It has been almost 50 years since Woodstock deployed on the suburban habitat of New York with an estimated 400,000 people in attendance, in a monumental movement that changed the world. From initial promotions, the iconic festival produced by Michael Lang had a lot of promise, teasing a perfectly eclectic lineup and event that blazed new genres, challenged political divides and fed a youth thirsty for change. It only makes sense that five decades later, amid a similar culture desperate for unity, that the iconic event is resurrected. What will remain to be seen is if Lang can revitalize the harmony of the 1969 phenomenon or its thoughtful 1994 25th anniversary successor, or if Woodstock 50 will become another blunder like the 1999 event. The festival landscape has evolved a lot in the last 50 years with multibillion-dollar companies like Live Nation and AEG cannibalizing the market. Will Lang be able to compete with these newcomers and their fat wallets? Well, it’ll start with a fantastic lineup, which—following its reveal last month—that initial goal can be considered accomplished.
Truly eclectic, in regards to both genre and era in which the artists originated, the lineup includes rock, pop, hip-hop, folk and country spanning the last six decades. For fans of modern rock, the festival features such heavyweights as The Killers, The Raconteurs, Cage the Elephant, Portugal. the Man and Greta Van Fleet. For hip-hop fans, it provides iconic and rising artists like Jay-Z, Chance the Rapper, Run the Jewels, Vince Staples and Common. If it’s pop that you crave, there’s no shortage of that with female powerhouses Miley Cyrus, Janelle Monae, Halsey, Maggie Rogers and Bishop Briggs. Folk and country have their fair share, boasting names like The Lumineers, Sturgill Simpson, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Brandi Carlile, Courtney Barnett, Anderson East and Judah & the Lion. It’s also a very top-heavy lineup, proving that not only Europe can bring stacked bills.
One of the most exciting aspects of the 50th anniversary of Woodstock is its commitment to bring back legacy acts that Lang either scored to play the original, or we wish he had. In many ways, this is his redemption as much as his reverence. With Woodstock’s 50th anniversary less than five months away, here’s a closer look at some of those nostalgic acts.
Artists that played Woodstock 1969:
Santana
Carlos Santana, the Mexican-American artist who learned to play the violin at 5 years old before mastering the guitar, rose in popularity throughout the ’60s and ’70s by bridging the gap between Latin American jazz and America’s rock and roll. He enjoyed a resurgence in the late 1990s and early aughts with his award-winning album, Supernatural. He cracked the top 20 of Rolling Stone’s list of greatest guitarists of all time and won 10 Grammys. He is best known for hits including “Black Magic Woman,” “Smooth,” “Maria Maria” and “Soul Sacrifice.”
Fun Fact: Carlos Santana was discovered while being a spectator to a show in 1966, when the scheduled Paul Butterfield was too drunk to perform so an impromptu band (hastily put together by promoter Bill Graham) comprised of musicians with connects to the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane, plus Santana, stepped in to fill the void. Santana in its final form played Woodstock at the request of Graham, who promoted that same club where the guitarist first played three years earlier.
Canned Heat
Hailing from Los Angeles, this American rock bank was formed in 1965 and gained popularity during the hippie era by infusing blues with psychedelic guitar solos. Their first big festival appearance was none other than the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967. Canned Heat’s biggest hit, “Going Up the Country,” became a number 1 single in 25 countries and became the unofficial theme song for the Woodstock documentary.
Fun Fact: Canned Heat arrived to Woodstock by helicopter unlike many artists who arrived late due to the massive flood of people and traffic that the festival was not prepared for. They played during the sunset on Saturday evening which became known as the most famous set of their career.
Country Joe McDonald
Country Joe McDonald and Barry Melton started the band Country Joe & the Fish back in 1965, becoming a staple in psychedelic rock during the mid-to-late ’60s. Country Joe McDonald has recorded over 30 albums and is best known for his protest songs about the Vietnam War like “The Fish Cheer.”
Fun Fact: Country Joe McDonald played two sets at the original Woodstock—the first was an opening solo performance for Santana. His band Country Joe & the Fish followed it up on the third day.
John Sebastian
John Benson Sebastian is an American singer-song writer born in Greenwich Village, known as the founding member of The Lovin’ Spoonful. His many accolades include a number 1 hit “Welcome Back” in 1976 and being inducted into the Rock and Roll and Songwriter’s Hall of Fames. His songs have been covered by Dolly Parton, Elvis Costello and Johnny Cash.
Fun Fact: John Sebastian was not scheduled to play the original Woodstock but did. He was actually just an attendee at the festival who played a short acoustic set while staff waited to resume the actual performances during a rainstorm, and while waiting for many scheduled artists to arrive (they should have considered taking a helicopter like Canned Heat).
Artists that played Woodstock 1969 but in different groups and ventures:
John Fogerty
John Fogerty is the legendary founder of the iconic Creedence Clearwater Revival. He was the singer, lead guitarist and main songwriter of CCR, producing several top 10 singles and gold albums before the group disbanded in 1972. Fogerty also had a successful solo career and was named one of the greatest guitarists and singers by Rolling Stone Magazine. He’s best known for songs “Proud Mary,” “Fortunate Son,” “Have You Ever Seen the Rain,” “Down on the Corner” and “Bad Moon Rising.”
Fun Fact: CCR played a prime-time Saturday set at the original Woodstock, nestled between the Grateful Dead and Janis Joplin. Fogerty later said he felt the band’s performance was subpar and that the Grateful Dead put the audience to sleep before their set started. He ultimately decided not to allow Lang to include their set in the film or soundtrack of the festival.
David Crosby & Friends
The Los Angeles singer-songwriter is most well-known for being a founding member of the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. Crosby played on the first five albums of the Byrds and contributed to Bob Dylan’s first number 1 single, “Mr. Tambourine Man.” He joined Buffalo Springfield in 1967 and then formed Crosby, Stills & Nash which combined members of Buffalo Springfield and the Hollies. In 1969, Neil young joined the band. Some of the songs from Crosby’s various projects include “For What It’s Worth,” “Helplessly Hoping,” “Ohio” and “Our House.”
Fun Fact: Neil Young joined Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young in 1969 and they played their first show on August 16, 1969. Their second gig was playing to the massive crowd at Woodstock at 3 a.m. toward the end of the event.
Hot Tuna
Hot Tuna was originally the side project of one of the most innovative psychedelic rock bands of the 1960s, Jefferson Airplane. Lead guitarist/vocalist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady from Jefferson Airplane started the group while Grace Slick recovered from a throat node surgery that left the original band unable to perform. Hot Tuna is best known for hit “Water Song” and Jefferson Airplane, for “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit.”
Fun Fact: Jefferson Airplane played an early morning set on Sunday around 8 a.m. They were joined by Nicky Hopkins, the pianist for the Jeff Beck Band that broke up just before Woodstock.
Melanie
Melanie is an American singer-songwriter that is best known for hits “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)”, “Brand New Key” and “Ruby Tuesday.” Born in New York and raised in New Jersey, Melanie has put out more than 30 albums and her smashes have been covered by various legendary artists including Ray Charles.
Fun Fact: She was one of three women who played solo at Woodstock and her first single “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)” was inspired by the festival audience lighting candles during her set.
Artists that should have played Woodstock:
Robert Plant & The Sensational Shape Shifters
One of the most obvious omissions of the original Woodstock was Led Zeppelin, one of the most influential rock bands of all time with 111 million records sold in the U.S. and between 200 to 300 million albums sold worldwide to their name. They have achieved eight U.K. number 1 albums, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and each member is considered one of the best artists of all time. Robert Plant has also had a successful solo career as well as other ventures he’s led after the band broke up in 1980. Led Zeppelin is best known for “Stairway to Heaven,” “Dazed and Confused,” “Whole Lotta Love,” “Immigrant Song” and “Black Dog.”
Fun Fact: Led Zeppelin declined to play the original Woodstock as their manager Peter Grant criticized that if they played, they would have been just another band on the bill. They instead opted to play Asbury Park’s Convention Hall in New Jersey. So, rather than playing to a crowd of 400,000, they played for under 5,000 people.
The Zombies
Another notable band from the Woodstock era is the Zombies, the English rock band formed in 1962 and best known for singles “Time of the Season,” “She’s Not There” and “Tell Her No.” They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 alongside Radiohead and Stevie Nicks.