Attended the Woodstock Music and Art Fair in 1969, became an educator for 35 years after graduation from college, and am retired now and often volunteer at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts which is on the site of that 1969 festival.
Bands (listed on the poster): Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation, Cuby & the Blizzards, Keef Hartley Blues Band, Champion Jack Dupree, The Nice, Pink Floyd, Pretty Things, East of Eden, Muddy Waters, Hardin & York, Hard Meat, Taste, Free, Fleetwood Mac.
Bands that performed
October 9, 1969: Fashion, Keef Hartley Band, The Pretty Things, Yes, Warm Dust, Fleetwood Mac, Free, Spooky Tooth, Hard Meat.
October 10, 1969: Amon Duul II, Hardin & York, Keef Hartley Blues Band, Champion Jack Dupree & Shades, The Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation, Alexis Korner & New Church, Steamhammer, Muddy Waters, Taste, Shades.
October 11, 1969: Tulliver’s Brain, Taste, Cuby’s Blues Band, Keef Hartley Blues Band, Livin Blues, Deep Purple, Amon Duul II, The Nice, Tangerine Dream, Pink Floyd, Ekseption, Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation, Xhol Caravan, Hardin & York.
Tangerine Dream performed at this festival, but is not listed on the poster.
Tangerine Dream’s drummer, Klaus Schulze, also played with Amon Duul II at this festival, when Amon Duul’s drummer couldn’t play after he took some bad LSD.
Internationales Essener Festival
German Music Festivals
The Internationales was not the first German festival and not the first German rock festival in 1969.
Here’s the list with links to posters and the shows’ basic information.
It is sometimes a challenging decision whether or not to include a 1969 festival on my list. I tend to include only multi-day festivals (continuous days) or festivals that took place on single days over several weeks.
So I am including this festival as well as the Teenage Fair
Konrad Mallison
1969
Konrad Mallison organized the festival (as well as the 1970 festival).
In 1967 he and a friend established a discotheque called Pop-In in Essen, West Germany.
There we played music by groups like Tangerine Dream, Can, Xhol Caravan, but also Canned Heat, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Janis Joplin, Joe Cocker etc. The underground scene in Germany in 1968 really arose through the influence of flower power from San Francisco, the musical HAIR, and also somewhat through the politicized ’68 movement throughout Europe. People wore longer hair and showed their peaceful inner attitude to the outside. The youth welfare office of the city of Essen even organised the “Essener Song-Tage” in 1968, a first big, but somewhat politicized song festival with top-of-the-bill Mothers Of Invention with Frank Zappa, Alexis Korner, Guru Guru Groove, Soul Caravan, Amon Düül, Julie Driscoll, Brian Auger & The Trinity. Because of the politicization there were unfortunately some small excesses, this song festival was not repeated by the city of Essen.
Poster of the Essen Song Days 1968
Internationales Essener Festival
Bath Festival of Blues
In June 1969, he and his discotheque’s DJ visited England and whle there saw posters for the Bath Festival of Blues. In his words, “This festival with its sensational gigs, also with Jethro Tull / Ian Anderson, who were not mentioned on the poster, created a spark in me, so that I decided to do everything to organize a similar festival in the Grugahalle in Essen in October 1969.”
Internationales Essener Festival
Back in Essen
Back home, he received permission from the town to hold the festival in its Grugahalle despite the Lord Mayor’s concerns that there might be issues as happened at a politically-based festival in 1968 that turned out badly. He had to employ a certain number of security guards to ensure peace and order.
Melody Maker Sept. 27, 1969
He organized a staff. Here is a photo of the management team shortly before the start of the festival in the empty Grugahalle, taken by a reporter from WAZ.
He succeeded in getting the WDR television station interested in the festival and signed a contract for recording rights
Internationales Essener Festival
Film
Here’s the excellent hour and a half (!) colorized concert film, the groups in the film and when/what they played”
34:39 Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation – Down, Down, and Down
42:18 The Nice – Jazz Improvisation
47:42 The Nice / documentary part
57:28 Deep Purple – Mandrake Root Part 2
01:00:52 Keef Hartley Blues Band – Rock Me Baby
01:08:23 The Nice – Rondo 01:12:40
Aynsley Dunbar Retaliation – Let It Ride
01:16:33 Deep Purple – Mandrake Root Part1
01:23:39 Pink Floyd – A Saucerful Of Secrets
In Conclusion
I am happy and satisfied, also a little proud, that I was able to organize the first Pop & Blues Festival in Germany in 1969. The success of this festival was visibly so great that in 1970 a festival euphoria took place nationwide and similar festivals were held in almost every major city.
The Grateful Dead are famous for many things. Among them, the length of their shows, letting shows be taped, and the variety of setlists.
And of course their fans. The Deadheads.
Many Deadheads kept setlists during the show. And some of them occasionally and ecstatically found a diamond: the Dead played a song that they hadn’t played for a long time. Often years.
These occasions came to be called “bust outs” and here are some of the famous ones. There are others, but I thought these 10 (plus 1) were a nice selection.
Enjoy
Box of Rain
Look out of any window Any morning, any evening, any day Maybe the sun is shining Birds are winging or rain is falling from a heavy sky
On 20 March 1986 when the Dead closed their first set at the Hampton Coliseum (Hampton, VA) with “Box of Rain” it was the first time they’d played the song in 13 years or 777 shows!
Listen to the crowd’s reaction when they realize what’s being played.
So what was the show thirteen years before? Non other than Watkins Glen on the 28 July 1973.
Attics of My Life
In the attics of my life Full of cloudy dreams; unreal Full of tastes no tongue can know And lights no eye can see When there was no ear to hear You sang to me
Maybe there was something about the Hampton Coliseum, but on 9 October 1989 the Dead played Attics for the first time in 17 years…or in Dead terms, 1,082 shows! This time as the show’s encore. The crowds realization is a bit delayed until the vocals begin, but then it is definitely reacted to. And love the ticket!
The previous time was on Saturday 28 October 1972 at the Cleveland Public Hall, Cleveland, OH. They played it in the middle of the second set.
Bringing me down I’m running aground Blind in the light of the interstate cars Passing me by The buses and semis Plunging like stones from a slingshot on Mars
On Friday 16 March 1990 at the Capital Centre in Landover, MD. the Dead play “Black Throated Wind.” It was the first time in 16 years or 981 shows.
The previous time was in the middle of the first set on October 19,. 1974 at the Winterland Arena in San Francisco. Here is the link to the whole show:
Wishing well with a golden bell, bucket hanging clear to hell, Hell halfway twixt now and then, Stephen fill it up and lower down and lower down again
Lady finger, dipped in moonlight, writing what for? Across the morning sky. Sunlight splatters, dawn with answer, Darkness shrugs and bids the day good-bye.
As much as “St Stephen” may be associated with the Dead, there were long stretches that the song was absent.They played it on 9 June 1976 at the Boston Music Hall for the first time in 5 years…
The previous time was during the second set at the Ohio Theatre in Columbus, Ohio on 31 October 1971. The song is not available separately. Here is a link to the whole show.
…and when they played it on 11 October 1983 , it was the first time in 4 years.
Four years earlier, at the Nassau Coliseum at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, NY on 10 January 1979.
Ripple
If my words did glow with the gold of sunshine And my tunes were played on the harp unstrung Would you hear my voice come through the music? Would you hold it near as it were your own?
For such a great and well-loved song, one would think the Dead would play it all the time. Not only did they not play it all the time [only around 40 times total!], but there were both spurts and gaps. They had first played it live on 19 August 1970.
Twice in 1970, they played it over different nights at the same venue: 8/18 & 1/19 at the Fillmore West, 9/17 & 9/20 at the Fillmore East, and 11/7 & 11/8 at the Capitol Theater in Port Chester, NY.
When they played it on 25 September 1980 at the Warfield Theatre in San Francisco it was the first time in 9+ years AND between that date and slightly more than a month later on 31 October at Radio City, they would have played it 25 times!
29 April 1971, Fillmore East, NYC
25 September 1980, Warfield Theatre, San Francisco
Then when they played it on…
16 October 1981, Melkweg, Amsterdam, Netherlands
…it would not be until 459 shows later on 3 September 1988 that they’d play it again.
3 September 1988
Not only was the the last song of the 2-song encore, it was be the last time that the Dead played the song.
Bird Song
All I know is something like a bird Within her sang All I know she sang a little while And then flew on Tell me all that you know I’ll show you snow and rain
The Dead must have been in a nostalgic mood on 25 September 1980, because they played”Bird Song” for the first time in 7 years.
They’d played at at the Providence Civic Center on 15 September 1973
Please don’t dominate the rap, Jack If you? ve got nothing new to say If you please, go back up the track This train’s got to run today
I spent a little time on the mountain I spent a little time on the hill I heard someone say better run away Others say better stand still
From the Song Facts site: In his book of collected lyrics (A Box Of Rain), Dead lyricist Robert Hunter wrote that he penned “New Speedway Boogie” in reply to “an indictment of the Altamont affair” by rock critic Ralph J. Gleason, hence the lead-in lyrics, “Please don’t dominate the rap Jack, if you’ve got nothing new to say.”
Altamont was only 9 months earlier when the Dead played it at the Fillmore East on 20 September 1970. The show is only available via streaming
It would not be until 19 February 1991, 1,371 shows later, at the Oakland Coliseum Arena that the dead played it again.
Cryptical Envelopment
23 September 1972 – 16 June 1985 [791 Shows]
From a Glide Magazine article: The studio version of That’s It For The Other One on Anthem of the Sun contains four sections, one of which is sung by Jerry Garcia and called Cryptical Envelopment. The Dead would play Cryptical into and out of The Other One from the late ’60s through the early ’70s, at which point the tune disappeared from the rotation until a fateful evening in 1985 at the legendary Greek Theater in Berkeley. The group performed Cryptical four more times that year and then never again.
Once again, on would think that such a great song as Casey Jones would appear at least a few times during tours. Not so with “Casey Jones.
Played on 2 November 1984 and then not again unt 20 June 1992, 549 Shows!
2 November 1984
Berkeley Community Theatre, Encore
20 June 1992
RFK Stadium, Washington, DC
Here Comes Sunshine
23 February 1974 – 6 December 1992 [1,213 shows]
Again from Glide Magazine: The future of the Grateful Dead was in doubt after Jerry Garcia became ill following Summer Tour 1992. The group canceled their fall tour to allow their leader to heal and returned for a few shows in early December. At one of these December shows, the Dead dusted off the beautiful Here Comes Sunshine with a new arrangement. While I’m not a fan of the arrangement, I – and if you listen to the audience, plenty of Deadheads in attendance – was thrilled to see the song return to the fold.
On September 29, 1989, the Grateful Dead treated the Bay Area crowd to their first rendition of Rev. Gary Davis’ Death Don’t Have No Mercy in nearly 20 years. The group was firing on all cylinders as they started what would turn into an epic fall tour. Jerry tore the tune up from the opening notes to the last.
The 1970 version is unavailable, but listening to the 1989 recording tells you that some realize what is happening.
Unbroken Chain
Album release June 27, 1974 > March 19, 1995
If the Dead “never” played Unbroken Chain live and then played it nearly 21 years after they had released a song on their From the Mars Hotel album, is that a breakout? I vote yes.
It only took 21 years, but by the time March 1995 rolled around the Grateful Dead had decided it was finally time to deliver the debut live performance of Phil Lesh‘s smooth-rock ballad, “Unbroken Chain”, during a performance at The Spectrum in Philadelphia, PA.
The easygoing song, co-written and sung by Lesh, originally appeared on the Dead’ 1974 From the Mars Hotel studio album, though it would take over two decades for “Unbroken Chain” to make its live debut on March 19th, 1995.
The Dead then played it nine more times including their last show on July 9, 1995 at Soldier Field in Chicago.
It was one of those songs Deadheads wondered would ever be played. And when it finally happened those Heads knew they’d heard history.
Here is an audience recording of the March 19 performance. Listen to the crowd reaction as those who know realize what it is they are hearing.
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There is a story that seems to be true that Woodstock Ventures invited Roy Rogers to close the whole festival by singing his well-known Happy Trails To You.
It would have been fun had it happened. It didn’t, of course, but fun was had nonetheless if not at the actual close of Woodstock, then the morning of.
It came under the category of camp: a style or mode of personal or creative expression that is absurdly exaggerated and often fuses elements of high and popular culture.
Sha Na Na Woodstock
Sunrise
The sun is up. It is Monday 18 August. 7:30 AM. It has been a long weekend of music and Woodstock will present the penultimate group: Sha Na Na. It take a bit of extra work to set up the band because there are seven vocalists and five players. It’s one or the other. The group will be on stage about a half hour.
They will be in the album. They will be in the movie. They will be on the monument. And although it won’t be until 1977, they will be the only group who will get a TV show.
As an old time lover of doo-wop I have to say, as much fun as Sha Na Na’s covers are, one, the band they cover didn’t dress like they did and, two, the originals are better.
All the songs were the group’s fun interpretation of the classic doo wop songs in the set.
Get A Job
Come Go With Me
Silhouettes
Teen Angel
Her Latest Flame
Wipe Out
(Who Wrote) The Book of Love
Little Darling
At The Hop
Duke Of Earl
Get A Job (Reprise)
Sha Na Na Woodstock
The Silhouettes made the song famous. Group member Rick Lewis wrote it. And of course, it’s how the band got its name.
Yip yip yip yip yip yip yip yip Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Yip yip yip yip yip yip yip yip Mum mum mum mum mum mum Get a job, sha na na na, sha na na na na
Ev’ry morning about this time She get me out of my bed A-crying, get a job After breakfast ev’ry day She throws the want ads right my way And never fails to say Get a job, sha na na na, sha na na na na
Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Ah yip yip yip yip yip yip yip yip Mum mum mum mum mum mum Get a job, sha na na na, sha na na na na
And when I get the paper I read it through and through And my girl never fails to say If there is any work for me And when I go back to the house I hear the woman’s mouth Preaching and a-crying Tell me that I’m lying ‘Bout a job that I never could find
Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Yip yip yip yip yip yip yip yip Mum mum mum mum mum mum Get a job, sha na na na
And when I get the paper I read it through and through And my girl never fails to say If there is any work for me And when I go back to the house I hear the woman’s mouth Preaching and a-crying Tell me that I’m lying ‘Bout a job that I never could find
Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Yip yip yip yip yip yip yip yip Mum mum mum mum mum mum Get a job, sha na na na, sha na na na
Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na Sha na na na, sha na na na na
Ah ah ah ah ah Ah ah ah ah ah Took a walk and passed your house late last night All the shades were pulled and drawn way down tight From within, the dim light cast two silhouettes on the shade Oh, what a lovely couple they made
Put his arms around your waist, held you tight Kisses I could almost taste in the night Wondered why I’m not the guy whose silhouette’s on the shade I couldn’t hide the tears in my eyes
Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) silhouette’s (silhouette’s) Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) ty oh, oh oh Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) silhouette’s (silhouette’s) Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) ty oh, oh oh
Lost control and rang your bell, I was sore Let me in or else I’ll beat down your door When two strangers who have been two silhouettes on the shade Said to my shock, “You’re on the wrong block”
La la la la, la la la Rushed out to your house with wings on my feet Loved you like I’d never loved you, my sweet Vowed that you and I would be two silhouettes on the shade All of our days, two silhouettes on the shade
Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) silhouette’s (silhouette’s) Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) ty oh, oh oh Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) silhouette’s (silhouette’s) Silhouette’s (silhouette’s) ty oh, oh oh
Teen angel, teen angel, teen angel, ooh That fateful night the car was stalled upon the railroad track I pulled you out and we were safe, but you went running back
Teen angel, can you hear me? Teen angel, can you see me? Are you somewhere up above? And I am still your own true love?
What was it you were looking for that took your life that night? They said they found my high school ring clutched in your fingers tight
Teen angel, can you hear me? Teen angel, can you see me? Are you somewhere up above? And I am still your own true love?
Just sweet sixteen, and now you’re gone They’ve taken you away I’ll never kiss your lips again They buried you today
Teen angel, can you hear me? Teen angel, can you see me? Are you somewhere up above? And I am still your own true love?
A very old friend came by today ‘Cause he was telling everyone in town Of the love that he just found And Marie’s the name of his latest flame
He talked and talked and I heard him say That she had the longest, blackest hair Prettiest green eyes anywhere And Marie’s the name of his latest flame
Though I smiled the tears inside were burning Well I wished him luck and then he said goodbye He was gone but still his words kept returning What else was there for me to do but cry
Would you believe that yesterday This girl was in my arms and swore to me She’d be mine eternally And Marie’s the name of his latest flame
Though I smiled the tears inside were burning Well I wished him luck and then he said goodbye He was gone but still his words kept returning What else was there for me to do but cry
Would you believe that yesterday This girl was in my arms and swore to me She’d be mine eternally And Marie’s the name of his latest flame
And Marie’s the name of his latest flame And Marie’s the name of his latest flame And Marie’s the name of his latest flame
“The Book of Love” (also titled “(Who Wrote) The Book of Love”) was originally done by The Monotones. It was written by three members of the group, Warren Davis, George Malone and Charles Patrick.
I wonder, wonder who, who-oo-ooh, who (Who wrote the book of love) Tell me, tell me, tell me Oh, who wrote the Book Of Love I’ve got to know the answer Was it someone from above (I wonder, wonder who, mmbadoo-ooh, who) (Who wrote the Book Of Love)
I love you darlin’ Baby, you know I do But I’ve got to see this book of love Find out why it’s true (I wonder, wonder who, mmbadoo-ooh, who) (Who wrote the Book Of Love) (Chapter one says to love her) (You love her with all your heart) (Chapter two you tell her you’re) (Never, never, never, never, never gonna part) (In chapter three remember the meaning of romance) (In chapter four you break up) (But you give her just one more chance) (Oh, I wonder, wonder who, mmbadoo-ooh, wWho) (Who wrote the book of love)
Baby, baby, baby I love you, yes I do Well it says so in this book of love Ours is the one that’s true (Oh, I wonder, wonder who, mmbadoo-ooh, who) (Who wrote the book of love) (Chapter one says to love her) (You love her with all your heart) (Chapter two you tell her you’re) (Never, never, never, never, never gonna part) (In chapter three remember the meaning of romance) (In chapter four you break up) (But you give her just one more chance) (Oh, I wonder, wonder who, mmbadoo-ooh, Who) (Who wrote the book of love)
Baby, baby, baby I love you, yes I do Well it says so in this book of love Ours is the one that’s true (Oh, I wonder, wonder who, mmbadoo-ooh, who) (Who wrote the book of love) I wonder who (yeah) Who wrote the Book Of Love
Ah, ya ya ya ya, ya ya ya ya, ya ya ya ya Little darling oh little darling O-oh where a-are you? My lover I was wronger To try to love two Ahh uha uha uha uha Knowing well that my lover Was just for you uh only you
My darling I need you To call my own And never do wrong To hold in mine Your little hand I’ll know too soon That I’ll so pray Please hold my hand
My dear I was wronger To try to love two Ahh uha uha uha uha Knowing well that my lover Was just for you Uh only you
Bah-bah-bah-bah Bah-bah-bah-bah Bah-bah-bah-bah Bah-bah-bah-bah, at the hop
Well, you can rock it you can roll it You can stop and you can stroll it at the hop When the record starts spinnin’ You dance when you chicken at the hop Do the dance sensation that is sweepin’ the nation at the hop
Let’s go to the hop Let’s go to the hop [(oh baby)] Let’s go to the hop [(oh baby)] Let’s go to the hop Come on, let’s go to the hop
Well, you can swing it you can groove it You can really start to move it at the hop Where the jockey is the smoothest And the music is the coolest at the hop All the cats and chicks can get their kicks at the hop Let’s go!
Let’s go to the hop Let’s go to the hop [(oh baby)] Let’s go to the hop [(oh baby)] Let’s go to the hop Come on, let’s go to the hop Let’s go!
Well, you can rock it you can roll it You can stop and you can stroll it at the hop When the record starts spinnin’ You go dancin’ when you chicken at the hop Do the dance sensation that is sweepin’ the nation at the hop
You can swing it you can groove it You can really start to move it at the hop Where the jockey is the smoothest And the music is the coolest at the hop All the cats and chicks can get their kicks at the hop Let’s go!
Let’s go to the hop Let’s go to the hop [(oh baby)] Let’s go to the hop [(oh baby)] Let’s go to the hop Come on, let’s go to the hop
Bah-bah-bah-bah Bah-bah-bah-bah Bah-bah-bah-bah Bah-bah-bah-bah, at the hop!
