art rock

1964
The Who broke the head of his guitar

In June 1964, during a performance at the Railway, Townshend accidentally broke the head of his guitar on the low ceiling of the stage. Angered by the audience’s laughter, he smashed the instrument on the stage, then picked up another guitar and continued the show. The following week, the audience…
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The Who changed their name

Dawson left after frequently arguing with Daltrey and was briefly replaced by Gabby Connolly, before Daltrey moved to lead vocals. With Entwistle’s encouragement, Townshend became the sole guitarist. Through Townshend’s mother, the group obtained a management contract with local promoter Robert Druce, who started booking the band as a support…
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The Velvet Underground The foundations

The foundations for what would become the Velvet Underground were laid in late 1964. Singer-songwriter and guitarist Lou Reed had performed with a few short-lived garage bands and had worked as a songwriter for Pickwick Records (Reed described his tenure there as being “a poor man’s Carole King “). Reed…
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The Who becoming popular

By late 1964, the Who were becoming popular in London’s Marquee Club , and a rave review of their live act appeared in Melody Maker . Lambert and Stamp attracted the attention of the American producer Shel Talmy , who had produced the Kinks . Townshend had written a song,…
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1963
Pink Floyd Metcalfe and Noble left

In September 1963, Metcalfe and Noble left to form their own band.

Pink Floyd Waters and Mason moved into a flat

In September 1963, Waters and Mason moved into a flat at 39 Stanhope Gardens, Highgate in London, owned by Mike Leonard, a part-time tutor at the nearby Hornsey College of Art and the Regent Street Polytechnic.

Genesis (band) arrived at the school

Banks and Gabriel arrived at the school in September 1963

1962
Pink Floyd Roger Waters and Nick Mason met

Roger Waters and Nick Mason met in September 1962 while studying architecture at the London Polytechnic at Regent Street , London.

Pink Floyd joined later that year

Richard Wright , a fellow architecture student, joined later that year, and the group became a sextet, Sigma 6.

The Who Wilson was fired

Wilson was fired in mid-1962 and replaced by Doug Sandom , though he was older than the rest of the band, married, and a more proficient musician, having been playing semi-professionally for two years.