Legendary songwriter-singer-guitarist for the band The Who, Pete Townsend has mad occasional forees into film, producing movies like Quadrophenia and The Iron Giant.
Pete Townshend
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Biography by AllMovie
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- Introduced to music at an early age by his father (a professional saxophone player) and his mother (a singer).
- Best known as the lead guitarist and principal songwriter for the legendary rock band the Who, which he cofounded in the early 1960s.
- Struck outspoken activist Abbie Hoffman with his guitar when he disrupted the Who's set at Woodstock, an incident that wasn't captured on film since it occurred during a camera change.
- Released his first solo album, Who Came First, in 1972.
- Participated in the iconic "I Want My MTV" advertising campaign in 1982. Other notable participants included Stevie Nicks, Mick Jagger, David Bowie and the Police.
- Published a book of short stories titled Horse's Neck in 1985.
- Ranked No. 50 on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time in 2003.
- Awarded a Kennedy Center Honor in 2008 for his contribution to music.