Roger Daltrey Recalls The Time Keith Moon Blew Up His Drums On Live TV

Ask anyone who knows Keith Moon and they’ll probably tell you some of the craziest things he’d ever done in his lifetime. Take an example in this video below of Roger Daltrey telling Howard Stern that one time Moon blew up his drums with explosives.

It was during The Who’s visit to The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour in 1967. With the band being new to the scene, they wanted to make a lasting impression for the audience and on live TV; but nobody knew what kind of impression it was until a literal bomb exploded on Moon’s drums. Talk about the bang!

Daltrey said that a pyrotechnic guy was responsible for all the work, although the latter wasn’t well aware of Moon’s insane ideas at that time. Speaking about that disastrous event, Daltrey said: “When it [the explosives] went off, it really was like a bomb going on.”

As if the bomb was only the thing worth worrying about, Daltrey further pointed out that Moon got shrapnel in his arm and bleeding, while Pete Townshend’s hair “literally goes straight up and it stays up,” because it’s fried. Earlier in the interview, Stern also pointed out the reason why Townshend’s difficulty hearing was partly due to that incident.

You thought the guys would be mad at this dangerous antic, but they all claimed in unison that it was wonderful. The singer went on and explained that the best part was Daltrey seeing Bette Davis in an Elizabethan outfit who passed out, and Mickey Rooney “jumping up-and-down,” screaming for more.

You can watch the interview below.