Woodstock: Three Days of Peace and Music

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Recommended: Essays on the history of Woodstock

Woodstock, presumably named after the Peanuts cartoon character, became known as most popular music festival in US history, after the three day concert involving; sex, drugs and Rock & Roll took over the town of Bethel, New York. “It is acknowledged as the defining moment of the rock-driven counterculture of the late 1960’s, when half a million fans descended on a small farm in upstate New York for what was promised to be “3 days of peace & music.” (Evans 8) What started as a simple investment proposal to help four young men open a recording studio and retreat for New York musicians, ended with over a half of million people crammed into a 600-acre dairy farm, riddled with muddy, half (fully) naked, and completely “stoned” hippies.
John Roberts, heir to a pharmaceutical fortune, and his friend, Joel Rosenman were looking for ways to invest Roberts’ money in such a way that would make them more money. They placed an ad in the New York Times stating they had capital and were looking for business propositions. Soon, they were introduced to Artie Kornfield and Mike Lang. These four young men would become the organizers of this raving spectacle musicfest.
Plans started with the idea they would hold a two-day rock concert in Wallkill, New York, for approximately 50,000 people in hopes it would raise enough money to pay for their recording studio. They sold tickets for one day, two day, and three day passes via mail or in stores. Over time, they began hiring security guards, signing bands and musicians, and organizing concessions. They thought they had everything thought of until one by one things began falling apart. The town of Wallkill immediately began boycotting the concert which ended up passing a law on July 2, 1969 bann...

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...dollars and had over 70 lawsuits. Warner brothers released a hit documentary film called “Woodstock” (IMDB) which thanks to the profits, helped them pay off all but $100,000 of the debt. They had no idea they’d be creating the most popular music event in history.

Works Cited

Cocker, Joe. "I get by with a little help from my friends." Live at Woodstock. Rec. 17 Aug. 1969. A&M Records, 2009. MP3.
Evans, Mike, and Paul Kingsbury. “Woodstock; Three Days That Rocked the World.” New York, New York. 2009. Print.
Rosenberg, Jennifer. "The Woodstock Festival of 1969.” About.com. 20th Century History. Web. 4 Apr 2014.
“Woodstock in 1969: 50 moments that changed the history of rock & roll.” Rolling Stone. 24 June 2004. Web. 4 Apr 2014
America's Historical Newspapers - 1690-2000. American History through the News. “The Concerts at Woodstock and Altamont”. Web. 4 Apr 2004.

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