How Woodstock Changed American Culture

To some, Woodstock was one of the biggest rock concerts ever, but to many others it was a huge historical event that changed America and its views on the Vietnam War forever. Woodstock was one of the biggest anti-Vietnam War movement to ever exist, it also marked the beginning of the Vietnam War as well. The concert was originally supposed to be held in a town named Woodstock, New York on Max Yasgur's 600 acre area, but was transferred to Bethel, New York because there was not enough room for the crowd expected(Pendercast 862). People were influenced to come because it was a concert that featured a lineup of the biggest and best names in the business at the time(NA "Where Have All The War Songs Gone? 1). The slogan decided on for Woodstock …show more content…
Woodstock became a symbol of the 1960s American counterculture and a milestone in the history of rock music. The original plan for Woodstock had been to build a recording studio in the town of Woodstock (Sandow, 1). Many were caught in traffic jams on the way to Woodstock and ended up walking. People walked as many as twenty miles to get to the concert, all the while singing songs of peace and love and carrying placards displaying their hippie sentiments(Hubbard 1). Originally, Woodstock was a buy-in-advance ticket concert, but ended up being completely free to almost anyone because the fences were torn down. Due to the number of people that attended, there were many shortages on food, medical supplies, and major …show more content…
Jimi Hendrix had a big impact with his performance as well, including an alternative version of "The Star Spangled Banner". The song was somewhat controversial, as the Vietnam War was underway and the sound effects that he generated with his guitar paralleled the sounds of the violent conflict. It was an act of sarcastic rejection of the culture that celebrated order, flags, war, Vietnam, and obedience("Being at Woodstock, The Music of Alienation"). The reason why music was a huge part of delivering the antiwar message is people came to see their favorite bands play. It is obvious that they would listen and follow what their favorite bands had to say. Around this time in the 1960's, rock music was "the thing". Millions of Americans admired rock bands and believed everything they said, did, or felt. Most bands that attended Woodstock were against war and made songs with antiwar messages, some even degraded the president. Some bands that performed at Woodstock were The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, and Country Joe Macdonald. In 1969, alongside with many other bands, they were the best in the business("Woodstock Festival" 1-4). Many Americans idolized and followed their antiwar beliefs and actions. Some of the songs containing antiwar messages at Woodstock are "Bad Moon Rising" by Credence Clearwater Revival, "Were Not Gonna Take It" by The Who, and "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie("Where Have All The War