The Who

In 2007, nearly half a century after forming as a band—and two decades after being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame—the utterly historic UK outfit The Who squeezed out what might be its last tour before succumbing to permanent retirement. Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend united behind a crew of hired guns to churn out hits from their canon of power-rock classics, including era definers like My Generation and the transcendent rock opera Tommy. If you believe the backstage gossip from that year’s VH1 Rock Honors performance, where the group played alongside descendants like Pearl Jam and Flaming Lips, Daltrey and Townshend can barely stand to be near one another at this point—which sounds about right for two dudes who’ve been playing in the same band since 1964.

Updated 10/26/2009