1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 3 00:00:31,724 --> 00:00:33,758 The audience was the star at Woodstock 4 00:00:34,931 --> 00:00:36,550 and the bands were there because of that. 5 00:00:41,172 --> 00:00:43,964 - Remember, the original prognostication was 6 00:00:43,965 --> 00:00:47,861 that there'd be somewhere between 30 to 50,000 people 7 00:00:47,862 --> 00:00:49,136 for the three days. 8 00:00:49,137 --> 00:00:51,033 Half of whom would spend the three days 9 00:00:51,034 --> 00:00:54,067 and the other half of whom would go home each night. 10 00:00:54,068 --> 00:00:55,895 The half that would stay would be sleeping 11 00:00:55,896 --> 00:00:57,688 in campground up there. 12 00:00:57,689 --> 00:01:00,378 Well, as you know, that did not come to pass. 13 00:01:04,172 --> 00:01:07,136 - It was also a chance for our generation 14 00:01:07,137 --> 00:01:09,792 to prove that we could be a peaceful generation 15 00:01:09,793 --> 00:01:13,205 and live together in peace based upon music 16 00:01:13,206 --> 00:01:14,861 and love for each other. 17 00:01:14,862 --> 00:01:16,999 So it was an experiment. 18 00:01:48,448 --> 00:01:50,136 - It was originally meant as a local concert 19 00:01:50,137 --> 00:01:52,516 that would raise money to build a recording studio 20 00:01:52,517 --> 00:01:53,655 in Upstate New York. 21 00:01:56,965 --> 00:01:59,482 It built way more than anyone could imagine. 22 00:02:04,448 --> 00:02:06,619 Hi, I'm Mark Goodman. 23 00:02:06,620 --> 00:02:10,309 50 years have passed since a live music festival held 24 00:02:10,310 --> 00:02:13,792 from August 15th to 18th, 1969, 25 00:02:13,793 --> 00:02:17,895 became a defining, cultural milestone. 26 00:02:17,896 --> 00:02:20,792 Of course I'm talking about Woodstock. 27 00:02:20,793 --> 00:02:24,205 It was a particular alchemy of inspiration, 28 00:02:24,206 --> 00:02:27,964 on-the-fly thinking, an evolving business plan, 29 00:02:27,965 --> 00:02:31,999 mother nature and of course the power of music. 30 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,930 Those three days in 1969 created a moment, 31 00:02:35,931 --> 00:02:38,136 one that still echoes today. 32 00:02:38,137 --> 00:02:41,516 Half a century on, we have a slightly different perspective 33 00:02:41,517 --> 00:02:44,757 on what was then billed as "An Aquarian Exposition, 34 00:02:44,758 --> 00:02:47,516 "3 Days of Peace and Music". 35 00:02:47,517 --> 00:02:49,550 So let's step back for a moment to explore 36 00:02:49,551 --> 00:02:52,757 how one music festival, among several that year, 37 00:02:52,758 --> 00:02:56,895 came to surpass them all and remains the gold standard 38 00:02:56,896 --> 00:02:59,999 for every big cultural event to this day. 39 00:03:16,724 --> 00:03:19,619 After meeting, Lang and Kornfeld quickly bonded 40 00:03:19,620 --> 00:03:21,448 over their mutual love of music. 41 00:03:22,827 --> 00:03:24,826 They started kicking around ideas for something 42 00:03:24,827 --> 00:03:28,343 that would capture what was bubbling under in the culture. 43 00:03:28,344 --> 00:03:29,964 Lang had been spending a lot of time 44 00:03:29,965 --> 00:03:32,033 in an arts community in the Catskills, 45 00:03:32,034 --> 00:03:34,309 where artists like Bob Dylan, Paul Simon 46 00:03:34,310 --> 00:03:35,792 and Ritchie Havens lived, 47 00:03:35,793 --> 00:03:38,274 and he had a passion for attending live shows 48 00:03:38,275 --> 00:03:39,241 around the country. 49 00:03:40,413 --> 00:03:41,931 - What intrigued me was Monterrey. 50 00:03:43,379 --> 00:03:46,102 I was completely taken by that event and that film. 51 00:03:46,103 --> 00:03:49,412 I realized that was something I wanted to do. 52 00:03:49,413 --> 00:03:51,826 - The Woodstock Festival didn't start out as a festival 53 00:03:51,827 --> 00:03:52,793 to begin with. 54 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:56,447 Michael Lang and Artie Kornfeld had this idea 55 00:03:56,448 --> 00:03:58,067 to build a recording studio 56 00:03:58,068 --> 00:04:00,412 in the town of Woodstock, New York. 57 00:04:00,413 --> 00:04:04,205 Woodstock, New York had been a bohemian community, 58 00:04:04,206 --> 00:04:06,067 an artist community, since the beginning 59 00:04:06,068 --> 00:04:07,241 of the 20th century. 60 00:04:08,344 --> 00:04:10,723 A lot of musicians lived there, Bob Dylan, 61 00:04:10,724 --> 00:04:12,344 Ritchie Havens, Van Morrison. 62 00:04:13,620 --> 00:04:15,343 They were all up in Woodstock, 63 00:04:15,344 --> 00:04:17,136 but there was no recording studio. 64 00:04:17,137 --> 00:04:18,931 "Let's build a recording studio. 65 00:04:20,103 --> 00:04:22,723 "And we can raise money to offset the cost of it 66 00:04:22,724 --> 00:04:24,930 "by inviting all those local musicians 67 00:04:24,931 --> 00:04:27,447 "and we can have a party, have a concert." 68 00:04:27,448 --> 00:04:29,793 Well, they approached their business partners, 69 00:04:31,862 --> 00:04:34,585 Joel Rosenman and John Roberts, 70 00:04:34,586 --> 00:04:37,447 and pitched the idea of this recording studio. 71 00:04:37,448 --> 00:04:39,723 Well, they'd already built a recording studio 72 00:04:39,724 --> 00:04:42,481 in Manhattan, they had no interest at all 73 00:04:42,482 --> 00:04:44,550 in doing another recording studio, 74 00:04:44,551 --> 00:04:46,895 but they did like this idea of the party. 75 00:04:46,896 --> 00:04:48,343 "Bring all those musicians together, 76 00:04:48,344 --> 00:04:50,274 "let's do a rock festival." 77 00:04:50,275 --> 00:04:52,792 - Yeah, well the first concept was 78 00:04:52,793 --> 00:04:55,861 what we said the first night, a music and art fair. 79 00:04:55,862 --> 00:04:59,861 It was supposed to be the shining light 80 00:04:59,862 --> 00:05:01,378 of the war babies moment. 81 00:05:01,379 --> 00:05:04,102 It was supposed to be the moment the war babies exploded 82 00:05:04,103 --> 00:05:06,654 into the world and said, "Here we are, 83 00:05:06,655 --> 00:05:08,309 "here's our music and here's our art. 84 00:05:08,310 --> 00:05:11,067 "Here's how we feel," you know, musically 85 00:05:11,068 --> 00:05:13,757 and politically and in other ways. 86 00:05:13,758 --> 00:05:16,447 But music came first, the music part came first. 87 00:05:16,448 --> 00:05:18,723 We did recognize that if it did happen, 88 00:05:18,724 --> 00:05:20,723 it would have a profound affect 89 00:05:20,724 --> 00:05:23,033 on what was happening in the rest of the world. 90 00:05:23,034 --> 00:05:25,274 Because all of a sudden, the powers that be would say, 91 00:05:25,275 --> 00:05:27,757 "Hey, wait a minute, here's the vote for the future 92 00:05:27,758 --> 00:05:30,448 "and they're showing up in mass and they're peaceful." 93 00:05:31,896 --> 00:05:34,171 - The seeds were taking root for this combination 94 00:05:34,172 --> 00:05:37,585 of an art event, music and people. 95 00:05:37,586 --> 00:05:40,619 But how would it be different? 96 00:05:40,620 --> 00:05:43,688 - The Woodstock Festival was not the first rock festival, 97 00:05:43,689 --> 00:05:47,240 that belongs two years earlier, in 1967, 98 00:05:47,241 --> 00:05:52,241 with the Monterrey Pop Festival, the Magic Mountain Fair 99 00:05:53,413 --> 00:05:55,826 and other festivals in the summer of 1967, 100 00:05:55,827 --> 00:05:57,343 The Summer of Love. 101 00:05:57,344 --> 00:06:01,171 But after those festivals, rock festivals sprouted up 102 00:06:01,172 --> 00:06:02,964 all over the country. 103 00:06:02,965 --> 00:06:06,205 Most of them, however, were held at racetracks, 104 00:06:06,206 --> 00:06:09,102 parks that had band shells and of course, 105 00:06:09,103 --> 00:06:12,654 many of them had trouble with the law. 106 00:06:12,655 --> 00:06:16,688 There were gate crashers, trigger-happy policemen 107 00:06:16,689 --> 00:06:21,481 who wanted to see that these young people were kept down. 108 00:06:21,482 --> 00:06:24,412 Several of the rock festivals that preceded Woodstock 109 00:06:24,413 --> 00:06:26,136 ended up in riots. 110 00:06:26,137 --> 00:06:28,688 So when Woodstock was announced 111 00:06:28,689 --> 00:06:32,274 and on the lead up to the Woodstock Festival, 112 00:06:32,275 --> 00:06:34,654 local law enforcement, in fact law enforcement 113 00:06:34,655 --> 00:06:37,033 all over the State of New York and down into New Jersey, 114 00:06:37,034 --> 00:06:39,585 were quite worried about what was going to happen 115 00:06:39,586 --> 00:06:42,067 in Bethel, New York for that Woodstock Festival. 116 00:06:42,068 --> 00:06:45,931 - We had a different vision, a completely different vision. 117 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:50,412 Our vision was to create a very positive, 118 00:06:50,413 --> 00:06:55,274 a very sort of comforting environment for the audience. 119 00:06:55,275 --> 00:06:58,274 Not to present confrontation in any way. 120 00:06:58,275 --> 00:07:01,033 To make it something that, if you could imagine the best 121 00:07:01,034 --> 00:07:03,619 of what this could be, that's what you're getting. 122 00:07:03,620 --> 00:07:05,862 Then you make of it what you will from there. 123 00:07:06,965 --> 00:07:08,447 So I went to Denver 124 00:07:08,448 --> 00:07:12,516 and I saw the 250 cops 125 00:07:12,517 --> 00:07:14,205 with riot gear sitting in the bleachers 126 00:07:14,206 --> 00:07:15,688 right across from people, 127 00:07:15,689 --> 00:07:18,068 waiting for somebody tryin' to break the gate down. 128 00:07:19,482 --> 00:07:21,999 So into our plan went free stage, free kitchens. 129 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:24,136 People are gonna come without money, 130 00:07:24,137 --> 00:07:25,309 give them a place to go, give them the music, 131 00:07:25,310 --> 00:07:27,619 give them the experience, why not? 132 00:07:27,620 --> 00:07:29,724 So that's kind of how 133 00:07:31,344 --> 00:07:34,378 I developed a lot of the strategies for Woodstock. 134 00:07:34,379 --> 00:07:36,688 - But now they needed a site. 135 00:07:36,689 --> 00:07:40,930 This quiet area of Upstate New York was not enthusiastic 136 00:07:40,931 --> 00:07:42,481 about havin' a bunch of rock stars 137 00:07:42,482 --> 00:07:44,999 and several thousand young people descend 138 00:07:45,000 --> 00:07:46,481 on their community. 139 00:07:46,482 --> 00:07:48,757 Although the Woodstock team initially struck a deal 140 00:07:48,758 --> 00:07:50,688 for a location at Wallkill, 141 00:07:50,689 --> 00:07:54,723 it fell through just weeks before the event was to kickoff. 142 00:07:54,724 --> 00:07:56,205 The pressure was on, 143 00:07:56,206 --> 00:07:59,516 but for Lang, there had always been one essential. 144 00:07:59,517 --> 00:08:01,309 - It was always about going back to nature. 145 00:08:01,310 --> 00:08:05,343 It was always about organic 146 00:08:05,344 --> 00:08:08,137 because I thought if anything could allow people to feel 147 00:08:09,206 --> 00:08:11,240 at ease, that would be it. 148 00:08:11,241 --> 00:08:12,516 - Enter Max Yasgur, 149 00:08:12,517 --> 00:08:14,619 one of the area's most prominent citizens 150 00:08:14,620 --> 00:08:17,274 and his 600 acre dairy farm. 151 00:08:17,275 --> 00:08:19,412 His son, Sam, looks back. 152 00:08:19,413 --> 00:08:22,826 - It started as a straight business deal. 153 00:08:22,827 --> 00:08:25,619 The summer of '69 was a very wet summer, 154 00:08:25,620 --> 00:08:27,688 we couldn't get hay in the barn. 155 00:08:27,689 --> 00:08:29,826 This was a hay field. 156 00:08:29,827 --> 00:08:31,895 When you have that many cattle 157 00:08:31,896 --> 00:08:33,205 and you've gotta put up enough hay 158 00:08:33,206 --> 00:08:34,585 to get 'em through the winter 159 00:08:34,586 --> 00:08:37,654 and you can't make it yourself, the prospect of having 160 00:08:37,655 --> 00:08:42,655 to buy that amount of hay was daunting, to say the least. 161 00:08:43,862 --> 00:08:46,792 Johnny Roberts and Mike Lang came on, 162 00:08:46,793 --> 00:08:48,482 I think it was a Sunday afternoon, 163 00:08:49,896 --> 00:08:51,550 and said they'd like to rent a field for three days 164 00:08:51,551 --> 00:08:53,999 and this field would be appropriate 165 00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:57,309 because it has a bowl-shaped topography. 166 00:08:57,310 --> 00:08:59,895 Then things changed and they changed fairly dramatically 167 00:08:59,896 --> 00:09:04,550 because some of the neighbors had a very negative reaction 168 00:09:04,551 --> 00:09:06,412 to, what were then called hippies, 169 00:09:06,413 --> 00:09:08,448 coming to western Sullivan County. 170 00:09:09,275 --> 00:09:10,344 That bothered Dad. 171 00:09:11,482 --> 00:09:13,482 I can remember him saying to one of them, 172 00:09:14,793 --> 00:09:18,792 "Look, the reason you don't want them here is 173 00:09:18,793 --> 00:09:21,000 "because you don't like what they look like. 174 00:09:22,413 --> 00:09:24,378 "Now I don't particularly like what they look like either, 175 00:09:24,379 --> 00:09:26,378 "but that's not the point. 176 00:09:26,379 --> 00:09:29,378 "They may be protesting the war, 177 00:09:29,379 --> 00:09:31,964 "but thousands of American soldiers have died 178 00:09:31,965 --> 00:09:34,792 "so they can do exactly what they're doing. 179 00:09:34,793 --> 00:09:38,000 "That's what the essence of the country is all about." 180 00:09:39,482 --> 00:09:42,688 From that point on, he became a champion. 181 00:09:42,689 --> 00:09:44,481 - Word of the festival was spreading 182 00:09:44,482 --> 00:09:47,033 and this was way before social media. 183 00:09:47,034 --> 00:09:48,999 Something was in the air. 184 00:09:49,000 --> 00:09:52,137 - When we started this we permitted for 50,000. 185 00:09:53,965 --> 00:09:56,412 50,000 was never really the number, 186 00:09:56,413 --> 00:09:57,930 the number that we worked on, 187 00:09:57,931 --> 00:10:01,550 that all of my projections were made up of were 200,000 188 00:10:01,551 --> 00:10:03,482 and that's where we thought we'd max out. 189 00:10:05,068 --> 00:10:06,274 When we figured toilets, 190 00:10:06,275 --> 00:10:07,826 when we figured whatever we figured, 191 00:10:07,827 --> 00:10:09,619 we figured something that had to work 192 00:10:09,620 --> 00:10:11,344 for a crowd of 200,000 people. 193 00:10:13,862 --> 00:10:16,826 The permit process went on, I think, 194 00:10:16,827 --> 00:10:18,723 until three or four days before the event. 195 00:10:18,724 --> 00:10:21,102 But we knew people were coming from everywhere, 196 00:10:21,103 --> 00:10:22,516 because I get calls from California, 197 00:10:22,517 --> 00:10:24,275 I get calls from all over the country. 198 00:10:25,931 --> 00:10:28,309 Most of that was just from rumor, from word of mouth. 199 00:10:28,310 --> 00:10:31,412 So we knew that is was gonna be immense, 200 00:10:31,413 --> 00:10:32,930 we didn't know it was gonna be as immense, 201 00:10:32,931 --> 00:10:35,378 but we knew it was gonna be immense. 202 00:10:35,379 --> 00:10:37,723 - But there was still something missing, 203 00:10:37,724 --> 00:10:39,861 namely the artists. 204 00:10:39,862 --> 00:10:41,688 Now with their connections in the music business 205 00:10:41,689 --> 00:10:44,826 and a growing number of advance tickets already sold, 206 00:10:44,827 --> 00:10:46,240 Lang and Kornfeld were able 207 00:10:46,241 --> 00:10:50,136 to convince some acts to sign on, some. 208 00:10:50,137 --> 00:10:51,723 - In order to get some credibility, 209 00:10:51,724 --> 00:10:54,309 we overpaid the first couple of acts. 210 00:10:54,310 --> 00:10:57,033 I think we paid $10,000 for Starship 211 00:10:57,034 --> 00:10:58,448 and the Airplane, then, yeah. 212 00:10:59,689 --> 00:11:01,343 First two or three acts that we nailed down gave 213 00:11:01,344 --> 00:11:03,826 us the credibility for it to start to roll. 214 00:11:03,827 --> 00:11:06,757 As long as the advertising kept running 215 00:11:06,758 --> 00:11:08,482 and the site kept being built, 216 00:11:09,620 --> 00:11:11,931 okay, then I could hold people on a string, 217 00:11:12,931 --> 00:11:14,309 believin' this was gonna happen. 218 00:11:14,310 --> 00:11:16,343 And then once Jimi Hendrix said yes, 219 00:11:16,344 --> 00:11:17,585 then the gates opened. 220 00:11:17,586 --> 00:11:19,102 When Jimi said, "Yes, I'll play," 221 00:11:19,103 --> 00:11:22,447 and he's the only artist that got like big money for then, 222 00:11:22,448 --> 00:11:24,309 everybody else would play for nothing at Woodstock, 223 00:11:24,310 --> 00:11:25,206 it didn't matter. 224 00:11:33,827 --> 00:11:36,378 - In Upstate New York, the summer of '69 was one 225 00:11:36,379 --> 00:11:38,136 of the wettest on record. 226 00:11:38,137 --> 00:11:40,516 After losing their original site in Wallkill, 227 00:11:40,517 --> 00:11:43,033 the festival pulled up stakes, literally, 228 00:11:43,034 --> 00:11:45,757 and set to work reconstructing the stage 229 00:11:45,758 --> 00:11:48,033 and facilities on the Yasgur farm. 230 00:11:48,034 --> 00:11:51,137 But time and the elements were not cooperating. 231 00:11:52,241 --> 00:11:54,000 - So over the weekend that 232 00:11:55,724 --> 00:11:58,033 we found the site, made the deal with Max 233 00:11:58,034 --> 00:11:59,757 and got the trucks rolling the next day, 234 00:11:59,758 --> 00:12:03,206 we were only 23 days out, or 24 days out of the festival. 235 00:12:07,137 --> 00:12:09,171 We started moving the crews up, 236 00:12:09,172 --> 00:12:13,930 dismantling and reassembling stuff in Bethel. 237 00:12:13,931 --> 00:12:15,895 I think of the 23 days that we worked up there, 238 00:12:15,896 --> 00:12:18,205 or the 24 days, whatever it was, 239 00:12:18,206 --> 00:12:20,585 it rained probably 20 days. 240 00:12:20,586 --> 00:12:23,309 It was unbelievable the amount of water in the ground 241 00:12:23,310 --> 00:12:24,895 and it's all clay. 242 00:12:24,896 --> 00:12:29,896 I remember one piece of road across the top of the hill, 243 00:12:31,310 --> 00:12:33,309 I think I put the road in eight times and it sank. 244 00:12:33,310 --> 00:12:34,688 We'd put the road in and it would sink 245 00:12:34,689 --> 00:12:35,792 and we'd put the road in and it would rain 246 00:12:35,793 --> 00:12:36,689 and it would sink. 247 00:12:37,965 --> 00:12:40,274 Every time I'd have to do something like that, 248 00:12:40,275 --> 00:12:43,654 'cause we'd discover, okay, we can't bury pipe, 249 00:12:43,655 --> 00:12:45,102 for example, we couldn't bury the water system, 250 00:12:45,103 --> 00:12:48,240 we'd have to run across another piece of Max's land, 251 00:12:48,241 --> 00:12:49,792 I'd call up and I'd say, 252 00:12:49,793 --> 00:12:52,516 "Max, I need to talk to you about something." 253 00:12:52,517 --> 00:12:53,999 I'd always get his wife on the phone 254 00:12:54,000 --> 00:12:57,447 and she'd say, "Okay, come over in half an hour." 255 00:12:57,448 --> 00:12:58,964 And Max, he had a heart condition, 256 00:12:58,965 --> 00:13:00,481 he'd immediately go into the oxygen tent 257 00:13:00,482 --> 00:13:03,275 to get ready for my visit. 258 00:13:05,137 --> 00:13:06,723 - As tickets sales increased, 259 00:13:06,724 --> 00:13:09,102 it was clear that security would be crucial 260 00:13:09,103 --> 00:13:12,240 to manage the crowds on the way to Bethel, New York. 261 00:13:12,241 --> 00:13:16,550 But cops in riot gear could easily escalate a situation. 262 00:13:16,551 --> 00:13:17,757 - The concept, I think, 263 00:13:17,758 --> 00:13:19,205 in all our minds from the beginning was 264 00:13:19,206 --> 00:13:24,068 to make it just a very safe, but very embracing environment. 265 00:13:25,275 --> 00:13:26,757 You needed cops. 266 00:13:26,758 --> 00:13:29,723 We had a security force that was going to be made up 267 00:13:29,724 --> 00:13:31,826 of off-duty New York City cops. 268 00:13:31,827 --> 00:13:34,412 So we hired a guy named Wes Pomeroy 269 00:13:34,413 --> 00:13:35,654 to do our head of security. 270 00:13:35,655 --> 00:13:37,067 He was head of the Crime Commission 271 00:13:37,068 --> 00:13:38,481 in Washington under Nixon. 272 00:13:38,482 --> 00:13:42,516 He handled the '68 Democratic Convention in Chicago. 273 00:13:42,517 --> 00:13:44,619 He had great experience in dealing with crowds 274 00:13:44,620 --> 00:13:45,758 and the right attitude. 275 00:13:47,862 --> 00:13:49,033 You don't want someone 276 00:13:49,034 --> 00:13:50,758 who's gonna be a macho guy just creating 277 00:13:51,965 --> 00:13:54,102 those irritations 278 00:13:54,103 --> 00:13:55,413 and Wes understood it all. 279 00:13:58,793 --> 00:14:01,102 Somewhere there is a questionnaire form 280 00:14:01,103 --> 00:14:05,136 that he used to interview the off-duty cops with 281 00:14:05,137 --> 00:14:06,343 which is just riotous, 282 00:14:06,344 --> 00:14:08,895 but was designed to find out what do you do 283 00:14:08,896 --> 00:14:11,171 when somebody blows pot smoke in your face. 284 00:14:26,103 --> 00:14:27,895 - The Hog Farm was originally tasked 285 00:14:27,896 --> 00:14:30,826 with setting up services like a kitchen, medical tents 286 00:14:30,827 --> 00:14:33,999 and trip tents to help anybody under the influence. 287 00:14:34,000 --> 00:14:35,826 But after the police were pulled, 288 00:14:35,827 --> 00:14:38,619 the Farm had one more thing added to their list. 289 00:14:38,620 --> 00:14:40,930 Hugh Romney, better known as Wavy Gravy, 290 00:14:40,931 --> 00:14:43,619 and Lisa Law were commune members. 291 00:14:43,620 --> 00:14:47,274 - The Hog Farm commune were a bunch of misfits all living 292 00:14:47,275 --> 00:14:49,585 together helping each other out. 293 00:14:49,586 --> 00:14:53,826 The Hog Farm is known for their caring for people 294 00:14:53,827 --> 00:14:58,481 that are loaded and that's why, actually, they were hired. 295 00:14:58,482 --> 00:15:00,999 They were hired in order to help take care 296 00:15:01,000 --> 00:15:04,757 of any drug problems that were going to arise. 297 00:15:04,758 --> 00:15:07,136 Which did because almost everybody 298 00:15:07,137 --> 00:15:08,723 at Woodstock was loaded. 299 00:15:08,724 --> 00:15:10,412 - We spilled off that aircraft 300 00:15:10,413 --> 00:15:12,516 and there was the world press, 301 00:15:12,517 --> 00:15:15,757 standin' around, klieg lights blazin', 302 00:15:15,758 --> 00:15:18,033 cameras at the hip and ready. 303 00:15:18,034 --> 00:15:19,723 This reporter looks at me, he says, 304 00:15:19,724 --> 00:15:23,723 "Oh, The Hog Farm, huh, you guys are the security." 305 00:15:23,724 --> 00:15:28,724 I said, "My God, they made us the cops! 306 00:15:29,310 --> 00:15:30,517 I said, "Well, 307 00:15:31,793 --> 00:15:33,757 "do ya feel secure?" 308 00:15:33,758 --> 00:15:35,343 The guy said, "Well, sure." 309 00:15:35,344 --> 00:15:37,378 I said, "See, 310 00:15:37,379 --> 00:15:39,171 "it's working." 311 00:15:39,172 --> 00:15:41,205 - Feeding people would be another factor. 312 00:15:41,206 --> 00:15:43,654 The Hog Farm was setting up kitchens on the site. 313 00:15:43,655 --> 00:15:45,654 Lisa Law went to see the investors, 314 00:15:45,655 --> 00:15:48,033 Joel Rosenman and John Roberts. 315 00:15:48,034 --> 00:15:49,999 - So I went to the office there 316 00:15:50,000 --> 00:15:53,136 and Joel and John were there and I said, 317 00:15:53,137 --> 00:15:55,585 "I need another $3,000." 318 00:15:55,586 --> 00:15:57,033 And they said, "Well, what for?" 319 00:15:57,034 --> 00:15:59,343 I said, "Well, so far, I've got have of what I need 320 00:15:59,344 --> 00:16:02,136 "and I need some more money to get the rest of it 321 00:16:02,137 --> 00:16:04,343 "because we're going to be feeding a lot of people." 322 00:16:04,344 --> 00:16:06,999 So I bought 1,500 pounds of bulgur wheat 323 00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:09,274 and 1,500 pounds of rolled oats, too, 324 00:16:09,275 --> 00:16:11,861 and currants and things for muesli. 325 00:16:11,862 --> 00:16:14,861 We got trash cans to mix our vegetables in. 326 00:16:14,862 --> 00:16:18,481 Cleavers, Chinese cleavers, onion cutters 327 00:16:18,482 --> 00:16:21,171 and everything to mix the food in. 328 00:16:21,172 --> 00:16:23,378 That's what we ended up mixing the muesli in was 329 00:16:23,379 --> 00:16:25,550 these big trash cans. 330 00:16:25,551 --> 00:16:26,999 We had to think big. 331 00:16:35,275 --> 00:16:36,930 - The Woodstock planners had originally thought 332 00:16:36,931 --> 00:16:39,516 they might get 50,000 people, 333 00:16:39,517 --> 00:16:42,516 but a few days out with things nowhere near being done, 334 00:16:42,517 --> 00:16:44,481 people were continuing to arrive 335 00:16:44,482 --> 00:16:48,240 and those numbers well exceeded the promoters estimate. 336 00:16:48,241 --> 00:16:51,205 That summer, John Conway was a teenager working 337 00:16:51,206 --> 00:16:53,309 at a local gas station. 338 00:16:53,310 --> 00:16:57,895 - We had these people coming in in these Volkswagen vans 339 00:16:57,896 --> 00:17:00,550 and a lot of them didn't have any money. 340 00:17:00,551 --> 00:17:03,136 They had come from pretty far away 341 00:17:03,137 --> 00:17:05,033 and they were desperate for gas. 342 00:17:05,034 --> 00:17:06,619 They literally were begging, 343 00:17:06,620 --> 00:17:09,895 "Could we drain the hoses into the Volkswagen 344 00:17:09,896 --> 00:17:12,137 "so that we can get a little bit further on?" 345 00:17:13,689 --> 00:17:15,999 At first, I was not aware of what was going on. 346 00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:18,654 In fact, I remember people coming in 347 00:17:18,655 --> 00:17:21,447 and asking for directions to Woodstock. 348 00:17:21,448 --> 00:17:23,757 Not knowing anything about this Woodstock concert 349 00:17:23,758 --> 00:17:25,412 at this early point in the summer, 350 00:17:25,413 --> 00:17:26,930 we were literally directing people 351 00:17:26,931 --> 00:17:28,482 to Woodstock in Ulster County. 352 00:17:29,517 --> 00:17:31,274 At some point in time we realized 353 00:17:31,275 --> 00:17:34,102 that there was this music festival 354 00:17:34,103 --> 00:17:35,585 that was supposed to be happening. 355 00:17:35,586 --> 00:17:37,861 These people came very early for the festival 356 00:17:37,862 --> 00:17:39,895 and they didn't have tickets. 357 00:17:39,896 --> 00:17:42,378 That's another thing that I think a lot of people forget is 358 00:17:42,379 --> 00:17:44,861 that there were really two groups of people 359 00:17:44,862 --> 00:17:46,481 who came to the concert. 360 00:17:46,482 --> 00:17:48,309 There were a group that had tickets 361 00:17:48,310 --> 00:17:50,999 who arrived late for the most part, 362 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:55,067 found this amazing group of people already there 363 00:17:55,068 --> 00:17:56,964 who had come early because they didn't have tickets 364 00:17:56,965 --> 00:18:00,171 and had created this site around the festival. 365 00:18:00,172 --> 00:18:02,205 So it was pretty interesting in that regard 366 00:18:02,206 --> 00:18:05,309 to see this influx into the county. 367 00:18:05,310 --> 00:18:08,999 It was different kind of person than we were used to seeing. 368 00:18:09,000 --> 00:18:12,309 - I walk out and it's like the day before the festival 369 00:18:12,310 --> 00:18:15,309 and nobody's even tried to put up fences 370 00:18:15,310 --> 00:18:18,136 and there's 75,000 people on the field. 371 00:18:18,137 --> 00:18:21,033 I said, "What are we gonna do, ask 'em to leave?" 372 00:18:21,034 --> 00:18:23,033 - But on either Wednesday or Thursday morning, 373 00:18:23,034 --> 00:18:26,826 there were already a few thousand kids sitting on this site. 374 00:18:26,827 --> 00:18:28,826 The way it was related to me is that, 375 00:18:28,827 --> 00:18:31,033 particularly Johnny Roberts became concerned. 376 00:18:31,034 --> 00:18:34,585 The thing that he did not want was a crush against the fence 377 00:18:34,586 --> 00:18:36,136 and anybody getting hurt. 378 00:18:36,137 --> 00:18:38,205 So he ordered the fence taken down 379 00:18:38,206 --> 00:18:40,000 and Woodstock then became a freebie. 380 00:18:41,482 --> 00:18:43,206 When Woodstock became a freebie, 381 00:18:44,310 --> 00:18:46,619 one of the most popular DJs of the day 382 00:18:46,620 --> 00:18:49,136 who happened to have a house up here in the county, 383 00:18:49,137 --> 00:18:52,378 a fella by the name of Bruce Morrow, Cousin Brucie, 384 00:18:52,379 --> 00:18:55,999 announced on the radio that Woodstock was a freebie 385 00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:57,999 and New York City emptied out. 386 00:19:08,724 --> 00:19:10,895 - I mean, I was a little nervous. 387 00:19:10,896 --> 00:19:13,757 They just came rolling in the morning, Friday morning, 388 00:19:13,758 --> 00:19:18,343 and the sky didn't look too friendly, 389 00:19:18,344 --> 00:19:19,930 but as soon as the music finally started, 390 00:19:19,931 --> 00:19:21,171 as soon as we got the music goin', 391 00:19:21,172 --> 00:19:22,309 you could feel where the people were coming from 392 00:19:22,310 --> 00:19:24,067 and what the crowd was feeling. 393 00:19:24,068 --> 00:19:25,895 You could actually feel it, it was palpable. 394 00:19:25,896 --> 00:19:26,896 I knew we were okay. 395 00:19:47,586 --> 00:19:49,412 - By the first official day of the festival, 396 00:19:49,413 --> 00:19:53,930 about 400,000 people gathered in Max Yasgur's field. 397 00:19:53,931 --> 00:19:54,965 More were coming. 398 00:19:56,000 --> 00:19:57,205 There were rumors 399 00:19:57,206 --> 00:19:59,378 that some of the biggest groups might appear. 400 00:19:59,379 --> 00:20:00,206 They didn't show. 401 00:20:01,413 --> 00:20:03,448 John Lennon, stuck in Canada. 402 00:20:05,137 --> 00:20:07,068 Dylan didn't like crowds. 403 00:20:08,413 --> 00:20:10,862 Jim Morrison hated playing outdoor festivals. 404 00:20:12,103 --> 00:20:15,654 Mick Jagger was filming the movie, "Ned Kelly". 405 00:20:15,655 --> 00:20:18,723 But in the meantime, 32 other acts were making 406 00:20:18,724 --> 00:20:22,343 their way to Woodstock, or at least trying to. 407 00:20:22,344 --> 00:20:25,964 Weather, time and other issues had slowed preparations 408 00:20:25,965 --> 00:20:27,930 and the delays would affect performances 409 00:20:27,931 --> 00:20:29,861 throughout the entire weekend. 410 00:20:29,862 --> 00:20:31,343 Around five o'clock, 411 00:20:31,344 --> 00:20:34,136 an anxious Woodstock team enlisted Ritchie Havens 412 00:20:34,137 --> 00:20:35,688 to start the show. 413 00:20:35,689 --> 00:20:38,585 - So here we are at the two hotels they told us to come to, 414 00:20:38,586 --> 00:20:42,136 seven miles away from the grounds, 415 00:20:42,137 --> 00:20:44,895 and I'm sitting there and I'm sitting there 416 00:20:44,896 --> 00:20:46,895 and I'm looking at television, I was sitting there, 417 00:20:46,896 --> 00:20:49,826 I'm looking at television and saying hi to somebody, 418 00:20:49,827 --> 00:20:52,447 it's now 3:30 in the afternoon. 419 00:20:52,448 --> 00:20:55,619 I'm going, "Uh-oh, somethin's wrong," 420 00:20:55,620 --> 00:20:58,826 because no one's come to say anything. 421 00:20:58,827 --> 00:21:00,000 "What is happening?" 422 00:21:01,689 --> 00:21:04,482 The next thing I know, I hear this really loud noise, 423 00:21:05,896 --> 00:21:08,205 turns out that they found a farmer down the road 424 00:21:08,206 --> 00:21:09,826 with a helicopter. 425 00:21:09,827 --> 00:21:13,033 So we crammed into this helicopter, 426 00:21:13,034 --> 00:21:16,861 two conga drums in-between me and the guy on this side 427 00:21:16,862 --> 00:21:19,517 and the other guy sittin' a little below us. 428 00:21:21,310 --> 00:21:23,964 We made it to the back of that stage 429 00:21:23,965 --> 00:21:25,930 and got off the helicopter 430 00:21:25,931 --> 00:21:28,999 and started to walk around backstage. 431 00:21:29,000 --> 00:21:32,309 The only person I saw was Tim Hardin, the only person. 432 00:21:32,310 --> 00:21:33,516 I went, "Oh, hey, Tim is here. 433 00:21:33,517 --> 00:21:34,792 "Tim, did you go on?" 434 00:21:34,793 --> 00:21:37,619 "No," "I'm not goin' on first." 435 00:21:37,620 --> 00:21:40,826 I said, "Wow, I know I'm supposed to be fifth," 436 00:21:40,827 --> 00:21:42,999 so that's what I expected. 437 00:21:43,000 --> 00:21:45,964 Of course, an hour later they started chasing me, 438 00:21:45,965 --> 00:21:48,964 'cause I was running, 439 00:21:48,965 --> 00:21:50,102 every time they'd say, "Ritchie, would you go on, 440 00:21:50,103 --> 00:21:51,757 "somethin's gotta happen." 441 00:21:51,758 --> 00:21:54,861 I said, "Yeah, you want it to happen to me, right?" 442 00:21:54,862 --> 00:21:56,724 - During the course of the day Friday, 443 00:21:58,000 --> 00:21:59,310 waiting for Ritchie Havens 444 00:22:00,862 --> 00:22:03,861 and the delay and the delay and the delay, or whatever, 445 00:22:03,862 --> 00:22:06,344 and then looking at what was happening around you. 446 00:22:07,931 --> 00:22:10,240 Then when he finally started to play 447 00:22:10,241 --> 00:22:15,205 and hearing just the roar that came out of the area, 448 00:22:15,206 --> 00:22:16,447 at that point you kinda knew 449 00:22:16,448 --> 00:22:18,103 that it was somethin' different. 450 00:22:24,000 --> 00:22:25,757 - Logistics were making it tough for other performers 451 00:22:25,758 --> 00:22:27,068 to make it to the site. 452 00:22:28,517 --> 00:22:31,033 - I was supposed to do maybe 40 minutes, 35-40 minutes, 453 00:22:31,034 --> 00:22:32,550 and when I walked off the first time, 454 00:22:32,551 --> 00:22:35,067 they said, "Ritchie, you gotta do four more songs." 455 00:22:35,068 --> 00:22:36,309 So I said, "Okay." 456 00:22:36,310 --> 00:22:38,033 I went back and I did four more songs 457 00:22:38,034 --> 00:22:39,171 and I walked off again. 458 00:22:39,172 --> 00:22:40,965 They said, "Ritchie, three more?" 459 00:22:42,172 --> 00:22:45,205 On the sixth time that I walked back, 460 00:22:45,206 --> 00:22:50,206 for real, they said, "Just one more, somebody's on the way." 461 00:22:51,103 --> 00:22:52,688 They couldn't get anybody there. 462 00:22:52,689 --> 00:22:56,826 So I went out on the stage and you see me kind of stalling 463 00:22:56,827 --> 00:22:58,654 because that's exactly what I was doing. 464 00:22:58,655 --> 00:23:01,964 That long intro to what is "Freedom", the song, 465 00:23:01,965 --> 00:23:03,757 was me trying to figure out what to sing, 466 00:23:03,758 --> 00:23:05,378 I've sang every song I knew. 467 00:23:21,206 --> 00:23:22,757 - Yeah, I was 22 years old. 468 00:23:22,758 --> 00:23:25,516 I mean, I look back at other people who are 22 years old 469 00:23:25,517 --> 00:23:27,447 and they look like little kids or something 470 00:23:27,448 --> 00:23:29,964 and it basically scared the hell out of me. 471 00:23:29,965 --> 00:23:33,481 On the other hand, once I got off the stage, 472 00:23:33,482 --> 00:23:36,344 I also knew that there was no gig 473 00:23:37,517 --> 00:23:40,275 that could ever frighten me 474 00:23:41,413 --> 00:23:43,447 because I had just done this one. 475 00:23:43,448 --> 00:23:45,309 Because there was people, like I said, 476 00:23:45,310 --> 00:23:46,826 not just the people in the field, 477 00:23:46,827 --> 00:23:48,585 when we were up in that helicopter, 478 00:23:48,586 --> 00:23:50,619 there was people as far as the eye could see 479 00:23:50,620 --> 00:23:53,205 in every direction, 360 degrees. 480 00:23:53,206 --> 00:23:54,792 It was only a small portion of them 481 00:23:54,793 --> 00:23:57,309 that was actually in the field itself. 482 00:23:57,310 --> 00:23:59,172 It was just sort of like a convergence 483 00:24:00,586 --> 00:24:02,413 of stuff that was goin' on. 484 00:24:03,517 --> 00:24:04,930 - Credeence Clearwater Revival had been 485 00:24:04,931 --> 00:24:07,412 among the first to sign a deal to perform, 486 00:24:07,413 --> 00:24:09,274 but the delays pushed their start time 487 00:24:09,275 --> 00:24:13,275 to three in the morning on Saturday the 16th. 488 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:43,550 By Saturday, the only way for artists to get in 489 00:24:43,551 --> 00:24:46,481 and out of the festival was by helicopter. 490 00:24:46,482 --> 00:24:49,034 Some didn't make it, others did. 491 00:24:58,931 --> 00:25:00,654 - One of the bands that didn't show up 492 00:25:00,655 --> 00:25:03,067 at Woodstock was Iron Butterfly. 493 00:25:03,068 --> 00:25:05,550 They were stuck at LaGuardia Airport. 494 00:25:05,551 --> 00:25:08,447 They asked for a helicopter to get them to the festival 495 00:25:08,448 --> 00:25:11,205 and by that time, with all the traffic problems 496 00:25:11,206 --> 00:25:12,930 and all the other headaches, 497 00:25:12,931 --> 00:25:15,826 the Woodstock promoters just didn't have the inclination 498 00:25:15,827 --> 00:25:18,619 or the time to honor their request. 499 00:25:18,620 --> 00:25:20,826 The Woodstock promoters sent a telegram 500 00:25:20,827 --> 00:25:22,861 to Iron Butterfly's manager. 501 00:25:22,862 --> 00:25:26,378 The first letter of each line of that telegram spelled out 502 00:25:26,379 --> 00:25:29,757 their response to the request for a helicopter. 503 00:25:29,758 --> 00:25:31,171 I'll let you fill in the blanks, 504 00:25:31,172 --> 00:25:34,067 but it started with f and ended with u. 505 00:25:34,068 --> 00:25:35,481 One of the glaring omissions 506 00:25:35,482 --> 00:25:37,412 at the Woodstock Festival was Joni Mitchell. 507 00:25:37,413 --> 00:25:40,033 She wasn't even asked to perform at the festival. 508 00:25:40,034 --> 00:25:43,723 She had wanted to attend to support her fellow musicians 509 00:25:43,724 --> 00:25:47,654 like Crosby, Stills, Nash, John Sebastian, others, 510 00:25:47,655 --> 00:25:50,999 but her agent said, "Nope, you can't go to the festival. 511 00:25:51,000 --> 00:25:52,999 "You're scheduled to be on the "Dick Cavett Show", 512 00:25:53,000 --> 00:25:54,585 "it's an important show. 513 00:25:54,586 --> 00:25:56,688 "We can't afford to have you miss that 514 00:25:56,689 --> 00:25:58,171 "if you're stuck in traffic, 515 00:25:58,172 --> 00:26:00,205 "or if you can't get out of the festival in time." 516 00:26:00,206 --> 00:26:01,723 Joni Mitchell wasn't at Woodstock, 517 00:26:01,724 --> 00:26:03,688 but she did get the last laugh. 518 00:26:03,689 --> 00:26:06,067 She wrote that famous song "Woodstock" 519 00:26:06,068 --> 00:26:08,757 and even though she wasn't at the festival, 520 00:26:08,758 --> 00:26:11,378 even though she wrote that song from a hotel room 521 00:26:11,379 --> 00:26:14,792 in New York City watching the festival on television, 522 00:26:14,793 --> 00:26:17,688 more than anyone, she captured the spirit 523 00:26:17,689 --> 00:26:19,620 of the Woodstock Festival in that song. 524 00:26:23,034 --> 00:26:25,136 - The weather reeked havoc with the schedule. 525 00:26:25,137 --> 00:26:28,102 Michael Lang had to rethink the entire lineup. 526 00:26:28,103 --> 00:26:30,171 - It was determined, organically, 527 00:26:30,172 --> 00:26:31,999 we needed acoustic. 528 00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:35,516 It was wet, it was rain, we didn't want anybody to fry 529 00:26:35,517 --> 00:26:38,274 so it was a question of who's here, who's ready to go on 530 00:26:38,275 --> 00:26:39,826 and who's acoustic? 531 00:26:39,827 --> 00:26:41,688 And during the dry segments, it was also, who's gotten in 532 00:26:41,689 --> 00:26:44,033 because the roads were a mess. 533 00:26:44,034 --> 00:26:45,343 It was as the bands would arrive 534 00:26:45,344 --> 00:26:47,309 and as we'd have their equipment assembled, 535 00:26:47,310 --> 00:26:49,723 it was kind of who's gonna be ready to go, 536 00:26:49,724 --> 00:26:51,240 and it really happened that way. 537 00:26:51,241 --> 00:26:54,723 I mean Ritchie played for probably almost two hours 538 00:26:54,724 --> 00:26:56,757 'cause I wouldn't let him off the stage. 539 00:26:56,758 --> 00:26:58,516 We had nobody to follow him, 540 00:26:58,517 --> 00:27:02,102 just skip shipping him back out and he kept making up songs. 541 00:27:02,103 --> 00:27:04,137 That's really how I ran the stage. 542 00:27:05,310 --> 00:27:06,792 It was of necessity, it who have we got 543 00:27:06,793 --> 00:27:08,205 and when can we get 'em on? 544 00:27:08,206 --> 00:27:12,827 - I wasn't on the poster, nobody intended for me to play. 545 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:15,861 I was there strictly because 546 00:27:15,862 --> 00:27:19,723 this was the most happening thing that had gone on 547 00:27:19,724 --> 00:27:22,378 and I wanted to be there and see it. 548 00:27:22,379 --> 00:27:24,067 I wanted to be a spectator. 549 00:27:24,068 --> 00:27:26,550 But because all my friends were backstage, 550 00:27:26,551 --> 00:27:29,999 I practically walked from the helicopter to the backstage, 551 00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:32,688 so people began to go, "Oh, great, when are you playing?" 552 00:27:32,689 --> 00:27:35,964 And I go, "I'm not playing, I don't even have a guitar." 553 00:27:35,965 --> 00:27:39,171 Well, it just so happened that my old pal, Timmy Hardin, 554 00:27:39,172 --> 00:27:41,999 did have a guitar and was there. 555 00:27:42,000 --> 00:27:44,550 So it was somewhere in the second day, 556 00:27:44,551 --> 00:27:49,309 somebody hadn't showed up yet and it had started to rain. 557 00:27:49,310 --> 00:27:54,102 So I get summoned into the sort of war room, 558 00:27:54,103 --> 00:27:58,309 there in the center of the backstage area. 559 00:27:58,310 --> 00:28:02,068 Chip Monck, the voice of Woodstock that we all remember 560 00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:09,000 describing how the purple acid is not particularly good, 561 00:28:12,931 --> 00:28:14,654 asked me, 562 00:28:14,655 --> 00:28:15,482 "Look, 563 00:28:17,103 --> 00:28:20,447 "it's raining, we're having trouble with the sound system, 564 00:28:20,448 --> 00:28:24,205 "we're afraid to put an amplifier on the stage. 565 00:28:24,206 --> 00:28:28,412 "We're figuring we could keep this audience's attention 566 00:28:28,413 --> 00:28:31,931 "if we had a guy with one guitar who could hold 'em. 567 00:28:33,379 --> 00:28:34,551 "You're elected." 568 00:28:36,379 --> 00:28:40,723 So I go to Timmy and I say, "Timmy, I need a guitar." 569 00:28:40,724 --> 00:28:43,585 He lends me a Harmony Sovereign. 570 00:28:43,586 --> 00:28:46,724 This is the great workhorse guitar 571 00:28:48,034 --> 00:28:51,412 for people buying instruments for under $60. 572 00:28:51,413 --> 00:28:54,999 So with that instrument and a slight buzz, 573 00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:56,757 I went on 574 00:28:56,758 --> 00:28:58,344 in the rain and 575 00:29:00,413 --> 00:29:01,861 as it happened, 576 00:29:01,862 --> 00:29:04,413 the rain had stopped by the time I finished. 577 00:29:08,586 --> 00:29:10,378 - Generally when you get on a stage, 578 00:29:10,379 --> 00:29:12,826 well, you never know nowadays, 579 00:29:12,827 --> 00:29:14,930 but before that if you get on a stage, 580 00:29:14,931 --> 00:29:17,724 even in Monterrey, you look down and 581 00:29:19,689 --> 00:29:22,758 your peripheral vision took in the entire audience. 582 00:29:23,896 --> 00:29:25,655 That was impossible at Woodstock. 583 00:29:27,103 --> 00:29:30,447 You had to turn your head to see the whole audience. 584 00:29:30,448 --> 00:29:33,654 It was literally an ocean of people. 585 00:29:33,655 --> 00:29:38,655 I had never seen anything and the stage was huge, humongous. 586 00:29:40,068 --> 00:29:42,861 - Some of the more incendiary performances on day two came 587 00:29:42,862 --> 00:29:47,379 from Janis Joplin, The Who, Santana and Sly Stone. 588 00:29:49,344 --> 00:29:52,067 - So when he sang, "I Wanna Take You Higher" 589 00:29:52,068 --> 00:29:55,343 and then I think Chip Monck through the lights up and down 590 00:29:55,344 --> 00:29:56,757 and everybody's singin' back, 591 00:29:56,758 --> 00:29:58,412 we got caught in the middle of the vibe 592 00:29:58,413 --> 00:30:00,723 of half a million people and Sly. 593 00:30:00,724 --> 00:30:02,861 Just to be in the middle, I mean, 594 00:30:02,862 --> 00:30:05,309 I believed in these things, there is energy and it travels. 595 00:30:05,310 --> 00:30:07,999 To be in the middle of that energy was mind blowing. 596 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:11,447 I would say that was the highest point, you know, to me 597 00:30:11,448 --> 00:30:14,379 of the festival as far as really enjoying it. 598 00:30:31,448 --> 00:30:35,654 Grace Slick, the most vivid spark that comes out 599 00:30:35,655 --> 00:30:39,481 of a lot of hazy, you know, events 600 00:30:39,482 --> 00:30:41,861 that occurred during the course of that weekend, 601 00:30:41,862 --> 00:30:46,412 waking up to Grace Slick screaming out, 602 00:30:46,413 --> 00:30:48,619 "Time for morning maniac music," 603 00:30:48,620 --> 00:30:51,378 then going into "Volunteers". 604 00:30:51,379 --> 00:30:54,619 And crawling out of the tent and sliding my way down 605 00:30:54,620 --> 00:30:56,964 through the mud or whatever to get a better view 606 00:30:56,965 --> 00:30:58,516 of what was happening, 607 00:30:58,517 --> 00:31:00,896 when I think about it, that was one of the focal points. 608 00:31:02,310 --> 00:31:04,723 - One band that probably owes its career 609 00:31:04,724 --> 00:31:07,033 to Woodstock is Santana. 610 00:31:07,034 --> 00:31:11,412 Santana was a young band of really talented musicians 611 00:31:11,413 --> 00:31:14,550 in the San Francisco Bay area that were very well known 612 00:31:14,551 --> 00:31:16,619 on the West Coast but had not released 613 00:31:16,620 --> 00:31:17,861 their first album yet. 614 00:31:17,862 --> 00:31:20,205 It was in the can, ready to be released 615 00:31:20,206 --> 00:31:22,861 when they appeared on the stage at Woodstock 616 00:31:22,862 --> 00:31:25,550 and Santana exploded on the stage. 617 00:31:25,551 --> 00:31:28,964 Drummer, Michael Shrieve, banged on those drums 618 00:31:28,965 --> 00:31:30,481 and created an impression. 619 00:31:30,482 --> 00:31:31,999 That's widely recognized 620 00:31:32,000 --> 00:31:35,999 as probably one of the best drum solos in rock history. 621 00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:37,619 Santana's shining moment 622 00:31:37,620 --> 00:31:39,378 at Woodstock was "Soul Sacrifice", 623 00:31:39,379 --> 00:31:41,516 it was towards the end of their set. 624 00:31:41,517 --> 00:31:44,585 Carlos Santana was very high on mescaline, 625 00:31:44,586 --> 00:31:46,171 or LSD, at the time 626 00:31:46,172 --> 00:31:48,688 and he was havin' a hard time keeping it together. 627 00:31:48,689 --> 00:31:50,378 He's been on record as saying 628 00:31:50,379 --> 00:31:53,240 that the guitar neck was turning into a serpent 629 00:31:53,241 --> 00:31:56,274 and he was struggling to keep it in his hand 630 00:31:56,275 --> 00:31:57,757 and play all the right notes. 631 00:31:57,758 --> 00:31:59,654 Everybody was playing at their best. 632 00:31:59,655 --> 00:32:02,896 "Soul Sacrifice" became an anthem for Woodstock. 633 00:32:06,620 --> 00:32:09,309 The Who was at the top of their game 634 00:32:09,310 --> 00:32:10,930 when they hit Woodstock. 635 00:32:10,931 --> 00:32:13,585 "Tommy" had been released earlier in the year, 636 00:32:13,586 --> 00:32:17,310 a month before they had started performing it publicly. 637 00:32:18,517 --> 00:32:21,171 So when they hit the stage at Woodstock, 638 00:32:21,172 --> 00:32:22,999 they played a couple of their old songs 639 00:32:23,000 --> 00:32:25,481 and then launched right into "Tommy". 640 00:32:25,482 --> 00:32:28,516 They did the entire rock opera for an audience 641 00:32:28,517 --> 00:32:32,309 that was probably very familiar with the material. 642 00:32:32,310 --> 00:32:36,067 Just as Roger Daltrey is singing, "See me, feel me," 643 00:32:36,068 --> 00:32:38,896 at the end of the rock opera, the sun is coming up. 644 00:32:45,206 --> 00:32:47,999 - Performers on day three included Joe Cocker, 645 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:50,999 Blood, Sweat and Tears, Crosby, Stills and Nash 646 00:32:51,000 --> 00:32:53,136 and Country Joe and the Fish. 647 00:32:53,137 --> 00:32:54,654 It hadn't been planned, 648 00:32:54,655 --> 00:32:57,965 but the need to constantly shift the lineup was a bonus. 649 00:32:59,551 --> 00:33:00,827 - That was a surprise. 650 00:33:02,586 --> 00:33:05,619 No, just the way the first day was basically folk music, 651 00:33:05,620 --> 00:33:08,688 the second day was acts that were really good 652 00:33:08,689 --> 00:33:11,102 and the third day was like one after the other 653 00:33:11,103 --> 00:33:13,516 of killer acts, so it built up. 654 00:33:13,517 --> 00:33:15,792 I think if the killer acts had opened the first day, 655 00:33:15,793 --> 00:33:17,205 it could have been bedlam, 656 00:33:17,206 --> 00:33:20,516 'cause the mosh pit might have been invented 657 00:33:20,517 --> 00:33:22,068 40 years earlier, you know. 658 00:33:29,241 --> 00:33:32,274 - While Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young had recently formed, 659 00:33:32,275 --> 00:33:34,412 Neil Young hadn't planned on appearing. 660 00:33:34,413 --> 00:33:37,274 - I don't remember at what point he actually walked onstage, 661 00:33:37,275 --> 00:33:38,964 but I remember he walked on. 662 00:33:38,965 --> 00:33:41,655 But he wasn't supposed to be there, he just showed up. 663 00:33:46,482 --> 00:33:48,447 It's a secret, guys, I'm letting a secret out 664 00:33:48,448 --> 00:33:50,895 and it's been let out, the fact that they were only act, 665 00:33:50,896 --> 00:33:52,102 'cause they were on Warner Brothers, 666 00:33:52,103 --> 00:33:54,999 that overdubbed in the Woodstock movie. 667 00:33:55,000 --> 00:33:56,309 They actually went in the studio, 668 00:33:56,310 --> 00:33:59,067 that's not them live at Woodstock on the record, 669 00:33:59,068 --> 00:34:01,205 although the song, "Suite Judy Blue Eyes" is one 670 00:34:01,206 --> 00:34:02,827 of the classics of all time. 671 00:34:04,310 --> 00:34:06,516 They were blown away, 'cause I know David, too. 672 00:34:06,517 --> 00:34:08,895 So they were just blown away, they were shocked. 673 00:34:08,896 --> 00:34:11,723 David even said, he says, "I'm scared shitless." 674 00:34:11,724 --> 00:34:13,619 He says, "This is our second gig, man." 675 00:34:13,620 --> 00:34:16,448 That's just what he said, you know, and they were scared. 676 00:34:23,413 --> 00:34:24,619 - Because of the delays, 677 00:34:24,620 --> 00:34:26,757 what began as a three-day festival, 678 00:34:26,758 --> 00:34:29,619 spilled over into part of a fourth day. 679 00:34:29,620 --> 00:34:33,550 One of the quirkier moments, Sha Na Na. 680 00:34:33,551 --> 00:34:35,033 - You gotta ask yourself, 681 00:34:35,034 --> 00:34:37,826 how in the world did Sha Na Na end up at Woodstock, 682 00:34:37,827 --> 00:34:40,240 especially sandwiched right in front of Jimi Hendrix, 683 00:34:40,241 --> 00:34:42,999 the opening act for Jimi Hendrix if you will. 684 00:34:43,000 --> 00:34:45,102 Sha Na Na, for those of you who don't know 685 00:34:45,103 --> 00:34:46,826 who Sha Na Na was, 686 00:34:46,827 --> 00:34:49,723 they had a very popular syndicated TV show 687 00:34:49,724 --> 00:34:52,964 in the '70s and '80s, but they were caricatures. 688 00:34:52,965 --> 00:34:57,205 They were doing '50s music and it was a shtick for them. 689 00:34:57,206 --> 00:34:59,378 And they knew it, these guys were intelligent guys, 690 00:34:59,379 --> 00:35:01,481 they were all Columbia students. 691 00:35:01,482 --> 00:35:03,792 How in the world did they get booked at Woodstock, 692 00:35:03,793 --> 00:35:05,412 I don't have a clue? 693 00:35:05,413 --> 00:35:06,999 Except maybe, 694 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:10,861 Michael Lang was down in the village some night 695 00:35:10,862 --> 00:35:13,861 and somebody said, "You gotta see this group," 696 00:35:13,862 --> 00:35:15,792 and he saw 'em and said, 697 00:35:15,793 --> 00:35:18,240 "Sure, you wanna come to Woodstock?" 698 00:35:18,241 --> 00:35:20,792 But to put them in the bill, 699 00:35:20,793 --> 00:35:24,205 the second to last act of the entire festival, 700 00:35:24,206 --> 00:35:25,827 right before Jimi Hendrix, 701 00:35:27,551 --> 00:35:29,930 I would think that the brown acid would have been doin' 702 00:35:29,931 --> 00:35:31,206 its work right about then. 703 00:35:32,655 --> 00:35:35,999 - And then one of the most iconic moments of Woodstock, 704 00:35:36,000 --> 00:35:37,447 Jimi Hendrix. 705 00:35:37,448 --> 00:35:39,930 - Quite honestly, I was disappointed, 706 00:35:39,931 --> 00:35:41,344 you know, when he first came. 707 00:35:42,758 --> 00:35:44,447 He came with his manager, Michael Jeffery, 708 00:35:44,448 --> 00:35:47,379 and he came on Sunday morning. 709 00:35:48,551 --> 00:35:50,309 I had a house in the back of the stage, 710 00:35:50,310 --> 00:35:53,033 up on a hill across the road for him, 711 00:35:53,034 --> 00:35:55,103 and I said, "Look," 712 00:35:56,517 --> 00:35:58,102 and part of the deal was he closes the show, 713 00:35:58,103 --> 00:36:00,343 and again made my way back, 714 00:36:00,344 --> 00:36:03,171 said, "That's not gonna be the best spot for you. 715 00:36:03,172 --> 00:36:04,792 "You really oughta think 716 00:36:04,793 --> 00:36:07,481 "about doing something at midnight, it'll be the high point 717 00:36:07,482 --> 00:36:08,792 "of the night," and blah, blah, blah. 718 00:36:08,793 --> 00:36:10,309 "No, we're closing the show." 719 00:36:10,310 --> 00:36:13,274 Because in those days and I guess it's still true today, 720 00:36:13,275 --> 00:36:17,792 whoever closes is the king, that's the big act. 721 00:36:17,793 --> 00:36:19,205 It's changed somewhat. 722 00:36:19,206 --> 00:36:21,205 People are starting to realize that there are spots 723 00:36:21,206 --> 00:36:24,205 in the show which are better. 724 00:36:24,206 --> 00:36:27,343 In any case, but they insisted so he went up onto the hill, 725 00:36:27,344 --> 00:36:29,688 and I was disappointed about the size of the crowd. 726 00:36:29,689 --> 00:36:33,033 He also had put together a band, "Band of Gypsys", 727 00:36:33,034 --> 00:36:35,930 which was kind of a pickup band, guys from Woodstock. 728 00:36:35,931 --> 00:36:39,343 Good players, you know, Juma, a congo player, good players, 729 00:36:39,344 --> 00:36:42,930 but not a great moment in his musical career. 730 00:36:42,931 --> 00:36:44,619 So the set I thought was kind of mediocre 731 00:36:44,620 --> 00:36:47,067 and there are maybe 30-40,000 people left 732 00:36:47,068 --> 00:36:49,136 and I felt it was a little sad to see that. 733 00:36:49,137 --> 00:36:50,412 The lights were gone 734 00:36:50,413 --> 00:36:51,723 and it was sort of the starkness of the day. 735 00:36:51,724 --> 00:36:53,309 And then he did the "Star Spangled Banner", 736 00:36:53,310 --> 00:36:56,102 it just changed everything. 737 00:36:56,103 --> 00:36:58,240 That was it, it was just one of those moments 738 00:36:58,241 --> 00:36:59,620 that said it all for us. 739 00:38:01,068 --> 00:38:05,033 - Woodstock was now over, leaving behind a major imprint 740 00:38:05,034 --> 00:38:09,136 on Max Yasgur's farmland, not to mention the culture. 741 00:38:09,137 --> 00:38:10,585 After those three-plus days, 742 00:38:10,586 --> 00:38:13,343 we had crossed into something else. 743 00:38:13,344 --> 00:38:15,655 Things would never be the same, ever. 744 00:38:23,827 --> 00:38:28,378 - What also made Woodstock successful was its legacy. 745 00:38:28,379 --> 00:38:31,102 The promoters brought in a film crew 746 00:38:31,103 --> 00:38:34,585 that documented every bit of the Woodstock Festival 747 00:38:34,586 --> 00:38:39,586 and that documentary won the 1970 Best Documentary Award 748 00:38:40,517 --> 00:38:43,309 at the Academy Awards that year. 749 00:38:43,310 --> 00:38:46,757 The soundtrack album, a triple album, 750 00:38:46,758 --> 00:38:50,378 made the music of Woodstock famous worldwide. 751 00:38:50,379 --> 00:38:52,688 And the musicians that played on that album 752 00:38:52,689 --> 00:38:54,930 became the soundtrack of our youth. 753 00:38:54,931 --> 00:38:58,206 It really was three days of peace and music. 754 00:38:59,620 --> 00:39:03,102 One of the lasting impacts of Woodstock is 755 00:39:03,103 --> 00:39:05,309 on the music industry, itself. 756 00:39:05,310 --> 00:39:09,205 The music industry at Woodstock realized 757 00:39:09,206 --> 00:39:12,723 that there is a large, large audience for this music 758 00:39:12,724 --> 00:39:14,826 and that there's a large audience, 759 00:39:14,827 --> 00:39:16,550 not just for the recorded music, 760 00:39:16,551 --> 00:39:18,826 but also for the performances. 761 00:39:18,827 --> 00:39:20,826 Of course, the Beatles had played Shea Stadium, 762 00:39:20,827 --> 00:39:23,826 Candlestick Park, a lot of other large venues, 763 00:39:23,827 --> 00:39:26,447 but they had the house PA, 764 00:39:26,448 --> 00:39:28,344 they didn't have great sound systems. 765 00:39:29,551 --> 00:39:32,723 At Woodstock there was a custom-made sound system 766 00:39:32,724 --> 00:39:33,724 for this venue. 767 00:39:35,068 --> 00:39:38,481 There was attention paid to having great sound 768 00:39:38,482 --> 00:39:43,067 over a large area for a large crowd. 769 00:39:43,068 --> 00:39:46,826 - That was the moment that made all of their careers, 770 00:39:46,827 --> 00:39:48,033 all of their careers. 771 00:39:48,034 --> 00:39:51,205 That was Crosby, Stills and Nash's first gig. 772 00:39:51,206 --> 00:39:52,826 Could you imagine? 773 00:39:52,827 --> 00:39:55,205 They made the record, it was on the radio, 774 00:39:55,206 --> 00:39:58,861 and they got to sing more than a quarter of, 775 00:39:58,862 --> 00:40:01,033 or half a million people, more. 776 00:40:01,034 --> 00:40:05,619 In three days, Woodstock, the Isle of Wight in England 777 00:40:05,620 --> 00:40:09,516 and Blind Faith as a band in the park over there was 778 00:40:09,517 --> 00:40:14,517 over a million and three-quarters of people in three events. 779 00:40:16,448 --> 00:40:17,999 Can't change that. 780 00:40:18,000 --> 00:40:20,447 We're now looking to have that event over and over and over, 781 00:40:20,448 --> 00:40:21,723 and we have it. 782 00:40:21,724 --> 00:40:25,516 It's here, it's in every venue, you know, around 783 00:40:25,517 --> 00:40:28,862 that's open to hear what people wanna do. 784 00:40:29,931 --> 00:40:32,000 So to me, that's the good part. 785 00:40:35,793 --> 00:40:37,654 - But what really sent a ripple out 786 00:40:37,655 --> 00:40:40,964 into the ether was something less tangible. 787 00:40:40,965 --> 00:40:44,585 - It certainly was mythological in its impact 788 00:40:44,586 --> 00:40:46,136 on the people that were there. 789 00:40:46,137 --> 00:40:47,723 I don't think you can exaggerate that. 790 00:40:47,724 --> 00:40:50,412 You could feel that the unity 791 00:40:50,413 --> 00:40:52,688 and the togetherness of that crowd, 792 00:40:52,689 --> 00:40:53,655 you can cut it with a knife. 793 00:40:53,656 --> 00:40:55,171 I mean, you could feel it, 794 00:40:55,172 --> 00:40:56,654 people who were passing through it could feel it, 795 00:40:56,655 --> 00:40:57,930 people on the thruway could feel it. 796 00:40:57,931 --> 00:40:59,964 It wasn't like some mysterious space, 797 00:40:59,965 --> 00:41:02,689 I say it was a real vibe that couldn't be denied. 798 00:41:04,275 --> 00:41:05,551 - I don't know. 799 00:41:06,758 --> 00:41:09,551 I don't know is the honest answer there. 800 00:41:10,862 --> 00:41:14,516 I certainly felt part of the event. 801 00:41:14,517 --> 00:41:19,517 A kind of a humanism that was part of the hippie-ethos 802 00:41:20,620 --> 00:41:21,895 that had a power 803 00:41:21,896 --> 00:41:25,654 and I guess it did give you the illusion 804 00:41:25,655 --> 00:41:27,964 of infinite possibilities. 805 00:41:27,965 --> 00:41:31,000 You know, hippie's never gonna be a bad word to me. 806 00:41:32,620 --> 00:41:37,620 I don't care how out of fashion the various lifestyle. 807 00:41:40,137 --> 00:41:45,137 I may not have my tie-dyed Levi jacket on, 808 00:41:45,793 --> 00:41:47,378 but it's on 809 00:41:47,379 --> 00:41:48,895 inside. 810 00:41:48,896 --> 00:41:53,620 But this rock and roll thing, man, this is like, 811 00:41:54,827 --> 00:41:58,102 and I don't know, it's still goin' on. 812 00:41:58,103 --> 00:42:02,826 It's still goin' on and music, global music, 813 00:42:02,827 --> 00:42:04,585 is never gonna be the same. 814 00:42:04,586 --> 00:42:06,585 We did it, 815 00:42:06,586 --> 00:42:10,379 we did it as a generation, as collection of people. 816 00:42:11,551 --> 00:42:15,481 From the audience, to the sound mixers, 817 00:42:15,482 --> 00:42:19,343 to the camera people, to those goofball promoters 818 00:42:19,344 --> 00:42:23,067 who got this crazy idea, to the venture capitalists, 819 00:42:23,068 --> 00:42:25,412 to the great guy who's cleanin' the toilet, 820 00:42:25,413 --> 00:42:28,792 who's got a kid in the audience and a kid in Vietnam, 821 00:42:28,793 --> 00:42:31,826 we just kicked their fuckin' ass! 822 00:42:31,827 --> 00:42:34,379 - What made Woodstock I think was just 823 00:42:39,103 --> 00:42:42,171 a right time, just a blending of a lot of different things 824 00:42:42,172 --> 00:42:45,343 that all came together, very much by accident, I think. 825 00:42:45,344 --> 00:42:49,103 It was just, boy, a very hard one to word. 826 00:42:50,586 --> 00:42:54,688 Enough people angry about what was happening in the world. 827 00:42:54,689 --> 00:42:58,136 Enough people thinking that the potential was there 828 00:42:58,137 --> 00:42:59,413 to change the world. 829 00:43:02,793 --> 00:43:04,826 There was a lot of hope that went on 830 00:43:04,827 --> 00:43:06,103 at that stage of the game. 831 00:43:07,517 --> 00:43:09,757 It wasn't just a matter of, "Let's go over and get wasted," 832 00:43:09,758 --> 00:43:11,723 or whatever, it was a matter of, 833 00:43:11,724 --> 00:43:13,758 "Let's try to do something." 834 00:43:15,689 --> 00:43:18,516 - Perhaps the most immediate legacy of Woodstock was felt 835 00:43:18,517 --> 00:43:20,171 just a few months later. 836 00:43:20,172 --> 00:43:24,136 On November 15, 1969, half a million people gathered 837 00:43:24,137 --> 00:43:27,930 in Washington D.C. to protest the Vietnam War. 838 00:43:27,931 --> 00:43:29,205 I was one of them. 839 00:43:29,206 --> 00:43:30,999 The collective power felt 840 00:43:31,000 --> 00:43:34,895 at Woodstock no doubt had an impact on the moratorium. 841 00:43:48,827 --> 00:43:50,895 After those three days in 1969, 842 00:43:50,896 --> 00:43:54,412 that same spirit would find its way into other festivals. 843 00:43:54,413 --> 00:43:57,999 One of the biggest, "Live Aid" in 1985. 844 00:43:58,000 --> 00:43:59,447 I was there, too. 845 00:43:59,448 --> 00:44:02,102 Two major concerts, one held in Philadelphia 846 00:44:02,103 --> 00:44:05,688 at JFK Stadium, the other at London's Wembley Arena, 847 00:44:05,689 --> 00:44:10,655 raised $127 million to fight the severe famine in Ethiopia. 848 00:44:17,758 --> 00:44:19,757 Like Woodstock, Live Aid featured some 849 00:44:19,758 --> 00:44:22,412 of the biggest music acts in the world, 850 00:44:22,413 --> 00:44:26,067 U2, Queen, Madonna, Paul McCartney. 851 00:44:26,068 --> 00:44:28,274 16 years after playing Woodstock, 852 00:44:28,275 --> 00:44:31,171 Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young reunited for the show, 853 00:44:31,172 --> 00:44:32,619 so did The Who. 854 00:44:32,620 --> 00:44:35,412 There would other big music events like Coachella, 855 00:44:35,413 --> 00:44:38,930 Bonnaroo, Glastonbury, Lollapalooza 856 00:44:38,931 --> 00:44:43,205 and there were two more runs at Woodstock, '94 and '99. 857 00:44:43,206 --> 00:44:44,757 - '94 was great. 858 00:44:44,758 --> 00:44:46,412 '94 had a real warm feeling, it was kind of a nice bridge 859 00:44:46,413 --> 00:44:48,930 between the older generation 860 00:44:48,931 --> 00:44:51,379 and we had a lot of parents came with their kids. 861 00:44:52,551 --> 00:44:55,861 We had a lot of the acts from the '69 era 862 00:44:55,862 --> 00:44:57,309 as well as newer acts. 863 00:44:57,310 --> 00:44:58,930 '99 was much edgier. 864 00:44:58,931 --> 00:45:01,205 Much too edgy, actually, as it turned out. 865 00:45:01,206 --> 00:45:03,654 You wind up having to make compromises 866 00:45:03,655 --> 00:45:06,205 because of corporate involvement. 867 00:45:06,206 --> 00:45:09,309 I'm never one who had a problem with art and commerce. 868 00:45:09,310 --> 00:45:11,102 I always thought there was a way, 869 00:45:11,103 --> 00:45:12,482 but you pay a price for it. 870 00:45:13,965 --> 00:45:16,343 So I think that the purity 871 00:45:16,344 --> 00:45:19,723 of what we did in 1969 was unique. 872 00:45:31,758 --> 00:45:34,412 - One of the more recent echoes of Woodstock occurred 873 00:45:34,413 --> 00:45:37,343 when the students of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School 874 00:45:37,344 --> 00:45:39,309 in Parkland, Florida, mobilized 875 00:45:39,310 --> 00:45:43,585 after a mass shooting at their school in February of 2018. 876 00:45:43,586 --> 00:45:46,481 Just a month later, these high school students organized 877 00:45:46,482 --> 00:45:49,447 the global "March For Our Lives" protests, 878 00:45:49,448 --> 00:45:52,585 advocating for stricter gun control laws. 879 00:45:52,586 --> 00:45:56,999 On a single day, 800 simultaneous protests took place 880 00:45:57,000 --> 00:45:58,171 around the world. 881 00:45:58,172 --> 00:46:01,481 1.2 million people joined in, making it one 882 00:46:01,482 --> 00:46:05,378 of the biggest youth protest events since Vietnam. 883 00:46:05,379 --> 00:46:08,757 Arlo Guthrie recalls the same kind of determined thinking 884 00:46:08,758 --> 00:46:10,757 from Woodstock-era kids. 885 00:46:10,758 --> 00:46:13,205 - Most people I knew just wanted to hang out. 886 00:46:13,206 --> 00:46:16,792 Go to school, meet your girlfriend, eat a pizza, 887 00:46:16,793 --> 00:46:21,033 drive around somewhere, look at a sunset or whatever, 888 00:46:21,034 --> 00:46:23,240 play some music, have a good time. 889 00:46:23,241 --> 00:46:25,310 Well that was true for everybody. 890 00:46:28,000 --> 00:46:29,930 We thought we were normal! 891 00:46:29,931 --> 00:46:32,964 And they were tellin' us that we were nuts. 892 00:46:32,965 --> 00:46:35,274 That we were criminals. 893 00:46:35,275 --> 00:46:37,172 That we were acting in a way 894 00:46:38,137 --> 00:46:40,999 that was contributing 895 00:46:41,000 --> 00:46:43,861 to the demise 896 00:46:43,862 --> 00:46:45,550 of civilization 897 00:46:45,551 --> 00:46:48,930 and we knew that they were nuts. 898 00:46:48,931 --> 00:46:52,654 That their way of doin' things had got us to this point. 899 00:46:52,655 --> 00:46:54,619 We thought, you know, we gotta do somethin' different. 900 00:46:54,620 --> 00:46:57,378 So everybody started doin' things a little different. 901 00:46:57,379 --> 00:47:00,826 So there was a whole lot of young people all over the world 902 00:47:00,827 --> 00:47:03,309 who said, "Enough of that, we can always get back to it, 903 00:47:03,310 --> 00:47:05,481 "but we gotta try somethin' different here." 904 00:47:05,482 --> 00:47:08,102 Maybe a little love and peace. 905 00:47:08,103 --> 00:47:09,964 Maybe a little gettin' along. 906 00:47:09,965 --> 00:47:12,654 Maybe a little get away from the fear 907 00:47:12,655 --> 00:47:15,723 and all that kind of stuff would help. 908 00:47:15,724 --> 00:47:17,688 So we actually started doin' it. 909 00:47:17,689 --> 00:47:20,516 These were brave kids who would stand out there 910 00:47:20,517 --> 00:47:21,688 with flowers in their hands, 911 00:48:28,139 --> 00:48:31,242 givin' them to soldiers with loaded guns. 912 00:48:31,243 --> 00:48:33,586 So these were not just some wimpy kids 913 00:48:33,587 --> 00:48:35,173 with nothin' else to do, these were people 914 00:48:35,174 --> 00:48:39,449 who were willin' to face even death at some point. 915 00:48:39,450 --> 00:48:41,793 Because they knew that what they were thinkin' about, 916 00:48:41,794 --> 00:48:44,724 what was in their heart was at least a better alternative 917 00:48:44,725 --> 00:48:46,517 to the way things had been goin', 918 00:48:46,518 --> 00:48:48,690 at a time when people begin to realize 919 00:48:48,691 --> 00:48:51,586 that they do have the wherewithal, 920 00:48:51,587 --> 00:48:54,862 they do have the inner strength to do those kinds of things. 921 00:48:54,863 --> 00:48:57,380 And so that will be the next revolution 922 00:48:57,381 --> 00:48:59,862 that I predict we'll see is that 923 00:48:59,863 --> 00:49:02,069 there'll be hundreds of thousands 924 00:49:02,070 --> 00:49:04,759 and then millions of people, young people, 925 00:49:04,760 --> 00:49:06,897 who decide on their own not to wait to see 926 00:49:06,898 --> 00:49:09,380 what the President says, or who he or she is, 927 00:49:09,381 --> 00:49:11,759 not to wait to see what the Congress has to say, 928 00:49:11,760 --> 00:49:14,793 just in your own heart, you know somethin' right, 929 00:49:14,794 --> 00:49:16,759 you go ahead and you do it. 930 00:49:16,760 --> 00:49:21,760 - I think the lasting legacy is people being heard 931 00:49:23,208 --> 00:49:27,035 and either that's through the music that they express, 932 00:49:27,036 --> 00:49:28,828 the causes that they support, 933 00:49:28,829 --> 00:49:32,828 or what they speak to power to communicate. 934 00:49:32,829 --> 00:49:36,586 And the lasting legacy has to be standing up for right. 935 00:49:36,587 --> 00:49:40,104 Woodstock isn't just about those three days in 1969, 936 00:49:40,105 --> 00:49:42,311 Woodstock is a feeling that lives today 937 00:49:42,312 --> 00:49:45,173 and it lives in a lot of people's hearts. 938 00:49:45,174 --> 00:49:48,035 We hope that young people will look 939 00:49:48,036 --> 00:49:50,655 at the legacy of the 1960s, 940 00:49:50,656 --> 00:49:53,828 the legacy of the Woodstock Festival, and ask themselves, 941 00:49:53,829 --> 00:49:56,138 what do I want from the world today 942 00:49:56,139 --> 00:49:57,760 and how will I get that? 943 00:50:04,760 --> 00:50:08,449 - It's been 50 years since four young entrepreneurs took 944 00:50:08,450 --> 00:50:10,517 their idea for a local festival 945 00:50:10,518 --> 00:50:13,035 at an obscure New York art colony 946 00:50:13,036 --> 00:50:17,138 and turned it into a defining moment of the 20th century. 947 00:50:17,139 --> 00:50:19,759 Clothes may have changed, the music, too, 948 00:50:19,760 --> 00:50:23,828 wars have stopped and sadly started again, 949 00:50:23,829 --> 00:50:27,138 but for those that were there, and for those who weren't, 950 00:50:27,139 --> 00:50:29,759 Woodstock's impact has not dimmed. 951 00:50:29,760 --> 00:50:33,414 It's felt in every impulse to create change, 952 00:50:33,415 --> 00:50:35,414 to disrupt the status quo, 953 00:50:35,415 --> 00:50:38,345 to evolve both culturally and personally. 954 00:50:38,346 --> 00:50:41,207 To paraphrase Joni Mitchell in her famous anthem 955 00:50:41,208 --> 00:50:44,380 about the event, "Life is for learning." 956 00:50:44,381 --> 00:50:45,862 A half a century later, 957 00:50:45,863 --> 00:50:49,380 the lessons of Woodstock are still being revealed. 958 00:50:49,381 --> 00:50:52,586 I'm Mark Goodman, thanks for watching.