'Who I Am': The Public And Private Pete Townshend

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Pete Townshend is arguably one of the most gifted rock guitarists of the last 50 years. As the main songwriter and creative force behind legendary band The Who, Townshend spent decades touring the globe and helped to define rock and roll for his generation and many more to come.

His memoir, Who I Am, is a compendium of conflict — between the private man and public performer, between the rock legend and an all too human husband and father, between addiction and sobriety, and longing and belief.

He talks with NPR's Jacki Lyden about the experiences that shaped his music and his rock-star road to hell and back.

Copyright 2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

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