Pete Townshend Shares His Attempt To Get Keith Moon Sober

The news of Keith Moon’s death was shock-worthy. At the young age of 32 years old, he died from a drug overdose, a consequence he had to face from years of substance abuse.

Moon was a volatile character who always put today first and never worried about tomorrow—until it was too late. But at some point in his life, the Who drummer realized he had to make some changes if he wanted to keep living, so he gave up booze. It wasn’t easy for him to stop using the drug after being physically dependent on it for so long, so he took clomethiazole pills to ease the discomfort of withdrawal.

If he had been a musician working in the industry today, there is a good chance that he would have received the necessary assistance to save him from his years of addiction and mental health problems. Even his bandmates – especially Pete Townshend – tried various ways to provide help for him.

The musician recently spoke with People about the several attempts at saving Moon’s life he made before the dreaded September evening at Curzon Place in Mayfair, the night which Moon died. Townshend had been through similar experiences as Moon’s, fighting addiction – so he’s had some knowledge on how to help his friends cope up.

“I tried everything,” Townshend said. “I tried giving him money; I tried starving him of money. I tried sending him to rehab. I tried sending him to a guru weirdo, voodoo doctors.”

Noting Moon’s complicated character, he continued: “I was obsessed with trying to keep Keith alive. It was quite clear that he was on a downward slide, and there was very little I could do.”

Albeit the band continued after Keith Moon’s passing, it was obvious to see that The Who was never the same without the driving force of their iconic drummer. Today – Townshend, along with Roger Daltrey, help preserve Moon’s legacy alive.