WOODSTOCK.

It was planned as a three day music and arts festival but it became a right of passage for a generation of American youth disillusioned with their country. A good turn-out had been expected for the weekend of 16th to 18th August 1969 but organisers could never anticipated what happened.
Hundreds of thousands of fans assumed that as Bob Dylan had a house in the area (and had recorded the basement tapes nearby), he was likely to turn up.
They started arriving a week before the event began and built in such numbers that the roads for miles around were blocked. Bands could only get to the site by helicopter and a state of emergency was declared. The site itself became a quagmire after days of rain, making movement difficult and performances dangerous. On-site facilities were totally inadequate. There was insufficient food and the sanitary facilities were stretched to bursting point.
By the last day, most of the festival goers were on their way home, in search of food and working toilets, even although the organisers took to airlifting supplies to the site. So, when Jimi Hendrix took to the stage to play a stunning electric version of the American national anthem, there were only around 30,000 people left.
By that time the legend had been made. Thanks to a movie and two record sets of the event, the rest of the world could share in what many would see as a generation's finest hour.
Unfortunately, someone thought it would be a great idea to commemorate the event on its 25th anniversary with Woodstock '94.