Woodstock Music and Art Fair

Woodstock Music and Art Fair was three days of music, drugs, peace, sex and "freedom" on Max Yasgur's 600 acre dairy farm in Bethel, New York. Woodstock could have been better than it was considering the bands. The promoters of Woodstock could not get the more famous bands and musicians that they wanted such as John Lennon and Led Zeppelin. They got musicians that no one even knew and even people from the audience to perform. Paul Butterfield, a Woodstock resident, was an 11th-hour addition. It was more of 3 days of amateur hour. The drugs also diminished the talented musicians. They couldn't remember lyrics or even stand up without falling down. These drugs also affected the audience because they rock stars were doing drugs; it inspired those in the crowd to do them also. Some of the more popular drugs were marijuana or "grass" and LSD, which was used to spike the drinks of the musicians. The crowd would use these drugs to "groove" to the music. The sound equipment also failed multiple times. Sly Stone told the audience that some of the equipment wasn't working properly. Grateful Dead's set was cut short after the stage amps overloaded during "Turn On Your Love Light". Often considered the start of a musical revolution, Woodstock did celebrate music such as folk, rock and roll, soul, and R&B. It was a time of peace and love between everyone. Soul and the African American music were not represented very well and slowly grow throughout the years through James Brown, Aretha Franklin, and Stevie Wonder. The producers of the three disk album "Woodstock: Music from the Original Soundtrack and More," released in 1970, and "Woodstock 2," which was released fourteen months later, were edited to fix or cover up the mistakes that the musicians made. These changes created the myth that Woodstock was the most amazing musical milestone in history. The shouts that can be heard on the album were actually actors in a recording studio in Hollywood. The sad thing is that not all of the songs that were played at Woodstock were not recorded or released until 2009; but some songs were not even released. The crowds that packed the lawn at Woodstock were so large that they closed down highways. Even though the crowds were so large and freakish looking, they behaved surprisingly well.

Woodstock did however introduce a new way of music journalism. The journalism world got hip very quick. After those people who want to reminisce of the peace and music filled three days and nights at Woodstock, they will be fully aware of the fact that there were many more music festivals that had much better rock and pop musicians and tunes. The whole festival in Bethel, New York in general was a bit of a disappointment when it came to the music; but was still enjoyable even with the difficulties. There is no denying the fact that the overall enjoyment factor of all who attended and all who enjoy