Today, December 3rd, marks the 45 years since 11 Who fans were trampled to death while rushing the gate at their 1979 show at the Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio. The band was doing a soundcheck, which some mistook for the show, leading to the stampede.
Two years ago, on May 15th, 2022, The Who returned to Cincinnati for their first concert there in 43 years. Performing at TQL Stadium, a Major League Soccer venue in Cincy, Pete Townshend addressed the significance of the show following a few songs.
That show was a benefit for the P.E.M. Memorial Scholarship Fund, founded in August 2010 in memory of the three seniors from the city’s Finneytown High School killed that night -- Stephan Preston, Jackie Eckerle and Karen Morrison. The scholarship is for high school seniors who pursue degrees in the arts or music.
With members of nine of the 11 families impacted by the tragedy on hand, photos of the 11 victims were shown on the screen during "Love, Reign O'er Me."
And, in the next and final song of the night, "Baba O'Riley," The Who were joined by seven members of the Finneytown Children's Choir, which is part of the scholarship program, as well as other musicians from the program. And, one of the P.E.M. scholarship awardees, as well as three current student musicians sat in with the orchestra that backed the band.
This show was originally scheduled for April 2020 across the Ohio River at the BB&T Arena in Highland Heights, Kentucky, but was postponed due to the pandemic.