline.

I guess you weren't his friend or a family member. While he struggled with addiction and was in bad shape, he had a loving family, and friends who were devastated by his death. And they would much rather have had him live than die. It is respectful to honor someone's passing and cherish their memory.

And yes, Keefriffhard, he did struggle with drumming on Who Are You, but he also re-did his drum parts on Who Are You, and in the end his re-recorded drums sound pretty good.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012-09-07 08:41 by whitem8.

Probably one of the most exciting drummers in rock and a true eccentric.

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whitem8

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stonesrule
I knew Keith Moon for the last ten years of his life. It was heartbreaking to see his decline.

I guess you weren't his friend or a family member. While he struggled with addiction and was in bad shape, he had a loving family, and friends who were devastated by his death. And they would much rather have had him live than die. It is respectful to honor someone's passing and cherish their memory.

And yes, Keefriffhard, he did struggle with drumming on Who Are You, but he also re-did his drum parts on Who Are You, and in the end his re-recorded drums sound pretty good.

i was talking about the album not the song. i can't recall what song it is but there was a tune in 6/8 time on the album that moon messed up his drum part so badly they just scrapped it and had him do just cymnal hits to accent the song.

anyways why do you assume keith would want to live if he could no longer play the drums and the who possibly would have axed him? seems like moon would rather be dead than alive but unable to do what he loved.

whitem8, yes, I was a friend with great memories of a happy and wonderfully witty and amusing Keith Moon.

And it is extremely painful to watch another human being lose their joy.
I certainly was not the only one who felt this way in the last year of Keith's life. He was miserable and going down hill physically, mentally and emotionally.
He became a danger to himself and to others.

Sorry that my honesty is not what you were looking for.

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GumbootCloggeroo

Keith with Paul and Linda McCartney. He died a few hours later.

Really! Yeah, Paul looks a little worried also...maybe about Keiths health...

2 1 2 0

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stonesrule
whitem8, yes, I was a friend with great memories of a happy and wonderfully witty and amusing Keith Moon.

And it is extremely painful to watch another human being lose their joy.
I certainly was not the only one who felt this way in the last year of Keith's life. He was miserable and going down hill physically, mentally and emotionally.
He became a danger to himself and to others.

Sorry that my honesty is not what you were looking for.

I have read and viewed in documentaries that there were two main factors that led to Keith's decline through drugs and alcohol, the first being the death of childhood friend and minder Neil Boland in 1970, which Keith himself was unintentionally responsible for in part, and the second being the split from his first wife. After the first event, he is said to have never been the same...

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keefriffhard4life

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whitem8

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stonesrule
The decline of Keith Moon was horrible to watch.
Death was the most merciful thing that could happen to him.

What a sad and ignorant thing to say.

it even mentions in the reissue of WHO ARE YOU how bad moons drumming had declined in less than 2 years. he was so bad by the time they started recording WHO ARE YOU that the band removed some drums from his set. his parts were also removed or never used for a few songs on that album because he never got the parts right

The song you are referring to is Music Must Change and I think it was more that his style of drumming did not suit the track rather than his ability to play (or is that the same thing?). His drumming on the rest of the LP is great particularly the title track - watch the promo video as opposed to listeing to the album track.

RIP Keith, you are still the greatest

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keefriffhard4life

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whitem8

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stonesrule
I knew Keith Moon for the last ten years of his life. It was heartbreaking to see his decline.

I guess you weren't his friend or a family member. While he struggled with addiction and was in bad shape, he had a loving family, and friends who were devastated by his death. And they would much rather have had him live than die. It is respectful to honor someone's passing and cherish their memory.

And yes, Keefriffhard, he did struggle with drumming on Who Are You, but he also re-did his drum parts on Who Are You, and in the end his re-recorded drums sound pretty good.

i was talking about the album not the song. i can't recall what song it is but there was a tune in 6/8 time on the album that moon messed up his drum part so badly they just scrapped it and had him do just cymnal hits to accent the song.

anyways why do you assume keith would want to live if he could no longer play the drums and the who possibly would have axed him? seems like moon would rather be dead than alive but unable to do what he loved.

The song was The Music Must Change, and as was stated not his style. And I was referring the entire album Who are You, not the song. A lot of his drums had to be re-recorded. Rather be dead than play drums? Your missing the point. The point is showing respect for a man's life and death and to imagine he is better off dead is like fast forwarding on his behalf. Who knows what Keith could have done had he lived?
Well, it is pointless trying rationalize good taste and etiquette.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2012-09-07 12:43 by whitem8.

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whitem8

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keefriffhard4life

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whitem8

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stonesrule
I knew Keith Moon for the last ten years of his life. It was heartbreaking to see his decline.

I guess you weren't his friend or a family member. While he struggled with addiction and was in bad shape, he had a loving family, and friends who were devastated by his death. And they would much rather have had him live than die. It is respectful to honor someone's passing and cherish their memory.

And yes, Keefriffhard, he did struggle with drumming on Who Are You, but he also re-did his drum parts on Who Are You, and in the end his re-recorded drums sound pretty good.

i was talking about the album not the song. i can't recall what song it is but there was a tune in 6/8 time on the album that moon messed up his drum part so badly they just scrapped it and had him do just cymnal hits to accent the song.

anyways why do you assume keith would want to live if he could no longer play the drums and the who possibly would have axed him? seems like moon would rather be dead than alive but unable to do what he loved.

The song was The Music Must Change, and as was stated not his style. And I was referring the entire album Who are You, not the song. A lot of his drums had to be re-recorded. Rather be dead than play drums? Your missing the point. The point is showing respect for a mans life and death and to imagine he is better of dead is like fast forwarding on his behalf. Who knows what Keith could have done had he lived?
Well, it is pointless trying rationalize good taste and etiquette.

More great powerhouse drumming. His death was a reckless accident--one too many of a careless handful of pills. He was on the way back up--he just needed more work. Those last years when The Who weren't working regularly, those were the years that really led to his swift decline, nothing to do but drink and hope the band gets back together--what else is a drummer to do? Keith was proud of The Who, proud to be a part of it. Like that famous hotel story in '75 on the By Numbers tour when he saunters into the hotel lobby blasting By Numbers from a boombox and is told by a member of the hotel staff to "turn that noise down". Then that same staff member gets called up to Moon's room only to witness the door blown off its hinges by cherry bombs, Keith proclaiming, "That's noise! What you heard downstairs, that was The bloody Who!", or something to that effect. In some ways I blame Pete Townshend for Moon's downfall, for being too precious with The Who and not keeping them as busy as the other band members would have liked and as Keith, especially, would have needed. If only Keith hadn't woken up that morning exactly when he did, hungry for a steak sandwich and swallowing another handful of heminevrin to knock himself back to sleep, then he would have continued on with his redox. The pills he was taking to combat alcoholism may not have been the solution, but it reflected his desire to rise above what had muddled his talents as one of rock's great drummers. There would have been more tours, more albums, maybe not the Moon the Loon of yore and maybe not playing with exactly the same fire as in their halcyon days, but the flame would have burned brightly for many years more, rather than having been extinguished so suddenly and so prematurely, which is surely the saddest thing of all...

Excellent Stonesnow! Thank you.

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Valeswood

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keefriffhard4life

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whitem8

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stonesrule
The decline of Keith Moon was horrible to watch.
Death was the most merciful thing that could happen to him.

What a sad and ignorant thing to say.

it even mentions in the reissue of WHO ARE YOU how bad moons drumming had declined in less than 2 years. he was so bad by the time they started recording WHO ARE YOU that the band removed some drums from his set. his parts were also removed or never used for a few songs on that album because he never got the parts right

The song you are referring to is Music Must Change and I think it was more that his style of drumming did not suit the track rather than his ability to play (or is that the same thing?). His drumming on the rest of the LP is great particularly the title track - watch the promo video as opposed to listeing to the album track.

RIP Keith, you are still the greatest

seriously i am a drummer and moon's drumming on that album is very subdued. the title track was great and its very odd that it was placed as the last track on the album in that all of the sudden it seems moon wakes up and is able to play almost like the moon of old. leaves a great impression on the listener now knowing that moon never played again than if the album ended with one of the many generic performances moon layed down on the other tracks. this was a guy known for innovation yet most of the album he lays down pretty stock drum parts

It was the time of FUN anyhow, anyway and anywhere
R.I.P Amazin' and crazy drummer !









HMN

He was my favorite drummer too. His death has certainly left holes all over the place. I call him the Jimi Hendrix of drummers. R.I.P. Keith Moon.

There'll be a Full Loon in the sky tonight.

Moonie and his girls. RIP

I prefer a Charlie Watts/Ringo approach on the tubs but there is no arguing that Moon was a revolutionary and incredibly talented rock and roll drummer perfectly suited to his band. And there are definitely tracks that I love -- "I Can See for Miles", "My Generation", "Bellboy" -- oh on and on.

As far as his demise -- well I have seen it in people very close to me and it is heartbreaking and disturbing. Call it addiction, alcoholism, self destruction; but it is so painful to watch someone hell bent on destroying themselves. It is also worth noting the pain they cause those close to them -- or even in the line of fire!

I don't see a point in whitewashing or in painting it all black. A spade is a spade. Moon was incredibly talented and likable and a sick penchant for drugs and alcohol (and maybe bad behavior in general) destroyed it. RIP and thanks for the music.