1969
The Woodstock Festival Opens in Bethel, New York
The Woodstock Festival Opens in Bethel, New York
On this day in 1969, the Woodstock Music Festival opens on a
patch of farmland in White Lake, a hamlet in the upstate New York town of
Bethel.
Promoters John Roberts, Joel Rosenman, Artie Kornfield and
Michael Lang originally envisioned the festival as a way to raise funds to
build a recording studio and rock-and-roll retreat near the town of Woodstock,
New York. The longtime artists’ colony was already a home base for Bob Dylan
and other musicians. Despite their relative inexperience, the young promoters
managed to sign a roster of top acts, including the Jefferson Airplane, the
Who, the Grateful Dead, Sly and the Family Stone, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix,
Creedence Clearwater Revival and many more. Plans for the festival were on the
verge of foundering, however, after both Woodstock and the nearby town of
Wallkill denied permission to hold the event. Dairy farmer Max Yasgur came to
the rescue at the last minute, giving the promoters access to his 600 acres of
land in Bethel, some 50 miles from Woodstock.
Early estimates of attendance increased from 50,000 to around
200,000, but by the time the gates opened on Friday, August 15, more than
400,000 people were clamoring to get in. Those without tickets simply walked
through gaps in the fences, and the organizers were eventually forced to make
the event free of charge. Folk singer and guitarist Richie Havens kicked off
the event with a long set, and Joan Baez and Arlo Guthrie also performed on
Friday night.
Somewhat improbably, the chaotic gathering of half a million
young “hippies” lived up to its billing of “Three Days of Peace and Music.”
There were surprisingly few incidents of violence on the overcrowded grounds,
and a number of musicians performed songs expressing their opposition to the
Vietnam War. Among the many great moments at the Woodstock Music Festival were
career-making performances by up-and-coming acts like Santana, Joe Cocker and
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; the Who’s early-morning set featuring songs
from their classic rock opera “Tommy”; and the closing set by Hendrix, which
climaxed with an improvised solo guitar performance of “The Star Spangled
Banner.”
Though Woodstock had left its promoters nearly bankrupt, their
ownership of the film and recording rights more than compensated for the losses
after the release of a hit documentary film in 1970. Later music festivals
inspired by Woodstock’s success failed to live up to its standard, and the
festival still stands for many as a example of America’s 1960s youth
counterculture at its best.