I got sucked into it last night and watched all three episodes. I guess if you asked me what came to mind before watching it, I would’ve probably said there was a lack of water and something about people lighting fires. I was 14 at the time and listed to a lot of the artists whom performed there, but I really had no idea what it was like. It’s hard to believe an event like that could’ve been so poorly organized.
Did anyone else see it? Is it accurate? It would be interesting to hear from some who are more local and aware, or there might even be some attendees here.
really? I recall quite a bit of coverage in the initial aftermath. But they eventually faded from the news since, IIRC, most of them were impossible to prosecute.
They do talk about that but they also put the blame on the vendors they hired for price gouging for food and water. They also didn't allow anyone to bring outside food/drinks into the venue. This was a three day concert.
The trash was the number one thing that stood out to me in watching the doc. A 3 day festival and an absolute failure at cleaning up any trash, basically having the guests marinate in their own filth. That and the lineup of musicians didn't exactly scream peace and music. Korn, Limp Bizkit, Rage Against the Machine, and Kid Rock all with rage music. RHCP didn't help the situation at all with Flea coming out naked, and then launching into "Fire" as the first giant bonfire broke out.
other folks have figured out how to organize and run multi-day festivals. It would appear these clowns f--ked it up every time.
Enzo's point is correct too - the stages were literally miles apart. Most of the bands I wanted to see were on the same stage so it wasn't as much of a big deal for me, but if you wanted to go back and forth you had a helluva lot of walking to do in that heat.
A lot about the experience sucked, but I saw a bunch of great performances too. It was a crazy atmosphere but I was a 22 year old who thought that part of it was fun. There was some fighting and violence, but I never knew there were sexual assaults going on. I doubt most people did - there were half a million there, after all. I did not leave early as I was determined to see Megadeth, and they were the final act.
I think I read that the concert itself in 1969 was a disaster - but they made a ton of money on the soundtrack and film.
Quote:
who organized the original Woodstock basically got lucky the first time. His follow up in Sonoma had a dude get murdered by security, 94 lost money, 99 was a total shit show. He may have had some other successes but maybe big concerts aren't his thing.
I think I read that the concert itself in 1969 was a disaster - but they made a ton of money on the soundtrack and film.
I think you are correct. Many people got in for free, they left a huge mess behind, sanitation wasn't great, etc. They used the Peace and Love vibe to juxtapose 69 with 99 but by many accounts, 69 had some of the same issues. In 69 it rained a lot so the heat wasn't the same.
He and Wes Borland have done interviews about it before. Pretty sure you can find them on YT. I think they're sick of rehashing it by now, and I don't blame them. People started burning the place down during RCHP's set but there has never been a mob after Anthony Kiedis.
The best events are the one's that happen organically. The failure of the follow up woodstocks came from trying to force something that could never be recreated.
In my life, the best events I've ever attended are the one's that happened naturally and weren't essentially parties that were trying to force a square peg in a round hole.
The peace love and happy lifestyle of the time when the real woodstock took place had long since vanished. The kids of the latter generations came from a totally different world. A world of video games, cell phones just arriving, computers being more readily available, and an economic boom the likes of which our nation had not seen in modern times.
You essentially had a lot of young people that were spoiled in life as compared to people that were drifters just trying to figure out where they were headed in life. You can't recreate that type of atmosphere with two totally different generations of people that had virtually nothing in common, other than being born in the same country from a geographical standpoint.
HBO attributing everything to white rage was absurd. It was not white rage. It was generational differences, from wealth, technology, and completely different styles of music.
There is a whole lot to criticize about the whole thing. Terrible venue choice. Greed which exacerbated everything. Poor planning which led to unsanitary conditions. Lousy security. Those are all things directly attributable to bad choices made by the organizers. Attempting to derive some kind of pompous What Does It All Say About Society fartsniffing from this fiasco is idiotic in the extreme.
Quote:
this weekend too. Pretty crazy stuff. I really wish they could have interviewed Fred Durst. The only smart people were the ones who left early.
He and Wes Borland have done interviews about it before. Pretty sure you can find them on YT. I think they're sick of rehashing it by now, and I don't blame them. People started burning the place down during RCHP's set but there has never been a mob after Anthony Kiedis.
Anthony Kiedis literally told the crowd how awesome the fires looked, and then RHCP played "Fire" by Jimmi Hendrix. Later he said that Hendrix's family asked them play it beforehand to honor Jimmi, what a load of bullshit. Total copout.
Yes. They played the standard Limp Bizkit show. I've never been a huge fan but they were a decent live act, lots of energy. There was already a bunch of craziness the night before with Korn - that crowd was insane. I had seen Korn at Lollapalooza '97 two years earlier but that was nothing compared to '99, nowhere near the sheer electricity.
Again - Limp Bizkit in general, and Fred Durst in particular, have become so unfashionable, such a joke, in subsequent years that it's very very easy to just point the finger at them. They were big at that time but no one wants to admit today, in 2022, that they were a fan. A very convenient scapegoat.
Quote:
of overplayed Fred's ability to incite a riot. I think they played their same crappy set. I saw them (and Kid Rock) a year earlier at the Warped Tour, playing mostly the same music and nobody gave a shit. It would have been interesting to hear his opinion while others are analyzing his motivation.
Yes. They played the standard Limp Bizkit show. I've never been a huge fan but they were a decent live act, lots of energy. There was already a bunch of craziness the night before with Korn - that crowd was insane. I had seen Korn at Lollapalooza '97 two years earlier but that was nothing compared to '99, nowhere near the sheer electricity.
Again - Limp Bizkit in general, and Fred Durst in particular, have become so unfashionable, such a joke, in subsequent years that it's very very easy to just point the finger at them. They were big at that time but no one wants to admit today, in 2022, that they were a fan. A very convenient scapegoat.
Talk about two bands I never understood. They were both bottle rockets.
I went on Sat and it was a great lineup (to me), very different from the '94 and '99 "Woodstock" shows.
I saw (in order as far as I can remember):
Melanie
Donovan
Richie Havens
Joni Mitchell
Lou Reed
Pete Townshend
Sat on a grassy hill, not too hot, not too crowded. Great day (even though I was with my ex at the time).
The best events are the one's that happen organically.
I thought of Paul Simon's 1991 concert in central park when I read this.
Enzo's point is correct too - the stages were literally miles apart. Most of the bands I wanted to see were on the same stage so it wasn't as much of a big deal for me, but if you wanted to go back and forth you had a helluva lot of walking to do in that heat.
A lot about the experience sucked, but I saw a bunch of great performances too. It was a crazy atmosphere but I was a 22 year old who thought that part of it was fun. There was some fighting and violence, but I never knew there were sexual assaults going on. I doubt most people did - there were half a million there, after all. I did not leave early as I was determined to see Megadeth, and they were the final act.
Now that they can tie racism and sexism and the evilness of white men into the Woodstock '99 story, of course they are going to jump on it. I think it was the HBO Documentary that had a big part about the DMX performance because it allowed the 95% white crowd to shout the N-Word freely for an hour and that was the only reason why white people liked DMX.
Quote:
which I think were way under reported.
really? I recall quite a bit of coverage in the initial aftermath. But they eventually faded from the news since, IIRC, most of them were impossible to prosecute.
My statement was based off what I saw in the documentary. I barely recall any of the news of that event when it happened. The documentary barely covered it, only mentioning one incident that occured.
I thought they could of done a much better job interviewing more people.
Enzo's point is correct too - the stages were literally miles apart. Most of the bands I wanted to see were on the same stage so it wasn't as much of a big deal for me, but if you wanted to go back and forth you had a helluva lot of walking to do in that heat.
A lot about the experience sucked, but I saw a bunch of great performances too. It was a crazy atmosphere but I was a 22 year old who thought that part of it was fun. There was some fighting and violence, but I never knew there were sexual assaults going on. I doubt most people did - there were half a million there, after all. I did not leave early as I was determined to see Megadeth, and they were the final act.
You sure that's the same concert? This one didn't mention Megadeath as the final act.
I remember everyone said the same thing that they were surprised thay only one person died. This was all covered BACK then and we took the news for what it was and moved on.
There is a whole lot to criticize about the whole thing. Terrible venue choice. Greed which exacerbated everything. Poor planning which led to unsanitary conditions. Lousy security. Those are all things directly attributable to bad choices made by the organizers. Attempting to derive some kind of pompous What Does It All Say About Society fartsniffing from this fiasco is idiotic in the extreme.
What I took away from waching it was all the things you listed and more made it a perfect storm.
I saw the trailer and some woman said "it was male ego" and you just have to take her for her word because she's the smartest person talking on the documentary.
There was DEFINITELY news coverage on Woodstock 99. I'd ask any adult at the time (who weren't interested in the music) and they'd remember this event.
The whole thing was just disorganized and was met by an eye roll and my parents kept telling me about how "69 was better because of love and growing together"
I told them to never use those words again.
This is a solid point. At the time, they were very popular and you got ragged by older people of you listened to them always comparing it to their old music.
Of course, because this was the mentality of the "adults" back then, if a teenager listened to Limp Bizkit this also meant you didn't listen to Led Zeppelin or new who Eric Clapton was.
Very weird time growing up.
I just have to sau about Limp Bizkit that their songs ... didn't age too poorly. Those bands were just whatever. Take them for what they were.
Quote:
My statement was based off what I saw in the documentary. I barely recall any of the news of that event when it happened. The documentary barely covered it, only mentioning one incident that occured.
There was DEFINITELY news coverage on Woodstock 99. I'd ask any adult at the time (who weren't interested in the music) and they'd remember this event.
The whole thing was just disorganized and was met by an eye roll and my parents kept telling me about how "69 was better because of love and growing together"
I told them to never use those words again.
I think you misunderstand what I'm saying. I don't know what was or wasn't covered at the time. I barely remember the event occurring at all, let alone news stories that occurred at the time. I'm strictly speaking from what was covered in the documentary.
The news cycle was a bit different back then. It's not like I wasn't alive or had any interest in what went down.
Yep. Megadeth was the last band on one stage. RCHP was the last band on the other stage at the other end of the place. I was at Megadeth.
Quote:
In comment 15774518 JOrthman said:
Quote:
which I think were way under reported.
really? I recall quite a bit of coverage in the initial aftermath. But they eventually faded from the news since, IIRC, most of them were impossible to prosecute.
My statement was based off what I saw in the documentary. I barely recall any of the news of that event when it happened. The documentary barely covered it, only mentioning one incident that occured.
so then what are you comparing the coverage of sexual assualts in the documenatary to? Subsequent coverage years after the event? Other documentaries?
I thought he cared about the planet?
The news cycle was a bit different back then. It's not like I wasn't alive or had any interest in what went down.
I don't know if it was or wasn't swept under the wrong and don't mean to imply it. I just found it very odd the documentary barely mentioned it.
Quote:
In comment 15774545 Enzo said:
Quote:
In comment 15774518 JOrthman said:
Quote:
which I think were way under reported.
really? I recall quite a bit of coverage in the initial aftermath. But they eventually faded from the news since, IIRC, most of them were impossible to prosecute.
My statement was based off what I saw in the documentary. I barely recall any of the news of that event when it happened. The documentary barely covered it, only mentioning one incident that occured.
so then what are you comparing the coverage of sexual assualts in the documenatary to? Subsequent coverage years after the event? Other documentaries?
My last reply mentions this, but talking about the documentary. It barely mentions it. It only described one incident and it got all of about 5 minutes of discussion in a 3 hour documentary.
I know it doesn't even compare, but I went to a few Warped Tours way back in the late 90's around the same time @ Randall's Island and some of those were total shitshows. I remember coughing up literal dirt for a few days after it.
It was sweltering hot. I could never imagine being completely engulfed in a Woodstock-sized crowd in heat like that. I thought it was cool as a kid, but holy fuck.. you could never even pay me to do something like that now.
I know it doesn't even compare, but I went to a few Warped Tours way back in the late 90's around the same time @ Randall's Island and some of those were total shitshows. I remember coughing up literal dirt for a few days after it.
It was sweltering hot. I could never imagine being completely engulfed in a Woodstock-sized crowd in heat like that. I thought it was cool as a kid, but holy fuck.. you could never even pay me to do something like that now.
How was that experience watching it live on TV?
I remember going to a friend's house and waiting in the living room while his family watched it on TV. Looked kind of cool at first but remember thinking "I wouldn't want to be spend my summer day/night watching this." Then again I was 14 going on 15.
I did own the tape on VHS when it came out. 1999 was just a busy year for me and I remember very little down time and never being bored with so much shit going on.
It just felt like a big "thing."
I believe it was that same year - a few months later, I saw Rage, Gang Starr & At the Drive In @ Nassau Coliseum.
At one point when Rage was playing, everyone in the seats basically stormed down into GA at once like an avalanche. I almost got completely swept away in it. It was wild (and incredibly dangerous.. lol). Great show, though.
It just felt like a big "thing."
I believe it was that same year - a few months later, I saw Rage, Gang Starr & At the Drive In @ Nassau Coliseum.
At one point when Rage was playing, everyone in the seats basically stormed down into GA at once like an avalanche. I almost got completely swept away in it. It was wild (and incredibly dangerous.. lol). Great show, though.
ha, I was there as well and totally remember this. Insane. Never saw anything like that at an arena show.