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26 vintage photos of music festivals that will make you want to go back in time
26 vintage photos of music festivals that will make you want to go back in time
Gabbi ShawJul 2, 2024, 23:57 IST
Hippies at the Bardney Pop Festival, in June of 1972.Evening Standard/Getty Images
Festival season is in full swing.
Glastonbury Festival, which typically pours millions of pounds into the UK's economy, ended June 30.
It seems like every other week, there's a new music festival promising to be the greatest weekend ever. In addition to all of these new events popping up around the world, there are the staples like Coachella, Bonnaroo, and Hangout.
That's not even mentioning the British mainstays like Glastonbury, which earned around £168 million, or about $212 million, for businesses in the United Kingdom last summer, according to an economic impact summary shared by the festival. Other UK festivals include Leeds and Isle of Wight, which also draw tens of thousands of visitors each year.
But if you find yourself longing for the days of going to a concert without catching people culturally appropriating Native American headdresses, taking selfies every five seconds, or watching the show through their tiny phone screens as they record the whole thing, you might have just been born in the wrong time.
Keep scrolling to see the real glory days of music festivals.
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Woodstock Music Festival took place over three days in August 1969.
A music fan at Woodstock in his car covered in anti-war slogans for love and peace.Three Lions/Getty Images
The people of Bethel, New York, were unprepared for the more than 400,000 people that showed up to the festival.
August 1969: Two young men in the boot of a car after hitching a lift home from the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair.Three Lions/Getty Images
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Woodstock attendees were called hippies which, at the time, was considered a derogatory term.
This guy is wearing a brass-band jacket made popular by The Beatles.Hulton Archive/Getty Images
They had undeniable style, though.
Hippies at the Bardney Pop Festival, in June of 1972.Evening Standard/Getty Images
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People drove from hundreds of miles away to check out Woodstock.
Concert-goers sit on the roof of a Volkswagen bus at the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair in Bethel, New York.AP Images
And climbed sound towers in order to get a better view.
Festival-goers at Woodstock attempting to get a better view.Three Lions/Getty Images
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Jimi Hendrix's famous two-hour set was delayed for hours due to weather and technical issues. He was supposed to perform at midnight on Sunday but didn't play until 9 a.m. on Monday.
Jimi Hendrix.Peter Tarnoff/AP Images
The organizers of Woodstock provided free food, an unheard-of concept in 2024.
A girl helps herself to a free food ration in the camp area at the Woodstock Music Festival in Bethel, New York, on August 15, 1969.AP Images
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Woodstock was the beginning of a movement.
A girl naps on top of her car, while trying to reach Woodstock.AP Images
Simply, it was just a really good time.
Crowdsurfing.AP Images
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The popularity of the original Woodstock inspired Woodstock '94, in honor of the 25th anniversary.
Doug, Fast Ed, and Stephen remind us what it was like at the original festival.Scott Gries/ImageDirect/Getty Images
The vibe was very similar to the original festival ... down to the lack of preparedness.
This Microbus was at the original 1969 Woodstock Festival.Joe Traver/Reuters
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The weather was also the same as the first Woodstock.
A giant peace sign made of bottles and cans lies in the mud near the north stage at the Woodstock '94 music festival August 14.Joe Traver/Reuters
It looked like a lot of fun.
Muddy festival-goers at the Woodstock '94 music festival.Rick Wilking/Reuters
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This picture could have been taken in 2024 — both crowdsurfing and overalls are popular today.
Victoria Rose, 17, of Long Island, New York, enjoys a ride across the crowd in front of the main stage at Woodstock '94.Stringer/Reuters
Another long-running music festival is the Newport Folk Festival. It's where Bob Dylan made the switch from acoustic to electric, changing the game forever.
Feature singer Pete Seeger blows on the chalil — a flute made of bamboo wood —during an instrument-making session on Children's Day at the Newport Folk Festival, July 21, 1966.J. Walter Green/AP Images
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There was no shortage of hippies at the Newport Folk Festival either.
A young woman combs her boyfriend's hair as they attend the Newport Folk Festival on July 24, 1965.AP Images
Burning Man is another popular festival that has remained popular since its beginnings in 1986.
The 'Painted People' of San Francisco and New York, dance while wearing only paint for clothing at the 15th annual Burning Man festival in the Black Rock Desert near Gerlach, Nevada.David McNew/Newsmakers/Getty Images
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The festival usually features a lot of characters, like these two attendees at the 2000 festival.
A woman gets a chariot ride across the playa during the 15th annual Burning Man festival September 2, 2000.David McNew/Newsmakers/Getty Images
Burning Man is named for its very own "Burning Man," a 52-foot-tall wooden man that is burned at the end of the festival.
A dancer juggles fire in front of the 52-foot tall "Burning Man" statue as it goes up in flames on September 2, 2000.David McNew/Newsmakers/Getty Images
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The "Man" is burned at the end of the week, but in the days leading up to the "Burn," people take advantage of the structure in many different ways.
Keith Sullivan and Erica Muehsam exchange wedding vows in the shadow of the Man Saturday, August 30, 1997, at Burning Man.Sam Morris/AP Images
The UK's biggest festival is Glastonbury Festival, which started in 1970.
June 1971: Hippies at the second Glastonbury Festival celebrate the summer solstice with music and dancing.Ian Tyas/Keystone Features/Getty Images
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The iconic Glastonbury pyramid stage made its first appearance in 1971.
June 1971: The second annual Glastonbury music festival, which saw the first use of a pyramid stage.Ian Tyas/Keystone Features/Getty Images
Before e-tickets and the internet, people camped out to get good spots.
People camping ahead of a music festival in the '70s.Evening Standard/Stringer/Getty
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But the camping didn't end there ...
Festival-goers camping at East Afton Farm during the Isle of Wight pop festival in August 1970.Roger Jackson/Central Press/Getty Images
Back then, festival-goers even went without tents. All they needed was the music.
The Weeley Rock Festival near Clacton in Essex, UK, August 29, 1971.John Downing/Daily Express/Getty Images