Jan 24, 2024
If You’re Going To San Francisco’ (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)
One of the things that continually inspires me are the sixties. The eruption of consciousness, freedom, and liberty, imprinting itself in music, seems to have been revolutionary. Looking from the perspective of 2024, if it could be compared to anything, it would most likely be the end of the 80s in dance music somewhere in Western Europe, probably in Great Britain. However, the Hippie movement with its iconic figures was dodging around in 60s California. Everyone knows Woodstock. But the seed was sown by a preceding event - The Monterey International Pop Music Festival. A mythological festival, which in its uniqueness was the genesis of the phenomenon Summer of Love in 1967 and a catalyst for the emerging counterculture. The effects of the movement persist to this day.
The festival is known for its pioneering achievements in organization, production quality, and overall service and comfort. This set the bar for the upcoming era of large music events. Attendance was sometimes estimated at up to 200,000 participants over three days. It was planned in just seven weeks, and even though the audience was predominantly white, it was a multicultural, genre-breaking event. For example, Otis Redding performed for the first time in front of a large white audience in the USA. All proceeds from the festival went to charity. Except for two performers, all acted only for expenses.
There is a FILM (which has been available on YouTube for a year now) that documents the festival. The background of the documentary's creation is amusing. The American Broadcasting Company allocated $200,000 for the film. However, after watching Jimi Hendrix's performance, where he interacted with his amplifier, the head of ABC decided not to broadcast the documentary but still left the money to the director. Monterey Pop was Hendrix's first performance in the USA, which Paul McCartney helped him get. Then an unknown virtuoso, he famously set his guitar on fire and smashed it at the end of his performance, just like Pete Townshend from The Who did, after which this act became quite popular.
Besides being mesmerized by Hendrix merging with his instrument, we can be captivated by the enchanting multi-part vocals of Jefferson Airplane recorded in four-track surround sound, the simplicity of Simon & Garfunkel, the energetic wildness of Janis Joplin, or the divine sitar of Ravi Shankar. Other interesting facts include visa issues for the invited The Rolling Stones, who were denied entry to the USA due to drugs. Frank Zappa, on the other hand, declined the invitation due to his animosity towards bands from San Francisco. Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys, and Donovan were also unable to participate.
Monterey, unique like the entire California coast with its ideal climate, beautiful beaches, and nature reserves, lies only 70 kilometers from the famous Esalen Institute, via the Big Sur mountain range. It's approximately 200 kilometers to San Francisco. On the way, one can pass Santa Cruz, known especially for its surfing history. Today, rental prices in the area are far different from those in the 60s. This is particularly due to the presence of Silicon Valley, where LSD is now commonly used for performance in the form of microdosing. The site of the festival now hosts a golf course and million-dollar properties.
ICHPBS
