Woodstock

I was too young to be at Woodstock in 1969.  Besides, I was more into sports than music growing up.  My husband, however, is older than me and has been into music all his life.  He did go to the festival and enjoyed many of the thirty-two musical groups that performed between Aug. 15-18^th.  Woodstock was not actually held in Woodstock, but rather in the town of Bethel, in the Catskills in New York.  It is regarded as a pivotal moment in music’s history. As a Woodstock attendee, he agreed to an interview.

How old were you when you went to Woodstock?

17

How did you get your parents to let you go? 

I just asked; they knew I was interested in music and bands.  My friend Roger bought tickets and it wasn’t a big deal. To them it was a concert in New York.  They didn’t know the scale of it; no one did until after it happened.

Who did you go with?

My friends Roger and Joel.  We were all in a band together.  I saw one other person I knew there, but that was it.

What happened when you arrived?

When we got close to the festival on Thursday, the traffic was ridiculous.  We had a map and found an alternate route around the traffic and luckily drove right in.  We parked, set up our tent, and then we walked to the concert area.  The barriers and fences had already been pushed down at the entrance, and the people who were taking tickets had already given up trying to collect tickets.  So, I still have mine.

Do you know where the ticket is now?

Yes, as of last year, it is in one of those enclosed shadow boxes on the wall in our family room along with some other guitar and music related items.   It’s cool to have it out where others can see it.

Did one band stick out as being unbelievably great?

The whole experience was great.  No one band stuck out, but there were a few I can mention.  The Who, Sly and the Family Stone, Carlos Santana, and Joe Cocker were the highlight for me. We left on Sunday afternoon after the big rainstorm because we were tired, soaked, and cold, so unfortunately I missed Hendrix, who played on the last day (Monday).

Who else did you miss?

Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Ten Years After, and others who played that day, but Hendrix was the biggest one I was most disappointed to have missed.

Tell us about the rain.

There was some rain on Friday night and our sleeping bags got wet.  Then there was a big summer thunderstorm with heavy rain and wind for about an hour on Sunday.  The music stopped because of the thunder, and everyone just sat there trying to stay dry under anything they could.  

What about all we have heard about the drugs and alcohol?  Was it exaggerated?

I don’t remember a lot of alcohol, but there was a lot of pot and LSD.  For the most part, most people were keeping it together. 

How much sleep did you get?

We tried to sleep Friday night, but stayed up all night Saturday listening to Sly and the Family Stone, The Who, and then Jefferson Airplane, who went on just after sunrise on Sunday morning.  The music pretty much played all day and night with some breaks now and then.

Were adults there too?

My impression was that the people there were in their teens and twenties.  It was all the younger generation.

What was the most interesting or surprising thing you saw, not music related?

Just the overall impression of hugeness.  I wasn’t surprised by anything other than the size of it and how many people there were.

Is there anything else you want to say about the experience?

If I could sum it up, the whole experience was punctuated by some great music, with kind of a mild physical discomfort from the heat and wetness, in the middle of half a million people. 

Was it worth going?

Definitely.  I wouldn’t have missed it.