Fifty years ago this (longish) weekend, on Max Yasgur’s dairy farm in Bethel, New York, “half a million” hippies and dreamers descended on a music festival that became a symbol of a generation. Woodstock was billed as “3 days of peace and music”, and became 3 (nearly 4) days of amazing performances, bohemian behaviour, and lots of mud… There were worries about the potential for disaster, with so many people in so close proximity, but it seems to have been a peaceful gathering on the whole.
Yasgur was a conservative Republican who supported the Vietnam war, but he also supported freedom of expression, and hoped the festival would help to bridge the generation gap. He appears to have been satisfied with the outcome, and saw it as a victory of peace and love.
After all these years, it’s easy to see the summer of 1969 as a sun-drenched time of peace and love, and forget anything else that was happening. Was it a time of innocence and hope? I don’t know – I was six months old, and not much given to philosophical reflection…
I suspect that the reality is much deeper, and more complicated. People are contradictory; history becomes as we would like it to be. Whatever the truth was, we could do with a bit of wide-eyed hope, peace and love about now.
It’s certainly worth giving the performances another listen – go through the line-up and set lists for inspiration. Here’s some clips. I decided to keep them to footage taken at Woodstock, which seems to limit what I can post. Nevertheless – enjoy!
Freedom, from the first set.
Joe Cocker, feeling the music.
A song for their generation.
Tripping…
…and a white rabbit, obviously high.
Janis, trying just a little bit harder.
Joan, looking forward.
An evening raga.
Jimi, closing the festival with his own take on patriotism.
And someone who didn’t make it to the gig, but wished she had…
1000 Fields of Roses 