The summer of 1969 was a time of change.  It was the year of the Beatles swansong, the first manned moon landing, and  hippies protested and clashed with the establishment over U.S. involvement in Vietnam.  On a dairy farm in the town of Bethel in upper state New York, the greatest musical and cultural event of the millenium happened.  The Woodstock Music & Arts Fair, billed as an Aquarian Exposition, was held during the weekend of August 15th through the 17th.  Starring thirty top names in popular entertainment, the Woodstock Festival's attendance was unprecedented for the time.

Right - The largest performing stage ever contructed at the time was built between mid-July and mid-August in the pasture of dairy farm owner Max Yasgur.  Originally it was equipped with a turntable, to allow one band to set up on the back half while another performed on the front half.  This mechanism broke down early on, though, forcing delays to change equipment between groups.

    Attendance estimates vary from source to source, ranging anywhere from about 75,000 on the low side, to well over 1,500,000 on the high side.  The best guess, which is close to the average of all estimates, would be between a third to a half million people. It's impossible to determine exact numbers, as the fences around the site were never completed in time, so tickets were never taken - it was a free concert.
    For "three days of peace & music" Woodstock was a living, breathing, working city.  In the last great multi-day music festival of our time, the young people showed the world that all those hippies could co-exist for a prolonged period of time without a catastrophe (and with little or no police intervention).
    So come take a look at what went into and what went on at the Woodstock Music Festival.  Inside you'll find plenty of photos, a schedule of events, set lists for the performers, information on how and why the Aquarian Exposition came to be, and much more.  It'll blow your mind, man!  Peace...

Questions or comments?  Email: beatlefreak (at) utopiansound.com

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