The definitive account of the most famous music festival of all time: Woodstock. “[A] vivid and lively account of those hectic and historic three days….The best fly-on-the-wall account, tantamount to having had a backstage pass to an iconic event.” —New York Post The Woodstock music festival of 1969 is an American cultural touchstone, and no book captures the sights, sounds, and behind-the-scenes machinations of the historic gathering better than Michael Lang’s New York Times bestseller, The Road to Woodstock. USA Today calls this fascinating, entertaining, and blissfully nostalgic look back, “Invaluable.” In The Road to Woodstock, Michael Lang recaptures the magic for the generation that was there…and for the generations that followed. Just in time for the 50th Anniversary of the Woodstock festival, this definitive volume tells you everything you need to know about the most famous three days in music history.

It defined a generation, exemplified an era: Woodstock was unlike anything that has ever happened before or since--and August 2009 marks the 40th anniversary of this seminal event. Relive the moment and "get back to the garden” with this day-by-day, act-by-act account of everything that went down on Yasgur’s Farm. With interviews and quotes from those who were there--the musicians, the fans, the organizers--and a wealth of photographs and graphic memorabilia, Woodstock is the ultimate celebration of a landmark in modern cultural history. Woodstock is organized in three parts: - Origins sets the stage by describing the counterculture of the time, along with the festival’s organization, fundraising, buzz-building tactics, ticket selling and publicity, and site building. - The Event--the heart of the project--includes a log with a run-down of each of the 32 acts, in the order they appeared, one spread to each name. Fans and politics are also featured prominently here. - The Aftermath focuses on media coverage, follow-up festivals, Michael Wadleigh and Thelma Schoonmaker’s documentary, and Woodstock’s enduring legacy.

The perfect gift for music fans and anyone fascianated by Woodstock, Barefoot in Babylon is an in-depth look at the making of 1969’s Woodstock Music Festival—one of Rolling Stone’s “50 Moments That Changed the History of Rock and Roll.” “Mr. Spitz feeds us every riveting detail of the chaos that underscored the festival. It makes for some out-a-sight reading, man.”—The New York Times Book Review Fifty years ago, the Woodstock Music Festival defined a generation. Yet, there was much more than peace and love driving that long weekend the summer of 1969. In Barefoot in Babylon, journalist and New York Times bestselling author Bob Spitz gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at the making of Woodstock, from its inception and the incredible musicians that performed to its scandals and the darker side of the peace movement. With a new introduction, as well as maps, set lists, and a breakdown of all the personalities involved, Barefoot in Babylon is a must-read for anyone who was there—or wishes they were.

Discusses the climate of rock music in 1969, from the Beatles to the Grateful Dead, and its relationship with politics, current events, and race relations.

As the fiftieth anniversary of the Woodstock festival nears, Woodstock 1969 stands out for its singular voice. Photojournalist Jason Lauré followed his unerring instinct for being in the right place at the crucial moment. He and coauthor Ettagale Blauer trace the historic events that preceded the festival and then envelop the reader with photographs of the headliner rock stars that performed during the landmark three-day concert including the Who, Janis Joplin, Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane, and Santana. Threading his way back and forth from the stage, through a sea of happy audience members, Jason Lauré photographed the communal life that was an essential part of the phenomenon that was Woodstock. Never intrusive, yet working close-up, he managed to capture these innocent moments in the pond and in the woods with the same compassion and intimacy he brought to his coverage of all the crucial events of the era. After Woodstock, he photographed such legends as Jimi Hendrix, Tina Turner, and Jim Morrison of the Doors. Woodstock 1969 gives the reader an appreciation of the lasting impact of the festival, showing the way it changed the lives of all who experienced it. It served as the high point of the counterculture that started in earnest in the Summer of Love, and also as a leading influence in the decades that followed. The book concludes with a look at Woodstock's lasting legacy, from Greenwich Village and the rock scene of the Fillmore East to the establishment of Earth Day and the burgeoning environmental movement.

An award-winning broadcaster's authoritative fortieth anniversary tribute to the first Woodstock event draws on original interviews with such performers as Roger Daltry, Joan Baez, and David Crosby to place the gathering against a backdrop of period history and culture.

Excerpts from interviews conducted in 1988 with producers, performers, security people, medics, technicians, etc., are interwoven to present a chronology of the 1969 rock festival from the initial brainstorm to the final drive home. Interviewees include David Crosby, Abbie Hoffman, Richie Havens, Wavy Gravy, Miriam Yasgur, Paul Kantner, Chip Monck, and many others. Includes many bandw photographs. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR