Defining Moments: Woodstock provides a comprehensive account of the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Fair, one of the seminal cultural events of the last half-century in America. The volume puts Woodstock within the larger context of the 1960s, a turbulent decade that changed American politics, culture, and music; it focuses in on the festival itself, both the preparation for the concert and the experiences of those who attended; it examines the various ways in which Woodstock has changed American popular music, both as a business and as art form; and it explores the festival’s enduring symbolic significance.

Table of Contents

• Preface
• How to Use This Book
• Research Topics for Defining Moments: Woodstock
• Narrative Overview
• Prologue
• Chapter 1: American Culture in the 1960s
• Chapter 2: Music Drives Social Change
• Chapter 3: Planning for an Epic Concert
• Chapter 4: The Music at Woodstock
• Chapter 5: The Scene at Woodstock
• Chapter 6: After Woodstock
• Chapter 7: The Legacy of Woodstock
• Biographies
• Joan Baez (1941-): Folksinger, Political Activist, and Woodstock Performer
• Bob Dylan (1941-): Influential Rock and Folk Music Singer-Songwriter
• Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970): Rock and Roll Guitarist and Performer at Woodstock
• Artie Kornfeld (1942-): Woodstock Promoter and Recording Industry Executive
• Michael Lang (1944-): Concert Promoter and Co-founder of the Woodstock Music and Art Fair
• John Roberts (1945-2001): Woodstock Promoter and Business Entrepreneur
• Hugh “Wavy Gravy” Romney (1936-): Leader of the Hog Farm Commune and Social Activist
• Joel Rosenman (1942-): Woodstock Promoter and Business Entrepreneur
• Michael Wadleigh (1942-): Documentary Filmmaker Who Directed Woodstock
• Max Yasgur (1919-1973): Owner of Yasgur Farms and Host of the Woodstock Festival
• Primary Sources
• Historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. Predicts the “Mood” of the 1960s
• Michael Lang Recalls the Frantic Search for a New Concert Site
• Breakfast in Bed for 400,000
• Rocking Out with Santana at Woodstock
• Bad Memories of Woodstock
• A Military Veteran Remembers the Festival
• The Saga of the Woodstock Port-O-San Man
• Leaving Woodstock
• Ayn Rand Denounces the “Phony” Values of Woodstock
• A Moment of Muddy Grace
• Important People, Places, and Terms
• Chronology
• Sources for Further Study
• Bibliography
• Photo and Illustration Credits