Review: The Road to Woodstock

The Road to Woodstock by Michael Lang
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the definitive book on the 1969 Woodstock music festival. Written by organizer Michael Lang, The Road to Woodstock details his early life, how he got into the music business, and how he came up with the idea of a massive concert. Along with partner Artie Kornfeld, Lang approached venture capitalists Joel Rosenman and John Roberts to help plan and fund the iconic concert weekend. The weekend was meant to only cater to approximately 200,000 concert goers, but more than 1/2 million people attended. The plans for the concert was not without its issues, as the men dealt with venue, security, food, and sanitation issues. Many details, including the venue spot, was not determined until the final weeks of preparation. Throughout the 3 days and beyond, other issues arose that were dealt with on the fly and the results turned out to be a rare event of music and peace that has never been duplicated.

Lang's candid book covered Woodstock from inception until well after the concertgoers were gone. It is well written, never boring, yet full of details and amazing stories from interviews with participants and attendees. What an amazing weekend it must have been despite the chaos and constant rain. This is a must-read for the music enthusiast.

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