The Who 2000s
 Decline and breakup
The band released two more studio albums with Jones as their drummer, Face Dances (1981) and It's Hard (1982). While both albums sold fairly well, and even with It's Hard receiving a five-star review in Rolling Stone, many fans were not receptive to the band's new sound. Shortly after the release of It's Hard, The Who embarked on their first of several 'farewell tours' after Pete Townshend declared his alcoholism, cleaned himself up, got sober, and stated that he wanted to do one more substantial tour with The Who before turning it into a studio-only band. It was the highest grossing tour of the year, with sellout crowds in numerous stadiums and arenas throughout North America.
After their final show in December, 1982, Townshend spent part of 1983 trying to write material for the next studio Who album which was still owed to Warner Bros. Records from the contract they signed in 1980. By the end of 1983, however, Townshend had declared himself unable to generate material which he felt was appropriate for The Who and he issued a public statement in December, 1983, wherein he announced his decision to leave The Who. With Townshend formally ending The Who as an entity producing new music, Townshend focused on solo projects such as White City: A Novel, The Iron Man (which did feature appearances from Daltrey and Entwistle and two songs on the album credited to The Who), and Psychoderelict, a forerunner to the eventual release of the radio work Lifehouse.
Reunions
On 13 July 1985, the members of The Who, including Kenney Jones, reformed for a one-off performance at Bob Geldof's Live Aid concert at Wembley Stadium. The band performed My Generation, Pinball Wizard, Love Reign O'er Me, and an obviously unrehearsed Won't Get Fooled Again (it was later revealed that the band had also intended to play a new Townshend composition, After The Fire, but was unable to learn it well enough to be played, it became a solo hit for Daltrey later that year). Although the BBC's equipment blew a fuse at the beginning of My Generation, the band kept playing, so most of My Generation was missed by the rest of the world.
In 1988 the band was honoured with the British Phonographic Industry's Lifetime Achievement Award. The Who played a short set at the award ceremony (which is the last time Kenney Jones has worked with The Who to date). In 1989 they embarked on a 25th anniversary The Kids Are Alright reunion tour which emphasised Tommy. Long time Townshend collaborator Simon Phillips played drums during the tour. Demand for tickets was phenomenal, inspiring Newsweek to say, The Who tour is special because, after the Beatles and the Stones, they're IT. There were massive sellouts in stadiums throughout North America, including a four-night stand at Giants Stadium. In all, over two million tickets were sold.
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