Abstract Mod culture identified with Black America, embraced its music, and imitated its style. Leaving school and having income, Mods signified their membership in this community with Italian and French clothing, amphetamines, scooters, and music, including rhythm-and-blues and Jamaican ska. Art student Peter Townshend was a keen observer of Mod culture and brought what he learned at Ealing Art College to his performances with Roger Daltrey and John Entwistle, first as the Detours and then as the Who. Among the ideas he brought from art school, he applied Gustav Metzger’s idea of autodestructive art to smashing guitars. Pete Meaden marketed them as a Mod band, renaming them the High Numbers and producing a failed single. When that failed, Kit Lambert convinced Chris Stamp to join him in managing the band that again called itself the Who. To capture their sound, Lambert engaged American independent producer Shel Talmy to record them.