7 things you didn’t know about Woodstock
Between August 15 and 17, 1969, almost half a million people gathered at a farm in a small New York town for “three days of peace and music”, with 32 acts including Janis Joplin, The Who, Jefferson Airplane, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Jimi Hendrix. Now, almost 50 years on, we take a look at some little-known facts about the most iconic weekend in music history.
1. It wasn’t held in Woodstock
It was originally planned to be held in the New York village with which it shared a name (or at least somewhere near there), but there were no sites that would suit such an event. They settled on a location in the town of Wallkill instead, but their permits were taken away a month out from the festival. Luckily, farmer Max Yasgur offered up his dairy farm in the small town of Bethel.
2. Joni Mitchell, who wrote the song “Woodstock”, never attended
Desperate though she was to go Woodstock, on the advice of her manager, she remained in New York City to perform on The Dick Cavett Show. She wrote the song based on what she heard of the event from then-boyfriend, Graham Nash (of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young). She then reportedly watched the festival on TV, crying.
3. Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood almost played the festival
The Jeff Beck Group, which featured Stewart and Wood as members, were booked to play Woodstock. However, the band split the night before they were due to perform, thus missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime. “I deliberately broke the group up before Woodstock,” Beck later said, adding that he regretted his decision.
4. A number of iconic acts just missed out (or declined)
They probably regret it now, but some of the most iconic names in music just missed their chance to perform at what would become one of the defining moments of the ‘60s. These names include Bob Dylan, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, The Byrds, Frank Zappa, Jethro Tull and Iron Butterfly. John Lennon also wanted to be a part of the event, but was in Canada at the time and had been denied a US visa.
5. There wasn’t a single report of violence
Despite running over three days and attracting almost half a million people, there were no reported incidents of violence – it really was “three days of peace and music”. The only hiccup occurred on stage during The Who’s set, during which activist Abbie Hoffman ran on stage and ranted about a fellow activist who was in jail. Pete Townshend yelled at her to get off “my stage”, hitting her over the head with the neck of his guitar.
6. Woodstock organisers didn’t make any money from the event
In fact, they lost some. They sold 186,000 tickets (costing $6 per day), but the late change in venue left them with no time to organise fencing or ticket booths. They had no choice but to make the event free of charge – something which left its promoters almost bankrupt. Fortunately, they more than made up for the losses with royalties from the Oscar-winning 1970 documentary Woodstock.
7. There was a huge food shortage
During Woodstock, Bethel became the third-largest city in the state of New York, and food vendors at the festival were not prepared for the sheer number of people. One stall, running low on burgers, raised their prices from 25 cents to $1. Attendees saw this as against the spirit of the festival and burnt the stand down. Fortunately, nearby farmers, nuns from a Jewish community centre chipped in to provide food to the massive crowds. Even the US Army airlifted in food and medical teams.