Back to the Garden: The Story of Woodstock and How It Changed a Generation

(Paperback)

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The definitive oral history of the seminal rock concert, Woodstockthree days of peace and music and one of the most defining moments of the 1960swith original interviews with Roger Daltrey, Joan Baez, David Crosby, Richie Havens, Joe Cocker, and dozens of headliners, organizers, and fans.

On Friday, August 15, 1969, a crowd of 400,000an unprecedented and unexpected number at the timegathered on Max Yasgurs farm in upstate New York for a weekend of rock n roll, the new form of American music that had emerged only a decade earlier. For Americas counterculture youth, Woodstock became a symbol of more than just sex, drugs, and rock n rollit was about peace, love, and a new way of living. It was a seminal event that epitomized the ways that the culture, the country, and the core values of an entire generation were shifting. On one glorious weekend, this generation found its voice through one outlet: music.

Back to the Garden celebrates the music and the spirit of Woodstock through the words of some of the eras biggest musical stars, as well as those who participated in the festival. From Richie Havenss legendary opening act to the Whos violent performance, from the Grateful Deads jam to Jefferson Airplanes wake-up call, culminating in Jimi Hendrixs career-defining moment, Fornatale brings new stories to light and sets the record straight on some common misperceptions. Illustrated with black-and-white photographs, authoritative, and highly entertaining, Back to the Garden is the soon-to-be classic telling of three days of peace and music.

Reviews

"I have turned down tickets to every Woodstock there's been, for the same reason: rock 'n' roll and camping have nothing in common. If you'd like to make up your own mind, tune in to "Back to the Garden", Pete Fornatale's fine history of whatever hit 'em up there (in addition to the brown acid or brown rice, whichever it was). From Richie Havens to the endless repercussions, this is the tale...and even a veteran antihippie like me has to recognize it as an indispensable document of rock history." -- Dave Marsh
"Pete Fornatale is a great music historian and one of the best broadcasters in America. His book "Back to the Garden" actually made me feel like I attended Woodstock myself. I recommend it highly." -- Brian Wilson
"The myth of Woodstock is something in my mind that is very close to the reality. Kids today are drawn to the place. It is the history of our musical past and our artistic past. It is a story that needs to be told and I trust my friend forever Pete Fornatale to tell it." -- Richie Havens

Author Bio

Pete Fornatale is an award-winning broadcaster who has been a fixture on the New York City radio scene for the past forty years. The author of Simon and Garfunkels Bookends, he can currently be heard on in the New York area on WFUV radios Mixed Bag.