Sunday, August 11, 2019

Woodstock's 50th Anniversary

This week is the 50th anniversary of Woodstock!

I was 11 when the original concert took place in 1969. It was only a few hours from my home so I asked my parents if I could go. My father, a police officer, said no. My mother said absolutely not. I briefly considered running away from home but realized, quite clearly, I'd never be able to return. And at 11, my skills weren't sufficiently developed for life on the road.

I'm celebrating Woodstock's anniversary by attending two events. I attended the first today -- a music festival in Copiague where I heard bands playing songs by Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead and Santana. The second event, on Thursday, is a theatrical showing of the "Woodstock" documentary which won an Oscar in 1970. The film, three hours and 44 minutes, is a classic. It's playing everywhere so look for it in your town (here). There's only one show at 7 pm on Thursday (8/15) which is the exact day Woodstock started fifty years ago.

For these special occasions, I need appropriate attire so I assembled this outfit -- striped bell-bottoms, ubiquitous peace symbol and fringed top.

What are YOU doing to celebrate Woodstock?!










13 comments:

  1. Oh, how fun! That looks like a great time. I love your striped bell bottoms and that fringed poncho is fabulous!

    No Woodstock celebrations here, but we always have music on!

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  2. Ooh! Fun! Your outfit is perfect.

    This happened when I was only three. I'm a big fan of Janis Joplin. She was good buds Robert Plant from one of my all time favourite bands...Led Zeppelin. Zeppelin and Floyd are some of my favourites.

    Suzanne
    http://www.suzannecarillo.com

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    1. Janis, Zeppelin and Floyd were big parts of my early life.

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  3. The music festival sounds like so much fun! Your outfit is fabulous! I need to check out that documentary - I bet it's really interesting!

    Jill - Doused in Pink

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    1. It is. It's the definitive account of Woodstock.

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  4. My friend Dennis had just arrived at the house in his 1958 Buick when my dad got home. I had already tossed my bedroll and knap sack in his car but my dad had other ideas and told me he had a side job for me that weekend so I never made the trip upstate.
    I have seen several "Woodstock" theme concerts this year. The best was Glenn Burtnick's Woodstock Summer of Love show. If he ever gets to LI you have to see him. He was the original bass player in Styx and was the first 'left handed' base player in the original Beatlemania. His current primary band is the "Weeklings" which is, in large measure, a Beatles cover band.

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    1. Thanks for the tip. Shame you couldn't see Woodstock in person.

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  5. I was only 8, and living in backward Belgium, I didn't learn about Woodstock until many years later. I've got a friend who's recently written a book about the Woodstock effect in Belgium. A great read, and it turns out we weren't that backward at all ;-) Your outfit gets my full approval! xxx

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  6. Your outfit is PERFECTION! And this looks like so much fun. Good friends are amazing, aren't they?

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  7. As an Old Hippie I should probably do something to pay homage... haven't thought about it much yet tho'.

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  8. I think a great homage is probably best. Then again a music festival is my version of hell (loud, crowded, dirty!) But we've definitely been influenced by these experiences and the romanticism of them as well.

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