One of the special things about Woodstock was that, since it was the first festival of its kind, it was not dominated by merchandise. Unlike today, where merchandise is a huge part of the event; everywhere there are shirts and souvenirs.
Woodstock only had its original programs which, together with the staff’s t-shirts and jackets with the Woodstock logo, are now worth thousands of dollars, since they’re the only remaining souvenirs.
People Played with Suspended Gongs at the “Free Stage”
The Free stage we mentioned earlier wasn’t only for jamming and mic performances, it was a free, open space where people could go and do all sorts of activities, like a Hippie Disneyland of sorts, complete with drugs, massages, free hugs, and all sorts of instruments laying around. In the photo below, you can see people playing with some hanging gongs near the Free Stage.
Of course, what was Disneyland for some, was hell for others. Famous Indian sitar player, Ravi Shankar, attended the festival and recalled it as something “terrifying”. Shankar said he didn’t have a good time, and the crowds of thousands of mud-covered people reminded him of water buffaloes in India, instead of free spirits listening to transcendent music.
Even Tractors Served as Resting Spots
At Woodstock, any place was fair game when it came to resting.
There were so many people everywhere and so much going on all the time, that finding a resting place was imperative. And that could be anything, even the farm tractors!
There Were Many Children at the Festival, But Probably No Babies Were Born There
It is said that four babies were born at the festival, but it remains unclear. One singer said on stage, “Some cat’s old lady just had a baby, a kid destined to be far out!”. Also, a medic later reported that a mother-to-be was flown to a hospital and another had her baby in the car, stuck in traffic!
Eliot Tiber, who appears in Taking Woodstock, said a woman had a baby at his family’s hotel next to the festival.
Rain, Traffic, and Electrocution Weren’t an Issue for Artists or Attendees
Performers and people at Woodstock felt they were part of something so unique that it was going to take a lot to ruin the experience. Intense rain, heavy traffic, or even the risk of electrocution didn’t scare these people. In fact, The Grateful Dead, a band from California, played on stage during heavy rain and flooding, standing in water up to their ankles. Considering they were surrounded by amplifiers, instruments, microphones, and things that required a big amount of electricity, this was extremely dangerous.
The band even said they felt electricity shocks when they touched their guitars and held the mics. But, they did it anyway, along with many other bands, including Alvin Lee (from Ten Years After), who said, “Oh come on. If I get electrocuted at Woodstock, we’ll sell a lot of records.”