Pete Townshends Children, Personal Life, Career and Net Worth

Publish date: 2024-05-18

Born in May 19th 1945 was the English singer, Pete Townshend who is also the co-founder of The Who, an influential rock band of the 1960s and 1970s. He is also the leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and the principal songwriter. Pete Townshend was born in Chiswick west London at the Chiswick Hospital, Netheravon Road.

Early Life

Pete Townshend was born into a musical family with his father, Cliff Townshend, a professional alto saxophonist in the Roya Air Force’s dance band, “The Squandronaires”. His mother, Betty was also a singer with the Sydney Torch Les Douglass Orchestras. Due to their shared problematic drinking and explosive tempers, the Townshends’ marriage was unstable. Betty engaged in extramarital affairs while Cliff Townshend frequently traveled with his band. Young Pete Townshend was sent to live with his maternal grandmother Emma Dennis, who Pete subsequently referred to as being “clinically insane,” when the two separated when he was a young child. When Cliff and Betty bought a home on Woodgrange Avenue in middle-class Acton, their two-year separation came to an end, and young Pete was joyfully reunited with his parents.

Pete claims that because he did not have many friends when he was younger, he spent a lot of time reading action books like Gulliver’s Travels and Treasure Island. He appreciated the numerous trips the family took to the Isle of Man and the seaside. He regularly viewed the 1956 motion picture Rock Around the Clock on one of these trips during the summer of 1956, which ignited his interest in American rock & roll. Shortly after, he attended Townshend’s debut gig, Bill Haley, in London. He had no intention of becoming a professional musician at the time; his goal was to become a journalist. Townshend was admitted in Acton County Grammar School after passing the 11+ exam. He was severely impacted by the bullying he experienced at Acton County because of his big nose. 1956 saw the arrival of his first guitar, a cheap Spanish model from his grandma Emma.

Townshend was mostly self-taught on the instrument and never learned to read music, though his father did show him a few chords. Townshend and John Entwistle, a former classmate, founded the Confederates, a short-lived traditional jazz ensemble that featured Townshend on banjo and Entwistle on horns. The Acton Congregational Church’s youth group, the Congo Club, hosted performances by The Confederates, who sang covers of Acker Bilk, Kenny Ball, and Lonnie Donegan.

Paul and Simon Townshend were born in 1957 and 1960, respectively. Pete had to choose between attending art school, music school, or finding employment because he lacked the grades needed to enroll in a university. He enrolled in 1961 and ultimately decided to pursue graphic design at Ealing Art College. Townshend and future Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood were classmates at Ealing. Gustav Metzger, the father of auto-destructive art, was one of the notable designers and artists who spoke at the college. Townshend left school in 1964 to devote himself entirely to music.

Career

Over 100 songs by Townshend have been composed for 12 studio albums by the Who. Numerous others were released as non-album singles, bonus tracks on reissues, and music on rarities compilations like Odds & Sods. These include concept albums, the rock operas Tommy and Quadrophenia, as well as well-known rock radio staples like Who’s Next (1974). In addition, he has composed more than 100 songs, including radio jingles and theme music for television shows, that have been included on his solo albums. Aside from being a maestro guitarist, Pete is also known to be very good in playing the keyboard, banjo, ukulele, accordion, mandolin, violin, base guitar, synthesiser, harmonica and drums.

Pete taught himself how to master the craft with these instruments and plays on his own solo albums, several Who albums, and as a guest contributor to an array of other artists’ recordings. Townshend has also collaborated as a lyricist and composer for numerous other musical groups, as well as written numerous newspaper and magazine articles, book reviews, essays, books, and scripts. Townshend has received praise from critics for his work with the Who and in other ventures because of his forceful playing style and creative songwriting methods.

Awards

Pete Townshend received Brit Award for Lifetime Achievement in 1983 and he was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. Townshend was listed as the third-bestbest guitarist in Dave Marsh’s 1994 list for The New Book of Rock Lists. He was a member of the Who and earned the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2001.

In 2008, he was given the Kennedy Center Honors. He was placed No. 10 in both Rolling Stone’s revised 2011 list of the 100 greatest guitarists and Gibson.com’s 2011 list of the top 50 guitarists. On May 21, 2016, at UCLA, he and Roger Daltrey were presented with The George and Ira Gershwin Award for Lifetime Musical Achievement.

Personal Life

On May 20th 1968, Townshend got married to Karen Astley who was the daughter of the film maker, Edwin Astley. They moved into a three-bedroom townhouse in Twickenham, outside south-west London, with views of the Thames, where they had three kids: Emma (born 1969), a gardening columnist; Aminta (born 1971); and Joseph (born 1989), who attended Central St. Martins to study graphic design.

In 1994, Townshend and his wife divorced. Since then, he has been dating musician and arranger Rachel Fuller, with whom he secretly wed in 2016. Townshend resided at The Wick in Richmond, London, England, but sold the home for more than £15 million in August 2021. In 2010, he bought a lease on a portion of the National Trust property Ashdown House in Oxfordshire. He also has a home in Churt, Surrey. His assets were valued at £40 million as of 2009, according to The Sunday Times Rich List.

Net Worth

As of 2022, Pete Townshend’s net worth was estimated to be about $160 million.