Where it all began: Music festivals of the ’60s and ’70s
From Woodstock to Glastonbury, music festivals took off around the world in the late 1960s and early 1970s in the peak of the hippie-era. Take a look back at where it all began.
Before Coachella, festival fashion and Instagram filters, the infamous Woodstock and Glastonbury festivals were born in the 1960s, paving the way for music festivals as we know them. Although gatherings involving music have been around for centuries, the music festival style we are familiar with today mostly emulates the fashion of the hippy era in the 1960s and 1970s. In fact, not much has changed with festival fashion, atmosphere and revelers as we take a look back at where it all began.
The most well-known and notorious music festival of them all is the Woodstock Music and Art Fest that took place from Aug. 15 to Aug. 18 of 1969. More than 500,000 people flocked to Bethel, New York for the three-day festival that featured artists like The Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and The Who.
Fashion from Woodstock and other hippie festivals can be seen at festivals today like Coachella and Bonnaroo. Much of the bohemian trends that were popular in the 1960s, like this fringe crop top, are popular again today at festivlas.
Even body painting and nipple covers that are very popular at festivals today were around back then and all the rage. Here, a couple with matching body paint walks around the camp grounds during the Isle of Wight Festival in England in Aug. of 1970.
People stand outside one of the buses the Hog Farmers drove from New Mexico, at the Woodstock Music Festival, in August 1969.
No shirt, no problem! Revelers walk around topless with baggy pants and skirts as they enjoy the Glastonbury Festival on June 24, 1971.
Dressed in baggy, colorful clothing, these festival-goers enjoy the music during the Woodstock music and art festival in 1969.
Even back in the 1960s it wasn’t uncommon to spot the occassional celebrity at a music festival, like actress Jane Fonda pictured here. These days, celebrities like Kendall Jenner and Vanessa Hudgens are all about attending festivals.
No matter the year, bare-chested men and bandanas will always be a music festival staple. These two concert-goers look right at home at Woodstock in 1969.
Fashion model Ann Rochon showed off her hip tie-dye pants and fringe top adorned with a scarf and lots of necklaces as she made her way to the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970.
Sunglasses are a must-have for festivals and always have been! A woman dons massive circular sunglasses trendy for the time as she smokes a cigarette with a friend during the Isle of Wight Festival in 1970. The popular sunglasses, worn by icons of the 1960s like John Lennon and Janis Joplin, have made a huge comeback and are just as popular now.
It’s funny to think that the lace-up gladiator sandals this woman is wearing in this photo is just as popular now than ever! A mom donning a paisley dress plays with her son in a fringe vest during the Hyde Park Pop Festival in 1970.
Floppy hats, vests and denim shirts are seen on festival-goers at the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival in Aug. of 1969.
Wish you were here! Fans use an Evening Standard Mail Box to send letters home from the Isle of Wight Festival on Aug. 28, 1970. The women don trendy bell-bottom pants, tie-dye shirds and fringe bags to the hippie-era festival.
Getting into the groove! Topless women enjoy the atmosphere of Glastonbury Festival, a hippie festival in England that is still popular today.
Three cheers for the red, white and blue! This concertgoer showed his pride in a pair of American flag pants at Woodstock in 1969.
Flower power! Nothing was quite as symbolic of peace and love as the flower in the 1960s and 70s. Here, women don floral tops and patchwork pants as they make their way to the Bardney Pop Festival on June 9, 1972.
Before there was Coachella in California, there was the Monterey Pop Festival in Monterey, California. Revelers relax and smoke cigarettes as they enjoy the music during the event on June 1, 1967.
Forget going topless, this woman doesn’t want to wear any clothes! Dressed in nothing but a scarf and necklaces, this woman seems to be havign the time of her life at the Isle of Wight Festival in 1969.
Why so mod? This spectator at the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 is fully embracing early 60’s style.
They weren’t called the flower children for no reason! A man with a flower tattoo on his cheek relaxes during the Festival of Flower Children held in Woburn Park, seat of the Duke of Bedford in Aug. of 1967.
Donning classic round sunglasses made popular in the 1960s, this woman and a friend enjoy a bite to eat during the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair in Aug. of 1969.
Fringe, flowers and no shoes! Three friends hold hands as they enjoy a concert in Hyde Park, London in Sept. of 1969.
Is that a monkey? A girl smiles with her pet monkey in this fun fisheye lens photo from Woodstock in Aug. of 1969. Fisheye lenses are still popular today as small ones created for the smartphones can easily be used to get the same effect.
Either they are really enjoying the music or under the influence of something! These festival-goers are blown away by the music during the Isle of Wight Festival in 1969
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