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Rockin’ the Lord: Religious Identity and Pete Townshend

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 April 2026

Javier Campos Calvo-Sotelo Open the ORCID record for Javier Campos Calvo-Sotelo [Opens in a new window]
Javier Campos Calvo-Sotelo*
Affiliation:
Department of Music, Faculty of Arts and Philosophy, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid , Madrid, Spain
*
Email: javier.camposc@uam.es
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Abstract

Pete Townshend is a rock musician, and around him and the Who there is an important literature. However, his religious universe has been less studied, and it constitutes a fundamental part of his music and personal life. This article focuses on its three main dimensions: voluntary religion, unconscious reflections, and becoming a divinity to fans. The search for identity seems to underlie all three, in either individual or collective processes, as seen in Townshend’s songs, performance rituals, and fans’ devotion. Pete Townshend addressed God in deep and heartfelt prayers, through a medium as secular and aggressive as the Who’s rock, in the struggle to find who he was.

Keywords

Pete Townshendthe WhoreligionidentityTommyQuadrophenia

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Popular Music , Volume 45 , Issue 1 , February 2026 , pp. 59 - 79
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© The Author(s), 2026. Published by Cambridge University Press

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