Townshend working on The Who album

Pete Townshend wants Who fans to know he hasn't forgotten about the new studio album everyone hoped would be out by now. Townshend and Daltrey began working in earnest last autumn, but a variety of internal and external things forced a delay in the project.

Townshend wrote on the official petetownshend.com website that he's getting ready to move forward again. Townshend said, "I am preparing a one-off DVD this month exclusively for Roger. It will contain the music tracks of songs I've recorded so far, demos for songs in progress, some videos of me pitching various songs, and printed lyrics and photographs. I hope that viewing this DVD will help him to feel that all is not lost by my delaying the work we started last September, when we set out to produce a new Who album. It will get finished, as long as we stay healthy."

Among the issues that pushed the album back are Townshend's continuing work on his new musical The Boy Who Heard Music and his autobiography, as well as drummer Zak Starkey's commitment to work with the band Oasis through January 2006. In addition, bassist Pino Palladino will be on the road later this year as part of singer-songwriter John Mayer's new project, the John Mayer Trio.

Daltrey and Townshend will perform as The Who on Saturday (July 2, 2005) in Hyde Park in London on the Live 8 show. It's unknown who will back them at the gig.