Original Woodstock promoter Michael Lang has announced that the official 50th anniversary concert will be held in Central New York.
Lang announced Wednesday that “Woodstock 50,” a three-day festival honoring the original 1969 event, will take place at Watkins Glen, located 80 miles outside of Syracuse, on Aug. 16, 17 and 18, 2019. Tickets will go on sale in February; prices have not been announced.
Performers have not been named, but Lang told Rolling Stone that over 40 artists have already been booked for three stages. The full lineup will be announced next month.
“It’ll be an eclectic bill,” Lang told the magazine. “It’ll be hip-hop and rock and some pop and some of the legacy bands from the original festival.”
Carlos Santana, who performed at Woodstock in 1969, recently said he was in for Lang’s event. Lang added that some “newer bands” will likely perform tributes to original Woodstock performers like Janis Joplin, the Band, Jefferson Airplane and Joe Cocker.
“We’re also looking for unique collaborations, maybe some reunions and a lot of new and up-and-coming talent," Lang told Rolling Stone.
The festival will take place the same weekend as another, separate 50th anniversary celebration on the original Woodstock site at the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. Live Nation is sponsoring the “Bethel Woods Music and Culture Festival” on Aug. 16-18, 2019, with a series of concerts, “TED-style talks,” and a “We Are Golden” history exhibit at the Museum at Bethel Woods.
"Fifty years ago, people gathered peacefully on our site inspired to change the world through music. As the stewards of this historic site, we remain committed to preserving this rich history and spirit and to educating and inspiring new generations to contribute positively to the world through music, culture and community,” Bethel Woods CEO Darlene Fedun said in a statement.
The Bethel Woods event also has not announced its lineup or prices, but artists rumored to be approached include big names like Daft Punk, Bruce Springsteen, Eminem, Ariana Grande, Coldplay, Phish, The Weeknd, Elton John, Bon Jovi, Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters, Pink, The Who, Santana, Zac Brown Band, Mumford & Sons, and The Chainsmokers.
What will weigh with fans more? The Woodstock name or the original site? The lineup? The prices? The capacity? It’s unclear how many can attend each venue, but an estimated 600,000 people saw The Band, Allman Brothers Band and the Grateful Dead perform at Watkins Glen for Summer Jam in 1973.
An estimated 400,000 people attended the first Woodstock Music and Arts Festival, held Aug. 15-18, 1969 at Max Yasgur’s dairy farm near White Lake in the Catskill Mountains. Performers included Richie Havens, Jefferson Airplane, The Who, Joan Baez, Jimi Hendrix, Arlo Guthrie, Santana, Joe Cocker, the Grateful Dead and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
The iconic concert was revisited in 1994 with a modern lineup of artists like Nine Inch Nails, Sheryl Crow, Metallica, Cypress Hill and Red Hot Chili Peppers in Saugerties, but Woodstock ’99 -- held at Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome, N.Y. -- ended the fun with riots, fires and allegations of sexual assault.
Lang told Rolling Stone he learned from Woodstock ’99, including issues with high water prices and questionable acts on the lineup. He called it an “MTV event” and promised Woodstock 50 will be different.
“Woodstock ’99 was just a musical experience with no social significance,” he told the magazine. “It was just a big party. With this one, we’re going back to our roots and our original intent. And this time around, we’ll have control of everything."