Peaceful Protest
The Woodstock festival lasted three days, and during that time, the audience of half a million people truly promoted the concepts of peace and love. There was not a single incidence of violence during the entirety of the festival. Well, there was one incident, but it came from a band member, not from the peaceful audience. It occurred on-stage, as Abbie Hoffman tried to jump onto the stage during a break in The Who’s set.
Hoffman took the mic and began a semi-coherent rant about freeing John Sinclair from jail, when Pete Townshend turned, yelled at Hoffman to get off “my stage,” and hit him on the head with his guitar. Hoffman hobbled off the stage, and the angry members of The Who finished their set.
Free Festival
Woodstock ventures, which organized the festival, sold nearly 100,000 tickets prior to the first day of the festival. Almost half a million people attended Woodstock, so you do the math. Over 300,000 people decided to come to Woodstock, even though they did not have a ticket for the monumental event.
Nobody knew it was going to be such a huge deal, and the organizers were definitely not ready for such a huge turnout. People started getting to the festival two days before it even started. There were so many people that it was absolutely impossible to control the situation, and that is when Woodstock became free!
Peace & Love
At such a huge event, one can only imagine how hard it was to see the bands perform. Either you were too far back, or not tall enough to see over the people in front of you. This photo captures the feeling!
This photo is quintessential Woodstock. You can see by their face how much they're enjoying the music, and you can almost feel the joy they are exuding.
In the Zone
You would think that most people would attend a music festival to hear and enjoy the music. But that was not always the case. It seems a lot of people came to Woodstock to simply be around other people and play their own instruments. By doing so, they were able to entertain the other concert-goers between sets.
Photographed here is a hippie, complete with long hair and a beard. He got himself on a top platform, the perfect place to play his guitar between sets. He seems completely content being in his own world, playing his own music, while waiting for the entertainment to begin.
A Weekend to Remember
Aside from the 32 incredible performances happening at Woodstock, there was also a ton of time to just relax and hang out with your friends around the farm.
This photograph is a great example of that. People seem to be completely content sitting in the forest. They are enjoying the Great Outdoors and enjoying the company of others. The clothing hanging in the trees is amazing to see in this photo. Maybe they were drying them from the rain, or maybe they were making makeshift tents to sleep in. Nobody seems to mind the fact that they are wet and covered in mud, they are just having a good time.