Peter Meaden

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Peter Meaden (1942-1978) was publicist and manager for The Who (then known as The High Numbers) in 1964 and a prominent figure in the British Mod culture of the early 1960s.

As a teenager, Meaden worked in a restaurant before embracing Modernism and establishing himself as a "Face", or leader of fashion. He was, for a time, involved with Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones and was roommates with Mick Jagger. He was often seen around The Scene, a club in London's West End.

After becoming manager for The Who, Meaden reinvented the band to attract a Mod following, changed their name to The High Numbers and wrote their first and only single, "I'm the Face" - "the first authentic Mod record", the B-side of which was "Zoot Suit". The two songs are actually set to the tunes of "Got Love if You Want it" by Slim Harpo and "Country Fool" by The Showmen, respectively; with new lyrics by Meaden incorporating Mod slang words and themes of fashion, dancing and other aspects of Modernism. The record was a failure, as most of the copies that sold were in fact bought by Meaden in a chart fix; his control over the band was lost and he went on to manage Jimmy James & The Vagabonds.

After years of drug abuse and a nervous breakdown, Meaden died at his parents' home in Edmonton of a barbiturate overdose in 1978. Three years before his death he gave an interview with Steve Turner from the New Musical Express in which he made the legendary quote, "Modism, Mod living, is a aphorism for clean living under difficult circumstances."

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