The Outdoor Rock Festival 1966-2011 Corry Arnold September 2011 www.Rockprosopography101.Blogspot.com
Why Go To A Free Concert? • Upsides Downsides – It’s cheap It’s crowded – See new bands Bands could be lousy – Bring your friends Potential bad scene – Meet new people Everyone can see you
Why Play A Free Concert? • Upsides Downsides – Make new fans Lost in the shuffle – Make new friends Uncertain environment – Might get paid Wrong association
What Is A Rock Concert? • Prior to the mid-60s, Serious music--Art--was quiet and Entertainment was loud. The modern rock concert changed that • Rock concerts have three main characteristics – Loud, with sensory overload – A unique, authentic performance – The audience is a community
August 5, 1966, Stanley Park, Vancouver, BC • Prior to rock, Entertainers did not play for free, as a performance was an expiring commodity • A unique artistic event offers a chance for the audience to return and see another event • A free concert becomes publicity for a forthcoming paid event – The birth of Internet marketing
October 6, 1966, The Panhandle, San Francisco: The Love Pageant Rally • On October 6, 1966, LSD was declared illegal in California • The Grateful Dead and Big Brother and The Holding Company (with Janis Joplin) had a free concert in the park outside where they lived. About 3000 people showed up. • Both bands played concerts that weekend
The Human Be-In, January 14, 1967, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco • Berkeley activists had been staging Sit-Ins since 1964 • The Human Be-In was supposed to be a merging of the political and social “factions” and appeared to succeed • 20,000 people showed up to hear a half-dozen bands, and Network News showed highlights
Monterey Pop Festival, June 16-18, 1967 • The three day festival was held at the site of the Monterey Jazz Festival (the County Fairgrounds), and 20,000-50,000 attended • Among the 30 acts were – Simon & Garfunkel, Mamas And Papas (pop) – Jefferson Airplane, Grateful Dead (SF hippies) – The Who, Jimi Hendrix (London underground) • No bands got paid, so the event could not be duplicated
Sky River Rock Festival and Lighter Than Air Fair, Sultan, WA August 31- September 2, 1968 • The three day event was held on private property outside of Seattle--no restrictions • Three dozen bands played music 24/7 • A peaceful time was had by all, despite the rain • This became the model for rock festivals for the next few years
1969-Festival Summer • March 30-April 1 Lockhart Park, Ft. Lauderdale, FL “Easter Rock Festival” • May 23-24 Seminole Indian Reservation, FL “Big Rock Pow Wow” • May 23-25 County Fairgrounds, San Jose, CA “Northern California Folk-Rock Festival • May 23-25 Football Practice Field, San Jose, CA “Aquarian Family Festival” • July 4-5 Atlanta Int’l Raceway, Hampton, GA “Atlanta International Pop Festival” • July 5 Hyde Park, London, GB • July 25-27 Gold Creek Park, Woodinville, WA “Seattle Pop Festival” • August 1-3 Atlantic City Racetrack, Mays Landing, NJ “Atlantic City Pop Festival” • August 15-17 Max Yasgur’s Farm, Bethel, NY “Woodstock Music and Art Fair” • August 22-24 Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA “Wild West Festival”( canceled ) • August 30-September 1 Dallas Motor Speedway, Lewisville, TX “Texas International Pop Festival” • August 30-November 1 Baton Rouge Speedway, Prairieville, LA “New Orleans Pop Festival” • August 30-September 1 Tenino, WA “Second Annual Sky River Rock Festival” • November 28-30, West Palm Raceway, West Palm Beach, FL “First Annual West Palm Beach Music and Art Festival” • December 6 Altamont Speedway, Livermore, CA
Rock Concert Economics • Assume two nights in Chicago in February • Vanilla Fudge headlines, with two opening acts provided by the booking agency – 5,000 capacity, tickets $4.00 – Bands will cost $24,000 (60%) – Expenses will cost $6,000 (15%) • With two sell outs and no surprises-max profit will equal $10,000 (25%) • The promoter is risking $30K to make $10K. • Potential surprises – New Vanilla Fudge album stinks – Bass player gets arrested – Band breaks up – Fudge stuck in Iowa due to blizzard
Kinetic Playground, Chicago, IL February 7-8, 1969 Vanilla Fudge/plus two bands • The booking agency provided two English bands when the concert was booked in December • Led Zeppelin’s first album had been released in mid-January • Jethro Tull’s first album had been released in October 1968 • FM airplay was huge, so uncountable tickets could have been sold, but the bands were playing Memphis the next night
Atlanta International Pop Festival, Atlanta International Raceway, Hampton, GA July 4-5, 1969 • Led Zeppelin, Joe Cocker, Creedence Clearwater and Johnny Winter were hot • Grand Funk Railroad was the big surprise • Johnny Rivers and Paul Butterfield were over, and Al Kooper may have canceled • The risk was distributed throughout the lineup, and there were no caps on ticket sales. Over 100,000 people showed up. • A profit of $12000 was spent on a free concert in Piedmont Park in Atlanta (July 6)
The 2nd International Atlanta Pop Festival, Middle Georgia Raceway, Byron, GA July 3-5, 1970 • The event was moved to Byron, GA, 90 miles south of Atlanta • Jimi Hendrix was bigger than ever • Ten Years After, Jethro Tull and the Allman Brothers were hot • Ginger Baker’s Air Force were a no-show • The crowd was upwards of 200,000, the biggest event in Georgia history prior to the 1996 Olympics. Traffic was backed up 100 miles on I75/US 401
What happened? • It was difficult to avoid letting people in for free, so the full benefit of huge crowds could not be realized • The sites did not facilitate selling food, drink or other concessions • Small, rural communities were uncomfortable with huge crowds • People expected not to pay the second year • Few people wanted to go two years in a row
The US Festival, Glen Helen Regional Park, Devore, CA September 3-5, 1982 • Steve Wozniak, the “other” founder of Apple, was a sort of hippie • He financed a series of concerts in Southern California in 1982 and ‘83 • He envisioned a new paradigm of a technologically sophisticated Woodstock West • The concerts lost money, but not a lot, and it showed that technology could solve some problems that had plagued large rock events
Sheds • A “Shed” is a dedicated indoor/outdoor amphitheatre, surrounded by a concession area • Allows the promoter to commodify a Festival • BGP operated the US Festival and built the first Shed • Touring festivals like Lollapalooza and Ozzfest play Sheds across the country
Festivals Today • Multi-day Festivals generally have a theme • No mega headliner • Economics are similar to Professional Sports • Technology has solved some 60s problems
Free Concerts Today • Controlled Free Concerts in Urban Areas • Encouraging tourism or celebrating events • Financed by sponsors and concession sales – Headline bands are paid – Economics are comparable to a nightclub – Usually there is an implicit tax subsidy
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