In June of 1967, a music festival was held at the Monterey County Fairgrounds that would later come to be seen as a pivotal moment in rock ‘n’ roll. Everyone was there: Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Who, The Grateful Dead, Otis Redding. Drawing attendees from all over the country, the Monterey International Pop Festival was emblematic of the Summer of Love, and its influence was lasting — music historians would later describe the impact it had not only on the festivals that followed, namely Woodstock two summers later, but on the music business at large.
Fifty years later, the Bay Area is gearing up to fete that fateful summer in ways large and small. (Read our review of the de Young’s offering, which mostly brought up new questions for us, here.) But as plans to hold a free concert in Golden Gate Park have hit administrative hurdles, a new musical centerpiece for the summer of 2017 may have emerged: Monterey Pop 50. Check out the full lineup below.
The festival, organized by Another Planet Entertainment and Goldenvoice, will take place from June 16 through 18 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds. The lineup includes both veterans (like your cool uncle who runs a music venue up in Marin, Phil Lesh) and younger performers (like Nicki Bluhm, a musical descendant of all things Joni and Janis) who have “taken inspiration from talent and performances from the original version in 1967,” according to a press release. “Some performers will pay homage to those who came before them with a set of their own songs, as well as a nod to the artists from the original lineup.” The inclusion of Norah Jones, whose dad Ravi Shankar performed at the original, is a nice touch indeed.
Lou Adler, one of the organizers of the 1967 festival, had this to say: “The Monterey International Pop Festival cannot be duplicated but can be celebrated and will be, by the performers and the attendees at the 50th Anniversary festival.”
