15 Woodstock Artists Reflect on the Historic Festival

Even five and a half decades later, Woodstock remains a monumental event in the memories of many, both performers and attendees.

The three-day festival began on August 15, 1969, featuring over 150 musicians playing to hundreds of thousands of people. The energy was so palpable that even those miles away could feel it. Joni Mitchell, who didn’t attend the festival, was inspired to write a song about it, which CSNY turned into a hit: “Said I’m going down to Yasgur’s Farm / Gonna join in a rock ‘n’ roll band / Got to get back to the land / Set my soul free.”

With all the drugs and alcohol, memories of Woodstock for those who did play can be a bit hazy. However, there are still plenty of recollections. Here’s a look at 15 rock acts and their thoughts about playing Woodstock.

Arlo Guthrie, the son of the folk pioneer Woody Guthrie, remembered joking, “I remember gettin’ there, but I don’t remember leavin’.” However, he did have fond memories of the event. In a 2009 interview with Smithsonian magazine, Guthrie recalled, “It was plainly evident from the size of the crowd and the overwhelming factors like weather, roads, and food that we were in the middle of a disaster. And we knew it was historic in proportion.”

Joan Baez, already a historical figure in her own right by the time she hit the Woodstock stage, found the event surreal. In a 2009 interview with Rolling Stone, she said, “Everybody was crazy.” Reflecting on the festival 50 years later, she told The New York Times, “I was always an outsider. One, I was a girl. And two, I didn’t do drugs or drink alcohol.”

Santana, playing their first gig outside of their hometown of San Francisco, found the experience transformative. “There was a saloon of some sort that for a week and a half we made into a jam place,” recalled percussionist Michael Carabello to SFGate in 2009. Keyboardist Gregg Rolie noted in a 2014 interview, “I’ve always said that if you played at Woodstock, you had a career.”

Leslie West of Mountain vividly remembered the backstage food situation. “There were bagels backstage, and they were going real quick,” he told Rolling Stone in 1989. “Our manager brought barbecued chickens up in the helicopter…we were the only ones with food.”

Grateful Dead members Bob Weir and Mickey Hart felt their performance was subpar. “You don’t see festivals that draw half a million people any more,” Hart said to The Detroit News. Weir added, “Some people made their careers at Woodstock, but we’ve spent about 20 years making up for it.”

Creedence Clearwater Revival had to follow a disjointed set by the Grateful Dead and hit the stage around 2:30 a.m. “About halfway through, I went to the microphone and said, ‘We’re playing our hearts out for you and want you to have a good time,'” John Fogerty told the Los Angeles Times in 2019. Drummer Doug Clifford noted, “It was another walk in the park; that’s what we do it for.”

The Who’s Roger Daltrey stated that Woodstock might have been their worst gig. “It was a particularly hard one for me because of the state of the equipment,” he told The New York Times in 2019. Pete Townshend echoed the sentiment, sharing, “Well, it changed me; I hated it.”

Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen noted, “The thing that really hit me was the sense of identity and community.” However, Grace Slick found Woodstock logistically challenging. “For us, it wasn’t quite as marvelous as it might be for somebody who’s 18 years old,” she said.

For Country Joe McDonald, playing Woodstock was life-changing. “I never had a plan for a career in music, so Woodstock changed my life,” he told The New York Times in 2017. Guitarist Barry “The Fish” Melton described the movie made out of the festival as the “best paying minute I ever spent in my life.”

The Band, who moved to Woodstock in 1967, found performing for such a large crowd shocking. “It seemed as though the kids were looking at us kind of funny,” Robbie Robertson recalled to Rolling Stone in 1989.

Johnny Winter remembered Woodstock primarily for the mud. “I played Sunday around midnight. It was probably the time of the largest attendance, and the weather was great at that time,” he told The Repository in 2009.

Sly Stone of Sly and the Family Stone recalled their performance as electrifying. “Did I feel the moment as pressure? I knew we had to live up to it,” he wrote in his 2023 memoir.

David Clayton-Thomas of Blood, Sweat & Tears was struck by the peaceful nature of the event. “There was not one assault reported,” he told The Western Gazette in 2009. Steve Katz, however, felt the lack of intimacy made it a difficult gig.

When Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young performed at Woodstock, it was only their second time playing together. Graham Nash admitted, “I thought we did a lousy set,” in a 1989 interview with Rolling Stone. Stephen Stills reflected on the irony of the peace symbolized by the festival amid ongoing war.

Sha Na Na, the only doo-wop revival group at Woodstock, stood out. Henry Gross, the youngest performer at 18, recalled getting stoned with Jerry Garcia and other iconic musicians.

Even today, the memories of Woodstock continue to resonate with performers and attendees alike.

source: smithsonian, rolling stone, sfgate, the new york times, los angeles times, the detroit news, rock celler, culture sonar, the guardian, the western gazette, radio new zealand, the independent, the repository