Daltrey was born in the Chiswick area of London, the same working class suburban neighbourhood that produced fellow Who members Pete Townshend and John Entwistle. He showed academic promise as a child in the English state school system, ranking at the top of his class on examinations that led to his enrollment at the Acton County Grammar School for boys. His parents, Harry and Irene, hoped he would eventually continue on to study at a university, but obeying the rules and learning from his teachers were not in the plans of the self-described "school rebel."
He made his first guitar from a block of wood and formed a band called, "The Detours." When his father bought him an Epiphone guitar in 1959, he became the lead guitarist for the band. Soon after, interested in nothing but rock and roll, he was expelled from school. He became a sheet metal worker during the day, while practising and performing nights with the band at weddings, pubs and men's clubs. At the time, the band included Daltrey on lead guitar, Pete Townshend on rhythm guitar, John Entwistle on bass, Doug Sandom on drums and Colin Dawson on lead vocals. After Colin Dawson left the band, Daltrey switched to vocals and Townshend to lead guitar.
Early on, Daltrey was the band's leader, earning a reputation for using his fists to exercise control when needed, despite his small stature. According to Townshend, Roger "ran things the way he wanted. If you argued with him, you usually got a bunch of fives." He generally selected the music they performed, including songs by The Beatles, various Motown artists, James Brown, and other rock standards. In 1964, he also helped decide on a new name for the group that had been suggested by Townshend's roommate, Richard Barnes — "The Who."
The Who
With the band's first record deal in early 1965, Townshend began writing original material and Daltrey's dominance of the band began to recede. (Their second single, Anyway, Anyhow, Anywhere was the only song on which Daltrey and Townshend collaborated.) As Townshend developed into one of rock's most accomplished composers, Daltrey's vocals became the vehicle through which Townshend's visions were expressed, and he gained an equally vaunted reputation as an incomparably powerful vocalist. His habit of swinging the microphone around by its cord on stage became a signature sign of his exuberance.
Daltrey's stuttering expression of youthful anger, frustration and arrogance in the band's breakthrough single, My Generation, captured the revolutionary feeling of the 1960s for many young people around the world and became the band's trademark. Later, his scream near the end of Won't Get Fooled Again became a defining moment for the band.
Yet, in the midst of the band's success, Daltrey repeatedly found himself fighting to keep the other members of The Who away from the drug and alcohol dependence that he believed would destroy them. He once flushed drummer Keith Moon's pills down the lavatory and, when Moon protested, knocked him down with one punch. Later, in October, 1973, with Townshend at a low point after struggling through the Lifehouse and Quadrophenia projects while Daltrey was experiencing some success with his solo projects and acting roles, tension between the two created more sparks. During a recording session (in an incident that Daltrey claimed was overblown), Townshend whacked the singer over the head with his guitar and Daltrey responded by knocking Townshend unconscious, again with a single blow. With each of The Who's milestone achievements, Tommy, Who's Next, and Quadrophenia, Daltrey was the face and voice of the band as they defined themselves as the ultimate rebels in a generation of change. When Tommy appeared as a feature film in 1975, Daltrey played the lead role and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for "Best Acting Debut in a Motion Picture".
Solo music career
Roger Daltrey's first solo album, Daltrey
While he has always considered The Who his primary ambition in life, Daltrey has released eight solo albums. 1973's Daltrey was not the first solo release by a member of The Who, following albums by both John Entwistle and Pete Townshend. The top single off the album, "Giving It All Away," reached number five in the UK and the album, which introduced Leo Sayer as a songwriter, made the Top 50 in the United States. The emotional range displayed in Daltrey proved that the singer was capable of operating outside the context of The Who and of expressing his own moods, not just Townshend's.
When Sayer launched his own career as an artist, Daltrey called on a widening group of friends to write for and perform on his albums. Paul McCartney contributed the new song "Giddy" to "One of The Boys", where the band included Eric Clapton, Alvin Lee and Mick Ronson.
McVicar was billed as a soundtrack album for the film of the same name, which Daltrey co-produced and starred in. But since it featured all the other members of The Who — Townshend, Entwistle and Kenny Jones — it could almost have passed as a Who album. McVicar included two hit singles, Free Me and Without Your Love and was Daltrey's best-selling solo recording.
The title track to Under a Raging Moon was a tribute to Who drummer Keith Moon, who died in 1978. Each of the album's tracks, including "Let Me Down Easy" by Bryan Adams, expresses the frustration of growing older as only a man who sang "Hope I die before I get old" can. On Rocks in the Head, Daltrey is credited (along with Gerard McMahon) for co-writing seven of the eleven tracks.
Daltrey celebrated his fiftieth birthday in 1994 by performing at Carnegie Hall in a show called, "Daltrey Sings Townshend," accompanied by The Juilliard Orchestra, Townshend, Entwistle, Irish dancers and a group of folk musicians. Later he had a short weekly series on BBC Radio 2, presenting a personal choice of rock'n'roll.
Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me
Roger Daltrey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
All my pictures seem to fade to black and white
I'm growing tired and time stands still before me
Frozen here on the ladder of my life
Too late to stop myself from falling
I took a chance and changed your way of life
But you misread my meaning when I met you
Don't let the sun go down on me
Although I search myself, it's always someone else I see
I'd just allow a fragment of your life to wander free
But losing everything is like the sun going down on me
I can't find the right romantic line
But see me once and see the way I feel
Don't discard me just because you think I mean you harm
But these cuts I have they need love to help them heal
Don't let the sun go down on me
Although I search myself, it's always someone else I see
I'd just allow a fragment of your life to wander free
But losing everything is like the sun going down on me
In the song Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me, Roger Daltrey speaks of his struggles with a relationship where he feels he can no longer find any light or hope. He notes that he can't light any more of the other person's darkness and alludes to himself feeling as though he is stuck in a rut with time standing still before him. He highlights that he once made the mistake of taking a chance on the relationship and trying to change things around, but he feels as though the other person misread his intentions and left him alone and blind.
He pleads with his partner not to let the sun go down on him. He explains that he searches within himself, but all he can see is another person, indicating that he has lost himself in the relationship. He begs her to allow some fragment of her life to wander free in his direction. He emphasizes that losing everything feels like the sun going down on him. In conclusion, Daltrey is begging his lover to leave a window of hope open, a ray of sunshine, to help him heal from the cuts of the past.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't light no more of your darkness
I am unable to dispel the darkness that surrounds you.
All my pictures seem to fade to black and white
All my fond memories with you have lost their colors, and now they are dull and lifeless.
I'm growing tired and time stands still before me
I am feeling increasingly drained, and it seems that time is moving slowly or not at all.
Frozen here on the ladder of my life
I am stuck in my journey, unmoving and unable to make progress.
Too late to stop myself from falling
I have already started down a path, and I cannot go back now.
I took a chance and changed your way of life
I made a decision that impacted your life in a significant way.
But you misread my meaning when I met you
You misunderstood what I meant when we first met.
Closed the door and left me blinded by the light
You shut me out, leaving me confused and disoriented as a result.
Don't let the sun go down on me
Please don't let our connection fade away completely.
Although I search myself, it's always someone else I see
Whenever I look inside myself at the root of my problems, I always seem to see your reflection.
I'd just allow a fragment of your life to wander free
I only want a small piece of your life to remain connected to mine, even if it's just a memory.
But losing everything is like the sun going down on me
Losing my connection to you would be like losing everything in my life.
I can't find the right romantic line
I struggle to express my love in a way that feels just right.
But see me once and see the way I feel
If you could just experience my emotions firsthand, you would understand how I truly feel about you.
Don't discard me just because you think I mean you harm
Please don't push me away under the false assumption that I have ill intentions.
But these cuts I have they need love to help them heal
I have emotional wounds that need love and care to heal properly.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Bernie Taupin, Elton John
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Laurylie Polito
I can't light no more of your darkness
All my pictures seem to fade to black and white
I'm growing tired and time stands still before me
Frozen here on the ladder of my life
Too late to stop myself from falling
I took a chance and changed your way of life
But you misread my meaning when I met you
Closed the door and left me blinded by the light
Don't let the sun go down on me
Although I search myself, it's always someone else I see
I'd just allow a fragment of your life to wander free
But losing everything is like the sun going down on me
I can't find the right romantic line
But see me once and see the way I feel
Don't discard me just because you think I mean you harm
But these cuts I have they need love to help them heal
Don't let the sun go down on me
Although I search myself, it's always someone else I see
I'd just allow a fragment of your life to wander free
But losing everything is like the sun going down on me
Mark
This is the best version of this song FACT. Coupled with the fact that this song was part of the Lost Boys.......Bliss. Pure bliss.
Amber Jones
Fact !
Vince
Absolutely!!
Troy Schulz
Totally!
Stephen Gibson
Agreed.
Keith Webb
💯
Lucky 13
Roger Daltrey mastered this song. Nobody else can amount to the way he sings it. He was the man for it. Plus the rich strat sound makes it way better.
Michelle Greaves
This has always been my favourite version of this song, can't beat Roger Daltrey's vocals on this.
Michael Adaway
The emotion he puts into this is just unreal.
Craig496
This cover blows the original away! Love the way Roger belts out "But these cuts I have they need love to help them heal."