What made Woodstock, Woodstock ?

Why is Woodstock considered the most legendary and iconic music festival of all time? I will explain to you in what way this Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, which have gathered about half million people, make people wish they were fifty years older.

By the way, when I’m talking about Woodstock, I’m obviously talking about the real Woodstock, the one in 1969. I’m making this clarification because Woodstock has actually been repeated two times after the first festival, in 1994 and in 1999. But those last two were just commercial and did not depict the same history and the real sense of the first one. But, before talking about what happened in Woodstock -69, I will tell you the pre-story of Woodstock, (watch it out for your general culture).

The Woodstock Festival was born thanks to the imagination of two businessman, John Roberts and Joel Rosenman and the help of Michael Lang, a producer who already organized a festival in Miami and Artie Kornfeld, a director of a music Label. These four mens decided to create an outdoor festival, first located in Woodstock, but then relocated 80 km far from Woodstock, in Bethel, because the city finally retracted itself. There, they rent a field for nothing to a farmer and some other field around to welcome the 50 000 people forecasted. The name of the festival remains Woodstock yet because it was the city where Bob Dylan lived, so they decided to keep this iconic, bohème and artistic side of the name (even before the actual festival) of Woodstock.

What I mean by unforgettable and ?
First the festival has gathered the most beloved singers and bands of the 60’s such as Jimi Hendrix, Santana, Joe cocker, Janis Joplin and my beloved Crosby, Still, Nash and Young. No one can deny the fact that having those artists amassed in this God-forsaken place for three days was just … let just say unforgettable, right. Indeed, on Monday morning Jimi Hendrix made the most famous reprise of  “the stars spangled banner” in front of the last 200 000 participants.

Then, the organiser can’t have ever imagined that 500 000 people finally showed up to participate in those impressive three days (and half). By comparison, it was like parking the all living people of Lyon for three days without running water and just some electricity. This large crowd has generated the largest traffic jam ever, and thus obliged the routing of helicopters to provide food, water and first need to the participants. Do not forget that stars, like Joe Cocker, also had to go stage by helicopter.

After, we are all thinking that a festival like this one must have been generating a lot of money, but in fact it was a financial disaster. At first, people had to pay 18$ for the entrance but as the festival was going on they finally decided to make it free. They were concious that they were losing money, but they showed the world that this festival was far from being a commercial attempt and that they were flying this consuming society.

Last, but not least, Woodstock showed that 500,000 people could coexist in peace. Also, Woodstock proved that music doesn’t appear like that, it follows a period, it’s part of an all, and Woodstock is definitely a part of the all story. A lot happened in Woodstock, the apogee of the hippies and anti-conformism, a song against the Vietnam war “I feel like I’m Fixin’ to die rag” by Joe Mc Donald, the feeling of being a whole together and even two births and two overdoses, which have made what Woodstcok is.

Finally, do you know which one is the most common sentence when you are talking about Woodstock?

I wish, I were there!