Zak Starkey Opens Up About The Who Split and Turning Down an Oasis Reunion
Zak Starkey is breaking his silence again—and this time, he’s revealing that before his controversial split with The Who, he turned down an offer to rejoin a reunited Oasis.
In a new interview with The Telegraph, the longtime drummer, who has played with The Who since the mid-1990s, detailed what he describes as a confusing and emotional period. The shake-up began earlier this year after a spokesman for The Who publicly stated that the band had made a “collective decision” to part ways with Starkey following their shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall in March.
The news blindsided Starkey, who later said he was “surprised and saddened” by the announcement. Not long after, guitarist Pete Townshend attempted to smooth things over by suggesting Starkey’s exit was due to miscommunication. But any hopes of reconciliation were short-lived. In May, Townshend posted on social media that the band was moving on, officially introducing Scott Devours as their new drummer for the remainder of their tour.
Starkey, however, insisted he wasn’t “fired,” but rather had “retired” to focus on other musical projects. Now, he’s giving fans more context, pointing to a clash with Who frontman Roger Daltrey during their Albert Hall performances as a major turning point.
During one of those shows, the band attempted to play the rarely-performed “The Song is Over,” but due to limited rehearsal time, things didn’t go smoothly. Daltrey reportedly came in early during the performance, later blaming Starkey for dropped beats. According to Starkey, this prompted a call from manager Bill Curbishley, who informed him that he would no longer be needed.
“He says, ‘It’s my unfortunate duty to inform you that you won’t be needed from now on. Roger says you dropped some beats,’” Starkey recalled. He admitted he made mistakes during the performance but believes he was unfairly blamed. “What happened was I got it right and Roger got it wrong,” he said. “I don’t blame anyone—I blame The Who because they’re unpredictable, aggressive and f–ing insane.”
Adding another layer to the story, Starkey revealed that he had recently turned down a high-profile opportunity to join the Oasis reunion shows, out of loyalty to The Who. Between 2004 and 2008, Starkey had been a touring drummer for Oasis and was reportedly invited to return. He declined, believing his future remained with The Who. Instead, the spot went to Joey Waronker, a veteran drummer praised by Liam Gallagher as “special.”
Starkey’s decision now seems even more bittersweet, given his uncertain status with The Who and the increasingly sporadic nature of his new project, Mantra of the Cosmos—a psychedelic supergroup featuring Happy Mondays members and Oasis’ Andy Bell.
Despite everything, Starkey ended on a hopeful note. He recently spoke with Daltrey, who told him, “Don’t take your drums out of [The Who’s] warehouse yet in case we need you.”
So while his future with The Who remains cloudy, Starkey is keeping the door open—just in case.