Live at Woodstock, 51 years ago. I was there only in spirit – the few festivals I can remember physically attending are Clitheroe Castle, 1972, July Wakes at Charnock Richard in 1976 and a folk event in Chester that same year where I tried and failed to get off with June Tabor.
Jefferson Airplane: White Rabbit
Square
That’s a STUNNING performance – what a great singer she is! I don’t think that was in the original Woodstock film was it? I saw the Woodstock film at the Manchester Apollo many years ago, when it was still sometimes used as a cinema. My favourites in the film were Santana; their performance was great, and the film technique, split-screen cutting the audience in with the group, was very effective. It was Santana’s breakthrough I think.
My teenage pals at the time thought Ten Years After were the best thing on the film, but I hated them!
Jefferson Airplane are fantastic; “Eskimo Blue Day” on the Woodstock LP is another great one.
I was also at Woodstock in spirit, although only aged 4! One festival I would love to have been at is Glastonbury in 1971; I’ve seen the full list of groups who played that year and every one was a legendary name in the type of music I like.
I haven’t been to many festivals, although I attended Fairport’s Cropredy festival (originally not called a festival just a reunion) many times.
The last festival I went to was Leeds in the early 2000s; I went there to see the New York Dolls and the MC5, both of whom were fantastic and played in the afternoon when the crowd was quite sparse and the sun was out. The White Stripes were the top turn; I liked them at the time but they were pretty poor on the night, and it was pouring down. Festivals are only for good weather.