Keith Moon
Keith John Moon was born on the 23rd of August 1946 at Central Middlesex Hospital in northwest London. He grew up in Wembley with a restless imagination and a particular fondness for music and The Goon Show. His art teacher once wrote that he was retarded artistically, while his music teacher noted he had great ability but needed to guard against showing off. At age twelve, Moon joined his local Sea Cadet Corps band playing the bugle. He found the instrument too difficult to learn and switched to drums instead. He developed an interest in practical jokes and home science kits, especially explosions. On his way home from school, he would often visit Macari's Music Studio on Ealing Road to practice. He left school around Easter 1961 at age fourteen. Later he enrolled at Harrow Technical College which led to a job as a radio repairman. This job enabled him to buy his first drum kit.
In April 1964, aged seventeen, Moon auditioned for the Who as a replacement for Doug Sandom. A commonly cited story says he appeared at a show shortly after Sandom's departure dressed in ginger clothes with dyed hair. He claimed he could play better and nearly demolished the drum kit during the set's second half. Pete Townshend later described him as a ginger vision. Moon played one song called Road Runner and broke the bass drum pedal and two skins. Roger Daltrey asked what he was doing next Monday. Moon said nothing since he worked selling plaster during the day. They told him to give up work because there was a gig on Monday. He agreed and that was it. His arrival changed the group dynamics significantly. Sandom had been the peacemaker but now all four members were frequently in conflict. John Entwistle noted Moon tended to play faster or slower according to his mood. He would not play across his kit but move his arms forward like a skier. Along with Ginger Baker, he has been credited as one of the earliest rock drummers to regularly employ double bass drums in his setup.
Moon's favourite stunt was to flush powerful explosives down toilets. According to Tony Fletcher, this began in 1965 when he purchased a case of five hundred cherry bombs. Townshend remembers walking into a hotel bathroom and finding the toilet gone with only the S-bend remaining. The drummer explained he had thrown a cherry bomb down the toilet before it exploded. From that moment on they got thrown out of every hotel they stayed in. Moon moved from cherry bombs to M-80 fireworks to sticks of dynamite which became his explosive choice. All that porcelain flying through the air was quite unforgettable. Andrew Neill and Matthew Kent estimated his destruction of hotel toilets and plumbing cost as much as three hundred thousand pounds. In one incident a hotel manager called him asking him to lower the volume on his cassette recorder because it made too much noise. The drummer asked him up to his room and put a lit stick of dynamite in the toilet. Following the explosion he turned the recorder back on and said That dear boy was noise. This is the Oo.
On the 23rd of August 1967, Moon celebrated his twenty-first birthday at a Holiday Inn in Flint Michigan while touring for Herman's Hermits. He decided if it was publicised as his birthday he would be able to drink more. The drummer immediately began drinking upon arrival in Flint. The Who spent the afternoon visiting local radio stations with Nancy Lewis who was then their publicist. Moon posed for a photo outside the hotel in front of a Happy Birthday Keith sign. Returning to the hotel he started a food fight and soon cake began flying through the air. The drummer knocked out part of his front tooth. At the hospital doctors could not give him an anaesthetic due to his inebriation before removing the remainder of the tooth. A melee erupted where fire extinguishers were set off and guests thrown into the swimming pool. A piano was reportedly destroyed when police arrived with guns drawn. A furious Holiday Inn management presented the group with a bill for twenty-four thousand dollars which was settled by tour manager Edd McCann. Roger Daltrey later claimed they were banned from an entire state's worth of Holiday Inns.
Moon participated in outside musical projects despite generally saying he only wanted to work with the Who. In 1966 he worked on Beck's Bolero with Jeff Beck Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones. He also played timpani on Ol' Man River under the name You Know Who. Track Records-MCA released a solo single in 1974 featuring covers of Don't Worry Baby and Teenage Idol. His only solo album Two Sides of the Moon came out the following year. Most drumming was left to others including Ringo Starr Curly Smith Jim Keltner and Miguel Ferrer. Critics received it poorly with Dave Marsh writing there is no legitimate reason for this album's existence. During televised performances he played five-minute drum solos dressed as a cat on transparent acrylic drums filled with water and goldfish. Several animal lovers called the station with complaints about his performance. He landed acting roles starting in 1971 with Frank Zappa's 200 Motels where he appeared as a nun afraid of dying from a drug overdose. His final film appearance was in 1978's Sextette.
Kim Kerrigan became Moon's first serious relationship when they started dating in January 1965 after she saw the band play at Le Disque a Go! Go! in Bournemouth. By the end of that year she discovered she was pregnant. They married on the 17th of March 1966 at Brent Register Office and their daughter Amanda was born on the 12th of July. The marriage remained secret until May 1968. Kim later said if someone talked to her while out with Keith he would lose it and start a fight. From 1971 to 1975 Moon owned Tara a home in Chertsey where he lived with his wife and daughter. In 1973 Kim left him taking Amanda and sued for divorce in 1975 before marrying Ian McLagan. On the 4th of January 1970, Moon accidentally killed his friend driver Neil Boland outside the Red Lion pub in Hatfield Hertfordshire. Pub patrons had begun attacking his Bentley so Moon drove drunk to escape them and hit Boland. A coroner ruled the death an accident but Moon received an absolute discharge despite being charged with numerous offences.
In mid-1978 Moon moved into Flat 12 at 9 Curzon Place in Mayfair London renting from Harry Nilsson. He began a prescribed course of Heminevrin or clomethiazole to alleviate alcohol withdrawal symptoms. Geoffrey Dymond prescribed one hundred pills instructing him to take one when craving struck but no more than three per day. By September 1978 roadie Dave Cy Langston noted Moon got sluggish after two or three hours and could barely hold a drum stick. On the 6th of September Moon attended a film preview hosted by Paul and Linda McCartney. After dining they returned to their flat where he watched The Abominable Dr Phibes. He asked Walter-Lax to cook lamb cutlets which were his favourite meal. When she objected he replied If you don't like it you can fuck off. These were his last words before taking clomethiazole tablets. When checked on the following afternoon she discovered he was dead. Police determined there were thirty-two pills in his system with twenty-six undigested when he died.
Moon's drumming has been praised by critics as representing the greatest drummer in rock music. Author Nick Talevski described him as being to drums what Jimi Hendrix was to guitar. In 2011 Rolling Stone readers voted him the second-greatest drummer in history. He was posthumously inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1982 becoming the second rock drummer chosen. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted him in 1990 as a member of the Who. Several rock drummers including Neil Peart have cited Moon as an influence. Ray Davies lauded his work during the Kinks' induction speech saying Keith Moon changed the sound of drumming. Ozzy Osbourne told Sounds a month after death that people will be talking about Keith Moon until they die. English Heritage declined a blue plaque application in 2008 citing bad behaviour but the UK Heritage Foundation presented one unveiled on the 9th of March 2009. Daltrey Townshend Robin Gibb and Moon's mother Kit attended the ceremony.
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Common questions
When was Keith Moon born and where did he grow up?
Keith John Moon was born on the 23rd of August 1946 at Central Middlesex Hospital in northwest London. He grew up in Wembley with a restless imagination and a particular fondness for music and The Goon Show.
How did Keith Moon join the band The Who in April 1964?
In April 1964, aged seventeen, Moon auditioned for the Who as a replacement for Doug Sandom. He claimed he could play better and nearly demolished the drum kit during the set's second half before Pete Townshend hired him to replace Sandom.
What caused the destruction of hotel toilets by Keith Moon between 1965 and 1978?
Moon flushed powerful explosives down toilets starting in 1965 when he purchased a case of five hundred cherry bombs. Andrew Neill and Matthew Kent estimated his destruction of hotel toilets and plumbing cost as much as three hundred thousand pounds.
Who were Kim Kerrigan and Neil Boland in relation to Keith Moon?
Kim Kerrigan became Moon's first serious relationship when they started dating in January 1965 after she saw the band play at Le Disque a Go! Go! in Bournemouth. On the 4th of January 1970, Moon accidentally killed his friend driver Neil Boland outside the Red Lion pub in Hatfield Hertfordshire while driving drunk.
How did Keith Moon die on the 3rd of September 1978?
On the 6th of September Moon attended a film preview hosted by Paul and Linda McCartney and returned to their flat where he watched The Abominable Dr Phibes. He took clomethiazole tablets and was found dead the following afternoon with thirty-two pills in his system including twenty-six undigested.