Pete Townshend, in the liner notes to his new box set, The Studio Albums, writes: "I handed the stadium stage to Queen and U2, and of course to Bruce Springsteen. That wasn’t a bad thing. But we should have been a part of that Post-Punk legacy act resurgences that those acts enjoyed?”
Asked by Rolling Stone to elaborate on that, Townshend said, "The Who invented Stadium Rock. We gave it away. Our timing was terrible. When we did Live Aid, we could barely play. Queen were in the middle of a tour, walked out there, took the whole thing, and turned it into an advert for themselves.
"I never really appreciated what Queen was about, to be honest. I liked ABBA, but I didn’t really connect it with the lighthearted pop diversity of Queen’s catalog. I’m a huge fan of Bruce, of course, and a big fan of U2, and very happy to see the way that they took the stadium mantle.
"But with songs like 'Won’t Get Fooled Again' and 'Baba O’Riley,' I nailed it. There’s no question. And I gave that instrument away. But it would be wrong to say that I regret it, because I don’t. I have to look back and say, 'Well, what is, is.' But where it really bit for us all was financially, because that moment was one where instead of playing places like the Fillmore and the occasional arena, the big acts were playing consistently huge venues."
One person who may take exception with Townshend's claim is Roger Waters who in 2022 told us he's responsible for all the over-the-top concert productions.
Pink Floyd followed up the 1977 In the Flesh tour in support of Animals with The Wall tour in 1980 and '81.
Waters has done the same for his solo shows such as The Dark Side of the Moon from 2006 to 2008; The Wall Live from 2010 to '13; Us + Them in 2017 and '18; and his last one, 2022 and 23's This Is Not a Drill, which had him playing in the round for the first time.
I think everyone can agree that stadium rock -- not exactly as we know it today with big productions -- was started by promoter Sid Bernstein when he booked The Beatles to perform in New York's Shea Stadium in 1965 and '66.