24 Mar 2023
Pete Townshend ‘Can’t Outrun The Truth’ – The first solo single in 29 years
200 x 12” SINGLES SIGNED BY PETE TOWNSHEND
WITH ARTWORK BY DAMIEN HIRST
DIGITAL SINGLE OUT NOW ON POLYDOR
LISTEN https://petetownshend.lnk.to/COTT
AT LEAST 10p FROM EACH DOWNLOAD AND ALL PROCEEDS FROM VINYL SALES TO THE TEENAGE CANCER TRUST UK
Friday 24 March: Pete Townshend has today released ‘Can’t Outrun The Truth’, his first solo single in 29 years. The track was composed and produced by Rachel Fuller under her nom de plume Charlie Pepper, and all proceeds from vinyl sales plus at least 10p from every download will go to the Teenage Cancer Trust.
The song was inspired by the difficulties everyone had encountered emotionally due to the lack of human interaction caused by the pandemic. It also occurred to Rachel that young people undergoing cancer treatment may identify with these feelings of isolation.
Rachel Fuller, on the genesis of the song “We’d just moved house and Pete was as happy as Larry up in his studio, working every day, and I put my back out, I was just climbing the walls, I couldn’t do any creative work and obviously, we couldn’t go anywhere. And I really started to think about how unbelievably difficult this period of time was going to be for so many people. I wrote lyrics and then I sat at the piano and wrote the music, and then I thought, Oh, I really would like to record it, because it’s really not a bad song at all – and my singing days are long over. So, I asked Pete to record the demo”.
Pete Townshend “I’ve helped Rachel make the demos for several of her theatrical projects. She’s a really fast worker, it’s not that you say to me, let’s go into the studio for two weeks and work on this project. We do it, two hours later, or an hour later, it’s done – so it’s easy to work with her”.
‘Can’t Outrun The Truth’ was recorded in Pete’s home studio in September of 2021, with Pete playing lap steel guitar and violin and singing. Once it was recorded, the pair decided to release the track and raise funds for the Teenage Cancer Trust.
Pete Townshend “The pandemic years were terrible for charities; the Teenage Cancer Trust was created in order to take the money from a series of concerts at the Albert Hall every year and various other things and that had all dropped out. So, the idea of doing this, which is it’s something that has sprung out of lockdown about mental illness, but also for this particular charity. If you’ve got a scenario in which somebody in your family or a teenager has got cancer, they’re being treated, lockdown hits, and you’re not allowed to go and visit them. There’s a poignancy to the whole thing about the song.”
Rachel and Pete reached out to renowned British artist Damien Hirst to create an artwork for the track. The result is a unique one-off spin painting of Townshend, which adorns the sleeve of 200 12” singles of ‘Can’t Outrun The Truth’, (which also features Pete’s solo classic ‘Let My Love Open The Door’ on the B side). Pete has also signed each of the singles which are destined to become instant collectors’ pieces. The 12” singles will be available exclusively to fans in attendance at the Teenage Cancer Trust shows at the Royal Albert Hall from 21 March to 26 March.
Not only is ‘Can’t Outrun The Truth’ Pete Townshend’s first solo single in 29 years, but his first solo video in 40 years accompanies it. The video was shot in a series of one-take performances by the creative team of directors, Michael Nunn and William Trevitt. Watch the video here https://petetownshend.lnk.to/COTTVideo
Summing up the song Rachel says, “I think one of the things about the song is that it felt like we drew a line, and it was, okay, back to normal. Nobody’s really talking about Covid anymore. There aren’t stories in the papers, and no one wants to talk about those two years. And I think for so many people, there is a long tail, people really, really struggled and just because people are saying let’s move on. I think a lot of people are still finding it really hard.”
Townshend agrees, “Rachel is absolutely right; this is something that deserves to be carried in our daily life.”
PETE TOWNSHEND
‘CAN’T OUTRUN THE TRUTH’
AT LEAST 10p FROM EACH DOWNLOAD AND ALL PROCEEDS FROM VINYL SALES TO THE TEENAGE CANCER TRUST UK
LISTEN HERE https://petetownshend.lnk.to/COTT
DONATE TO THE TEENAGE CANCER TRUST
https://www.teenagecancertrust.org
Way to go Pete and Rachel 🎉🥳💫
I cant get to gigs because of operation on prostate is there not a way of purchasing signed 12 inch
BLOODY GOOD ON YER PETE, GOD BLESS YOU & THE WHO & BABA TOO, YOU’VE BEEN NATIONAL TREASURES SINCE YOU STARTED & I LOV3D THE 62 TIMES I SAW YOU !
God bless you, Rachel and Pete. Great song on a very relevant topic.
Wanted to buy a copy at the show 26/3 but was told by staff at the merchandise counter that the records never arrived that day for sale..
Is there any way I can get a copy?
Regards Harvey Wisdom
Harvey, to obtain a copy of the vinyl of ‘Can’t Outrun The Truth’ you needed to buy a programme at the show and scan the QR code in the programme. Actual records were not on sale at the merchandise stall.
If this single gets released on CD or vinyl, I will buy it. I’ve looked for the limited edition of the vinyl record, but have only found it on eBay. These are from individual sellers, and I would like my purchase to go to the “Who Cares” charity.
Eric, the single was only available on limited edition of 12″ vinyl. You can buy a digital download of the single and 10p of that money goes to the Teenage Cancer Trust. You can also donate directly to the Teenage Cancer Trust at https://donate.teenagecancertrust.org or you can donate to Teen Cancer America at https://teencanceramerica.org/donate/. And thank you!
Why not make this available for international fans as an unsigned 12? Can only be positive and help raise much needed funds, personally I’d buy 2! One for the artwork, and second for the vinyl. Please don’t tell me a digital download is the same as 12” artwork!