The Goose Lake International Music Festival was held August 7-9, 1970 at Goose Lake Park, in Leoni, Michigan. I still have the scar and fine memories of the music and lightshow from that weekend. On August 15th, I finished training and started a weeks leave. Before they pulled away, one said over the loud speaker, You look groovy and gave us the peace sign. We were all choking on some kind of powder that was in the air! It was mostly the McGuinn/Clarence White show at that point (A great show at that!). Second was Woodstock,which ended 53 years ago today. The gal who said Jimi H was there probably saw him at the Atlanta Pop Fest the next year, July 1970..played a killer Star Spangled Banner at midnight with fireworks resembling our flag. Janis Joplin, Sam and Dave, Sly and the Family Stone, Santana, Canned Heat, the Grass Roots, B. The Aldergrove Beach Rock Festival took place in 1969 and attracted about 30,000 people at a time when outdoor concerts were still a rarity and the prospect of so many young hippies gathered in . One of my most cherished memories. Richard Songer, Russ Gibb, Tom Wright. Its a shame no one talks about this festival. As it was held at a horse racing track, AC Pop undeniably put out a very different vibe than that of Woodstock. Held at the University of Oregons Hayward Field on July 26, 1969. Isnt it weird how so many of us who were there remember so little detail about it? This Michigan Festival will have fine art, fine craft, crafts, film, homegrown products and antique/collectibles exhibitors, and no food booths. The crowd felt bad and cheered her back to the stage. I was at the Saturday show-lot of B groupsBB King, Biff Rose, Tim Buckley, Butterfield Blues Band, also, American Dream, Jefferson Airplane. Yes, thats exactly how I remember her set. Go figure. The participation of the White Panther Party and the affiliated Serve the People (STP) Coalition added some "street credibility" to the event. Earthwork Harvest Gathering - September 16-18. I was still recovering from that experience 2 weeks later when Woodstock went off. He left behind a wife, son, daughter in-law and grand-daughter. The festival was hosted and promoted by Tony Lawrence, a New York night club singer. Hendrix absolutely was there. .and finally, the last festival of the 1960s. I was hopelessly hooked on the rock music scene from coast to coast and almost every one of my icons was there. Best Classic Bands Editor Jeff Tamarkin has been a prolific music journalist for more than four decades. I went with girlfriend from Cape Cod on a 175 Bridgestone motorcycle and we arrived and camped on the grounds for two nights. The Texas festival was held only two weeks after the legendary Woodstock festival in Woodstock, New York. A Festival organized by Grass Lake Heritage Day Festival. We sat in the AC Racetrack stands, and it was pretty orderly. She was still pretty unknown and was upset that the audience wasnt really listening to her. Held August 30 through September 1, 1969, at the Dallas International Motor Speedway in Lewisville, the event was produced in part by Angus Wynne III of Wynne Entertainment. After he retrieved his long duffle bag from the back seat I reached over to close the door and he said wait, this is for you. she wasnt booed off stage; she was ignored off stage because people couldnt hear her acoustic set (solo piano/vocals)i was very close to the stage when she went on and i could hardly hear her myselfunfortunately for her, she was scheduled during a part of the day with a lot of very loud bands and her sound just got lost. Id love to see those AC pictures. I remember it raining while Janis was performing and she stepped into a puddle and got shocked. On Sunday, after all possible tickets had been sold, the promoter announced from the stage that he was declaring it a free festival. Some memories are Procul Harums Salty Dog complimented by the local seagulls was so cool! Previous Post Beatles Say Legalize Grass Next Post 1969 Seattle Pop Festival. I was there. The festival attracted approximately 150,000. The Doors arrived only minutes before taking the stage and played an extended set (70 minutes instead of 45 minutes) to make up for the missing bands. me 15 him 16. It was the only time The Doors and Led Zeppelin were on the same bill. No groovy babies were born. I have referred to it often as the precursor to Woodstock. Many thanks for this article. Alan (Blind Owl) Wilson - guitar, harp, vocals. It was fabulous music! This the 8mm film that w. We camped just outside the racetrack gate on the lawn next to the Garden State Parkway. [8] Rod Stewart enjoyed his Friday night performance so much that he stayed to watch Alvin Lee perform with Ten Years After the following night.[8]. [NYT article]. She wrote the song and Crosby, Stills, and Nash made a hit of it. Took us there on Sunday. played their entire 1st album, introducing 16-year-old drummer Mike Shrieve to the world!, as did Chicago Transit Authority, whom most hadnt yet heard of. I was there and will never forget it.. Inna godda davita went on for hours it seemed with streamers of toilet paper flying .I had a front seat to the show , I was there & have told many people that it was the Woodstock prequel but better due to the amazing lineup of artists, and most people think I am crazy because it has been largely lost to the dustbin of history. This entry belongs to the following Handbook Special Projects: We are a community-supported, non-profit organization and we humbly ask for your support because the careful and accurate recording of our history has never been more important. Absolutely one of the best weekends of my life! Back then it wasnt a cliche song and I think they were the only group there that had a current Top Ten hit on AM radio, which was the standard then. King said he was playing for the 1st time in 13 years broke into tears when he felt MASSIVE love! Approximately 100,000 people attended. Progressive music was just not her thing though so we wound up leaving before the Jefferson Airplane had even finished. Fishing: Grass Lake has an abundance of angling opportunities. Bands that did perform: The Doors,Them, AliceCooper, Rockin Foo, J Geils Band, Peter, River, Truth, The Bumps, and Zu. To get to Woodstockwe took a bus from NY to Bethel. I saw mention here of a group called AUM. So we watched some of the performances from afar and some on the TV screens in the grand stand. Tickets for the W.C. A ticket for all three shows cost $15 (or single days for $6) and allowed the holder either a seat in the stands or the right to roam the open field in front of the stage. The show featured Iron Butterfly, King Crimson (Robin Fripp and Greg Lake), Jefferson Airplane, Rotary Connection (Minnie Ripperton), PG&E, Rolling Stones, Vanilla Fudge, Janis Joplin and Her Full Tilt Boogie Band, Johnny Winters, and others. Handy Memorial Concert in the Mid-South Coliseum on Sunday June 8th. Saturdays schedule mixed jazz acts such as Miles Davis and Dave Brubeck with others including John Mayall and Sly & the Family Stone. We called it Tranquility Base as the festival was 12 days after Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. Nearly 30 years later I happened to be in a Johannesburg bar when Richie Havens and his accompianist turned up unannounced and played a set. At one point on the opening day, in fact, a stage announcement was made to the effect that those who were worried about being busted for drugs could chill; there were probably a few narcs among the crowd but they were unlikely to cause any problems. Ive done a separate blog entries for each one and festival title is a link you can find out more them. [9] There was a report of a rape by a group of bikers while The Stooges were performing. Your email address will not be published. He asked that they please move out, because if someone happened to fry themselves he would have to stop playing for a few minutes while they fixed the short. Looking Glass didnt have Brandy until 1972 and were definitely not at Atlantic City. He made his way int othe infield next to the stage and exposed himself. What a fun time that was! It was a journey packed with memorable experiences. When they broke into Time Has Come Today, I nearly lost mind. I went there with a different friend. But it definitely happened. We came late because she was was working that night at the Dairy Barn in Woodbury Heights so we only saw a couple of bands. Promotional poster for the Goose Lake International Music Festival. Crosby was a disruptive force in the band . Most of us werent even aware of what happened until it was over. The audience wasnt ready to settle down when Joni came on, with her quiet music and just her piano. I came expecting to see the Chambers Brothers and Time was tremendous and well done. It was so late that I missed the last train to the suburbs (Media, PA). I proudly display it with other memorabilia I have from that era. Went into town to get more Drambuie where it was forbidden to be on the boardwalk without a shirt and shoes. Every dollar helps. The Goose Lake International Music Festival held August 7-9, 1970 in Leoni Township, Michigan, "was one of the largest music events of its era", [1] and featured many of the top rock music bands of the period. B. Handbook of Texas Online, [2], Before the festival, concerned local officials sought a temporary restraining order to prevent the event, but a judge denied the request. It was not declared a disaster area. I also was there for one of the greatest experiences of my life. [3] The backstage area had a tent where 20 to 30 groupies described as "sizzlers" were available for the performers. The paying ticketholders were in the stands but these new invaders were able to go right up to the stage the party had moved on to the infield and the ticketholders came down to party too. Go on a Cookie Tour all around the Village or visit the lighted Fairy Forest. Festival will be held at the Grass Lake Community Events Park; 5K Run / Walk will be held Friday, July 8th (Register here)Car Show will be held Saturday, July 9th from 12PM to 4PM (Registration is $5) I thought it was 4 songs and as a Canadian who already loved her music, tI was heratbroken. Get more details. The crowd was very noisy, so she walked off the stage during her first song, which was slow. It might have given us at least a taste of what Woodstock was like for the thousands who showed up at Max Yasgurs farm two weeks later. So the story goes. We had tickets, but it was so crowded that we could not get down to the seats where my friends were who had come earlier that day. Yea, it totally blew me away. Music was first rate. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Some of the same bands CCR and Procol Harum stood out for me but there were so many great performances. I missed AC, got within a few miles of Woodstock. I was broken hearted when she walked off. I was there, too. I miss those times, I do. Atlanta International Raceway, Hampton, GA, July 12, 1969, beginning on July 12 and running on Saturdays during July and August, the 1969 Forest Hills Music Festival (Queens, NYC) featured a variety of performers including Janis Joplin, Richie Havens, Blood Sweat and Tears, and Johnny Wint, The Doors were billed as the headliner for the third day. When the festival was first being put together,Led Zeppelin was still gaining momentum. Then walked off stage. Its NO wonder why Woodstock became so huge. The Denver Police were forced to employ riot tactics to protect the gates. About Janis performance, Rolling Stone in her obit not much more than a year later called it one of her finest performances. No trees inside, no shade, Fourth of July in Georgia. The Chambers Brothers, 5th Dimension, Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder, The Staple Singers, and Sly & the Family Stone. The Woodstock Festival (a.k.a. 51 1969 Festivals +1. Od 10 let se vnuju hudb, he na kytaru a poslechu hudby. (very tall) and also stuck my head in the speakers ! I hardly remember anything except the Airplane, one of my all time favorite groups. A drought of rain and grass made it miserable except for the music. We were stuck in that awful traffic jam on Friday night and never got within ten miles of the concert site before leaving Saturday afternoon. James Head, Harvey (The Snake) Mandel - guitar. Only shaky, amateur-shot 8mm silent-film clips are found on YouTube. Wow, cool. The third act was a Philadelphia band American Dream who had Al Cooper playing with them that day. And a buton. Check out our music festival 1969 selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. The most memorable part for me was CREEDENCE Clearwater Revival and Hugh Masekala. This epic festival is looked on fondly by an entire generation and became a legend of US counter-culture. But even if Atlantic City didnt gin up the cultural resonance of Woodstock, on a pure musical level it was actually, in some ways, the more diverse festival. I camped also with three other car loads of my fraternity friends who talked me into going 2 weeks before I was being drafted into the army. The total attendance was some 300,000 people. The Festival will officially begin Friday June 6 and Saturday June 7, 1969 with three daytime concerts and two evening concerts all in the Overton Park Shell, culminating with the W.C. Where Woodstock stuck largely to classic rock and folk artists, AC Pop augmented that basic foundation with acts from the worlds of jazz (Hugh Masekela), soul (Booker T. and the MGs) and blues (B.B. The Atlantic City Pop Festival took place in 1969 on August 1, 2 and 3rd at the Atlantic City race track, two weeks before Woodstock Festival. I have some 8mm footage thats not great but Id have to dig it out. 3 of us, my drummer, his brother & I, made it from Pittsburgh to A.C. for this to this day, still 3 of the most amazing days of my life! Tangerine Dream performed at this festival, but is not listed on the poster. B. Outside of Michigan maybe no-one has ever heard of Goose Lake, but it was A Big Deal. That concert was fantastic! Yes.I say little richard closed Sunday night.standing on his piano!!!!! I thought it was great. His Sunday performance with Buddy Miles, Eric Burdon, and several others lasted more than two hours. Sloan and Steve Barri, yet soon an actual group came into being that was one of the biggest touring bands of the late 60s. Zappa gave the crowd the finger after most of his songs. (Probably the same people who booed Dr. John, who was also phenomenal.) The promoters created a "carnival-like" atmosphere that featured booths catering to "flower-children." The cops that pulled us over somewhere in NY thought so too. Saturdays schedule mixed jazz acts such as Miles Davis and Dave Brubeck with others including John Mayall and Sly & the Family Stone. This is often considered the first modern rock festival in Britain. Almost got run over in my sleeping bag when people started driving across the grass to avoid the stalled traffic. [5], The rotating stage was a success. 200,000. I have told many people about AC FESTIVAL not a single person ever heard of it. And relatively few still photos exist. I remember Janet, but I cant remember your name! He thanked me for my interest and told me that it had been one of his most enjoyable weekends. There is a poster for this event. Thanks, Randy Borresen. We looked at each other and said why drive hours in this rain- it is raining so hard lets just party here at the house, exactly what we did. 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