Stars: Jimi Hendrix, Joe Cocker, The Who, Joan Baez

Summary: In August, 1969, half a million hippies flocked to attend a huge rock music event at Woodstock, USA. It was an event destined to become the definitive document on the freaked-out craziness of the peace and love era. The line-up includes The Who, Joan Baez, Santana, Joe Cocker, Ten Years After, Country Joe And The Fish, Crosby, Stills And Nash, and Jimi Hendrix.

The best rock stars of the sixties captured in some of their most brilliant moments during the communal experience called Woodstock, the most celebrated rock concert of all time. The film version, which runs over three hours, manages to capture the unique spirit of the once-in-a-lifetime event, and in turn, captured the mood of an entire era. Includes amazingly volatile performances by Richie Havens, Joan Baez, The Who, Sha Na Na, Joe Cocker, Country Joe and The Fish, Arlo Guthrie, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Ten Years After, Santana, Sly and the Family Stone, Jimi Hendrix, Canned Heat, John Sebastian, Jefferson Airplane, and Janis Joplin.

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The three-day Woodstock music festival in 1969 was the pivotal event of the 1960s peace movement, and this landmark concert film is the definitive record of that milestone of rock 'n' roll history. It's more than a chronicle of the hippie movement, however; this is a film of genuine historical and social importance, capturing the spirit of America in transition, when the Vietnam War was at its peak and antiwar protest was fully expressed through the liberating music of the time. With a brilliant crew at his disposal (including a young editor named Martin Scorsese), director Michael Wadleigh worked with over 300 hours of footage to create his original 225-minute director's cut, which was cut by 40 minutes for the film's release in 1970. Eight previously edited segments were restored in 1994, and the original director's cut of Woodstockis now the version most commonly available on videotape and DVD.

The film deservedly won the Academy Award for Best Documentary, and it's still a stunning achievement. Abundant footage taken among the massive crowd ("half a million strong") expresses the human heart of the event, from skinny-dipping hippies to accidental overdoses, to unpredictable weather, mid-concert childbirth, and the thoughtful (or just plain rambling) reflections of the festive participants. Then, of course, there is the music--a non-stop parade of rock 'n' roll from the greatest performers of the period, including Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Canned Heat, The Who, Richie Havens, Joan Baez, Ten Years After, Sly &The Family Stone, Santana, and many more. Watching this ambitious film, as the saying goes, is the next best thing to being there--it's a time-travel journey to that once-in-a-lifetime event. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Ultimate Collector's Edition
Year:	1969
Release Date:	June 15, 2009
Runtime:	215 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	D Y 25765
Keywords:	Music, English, Rock, Pop, Woodstock, Performing, Arts, Popular
Genre:	Music/Performing Arts