Don't You Want Somebody To Love?

This past weekend was the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. My only claim to fame regarding this historic event (I was six years old at the time) is that I know two people that were actually there!

There's been a lot of press in the past week or so about Woodstock. What did it all mean? Looking back at the line-up of bands during those three days, it seems Woodstock really was a milestone event of the "Baby Boomer" generation. The themes of the songs-- messages of peace, brotherhood, racial equality, free love, experience, and freedom-- typify the generation.

Many folks have also pointed out that 169 Americans died in Vietnam that weekend. This just adds to the complexity of the late 1960's in American history (and the world), and the complexity of what the 60's generation contributed to American culture.

Personally, I do not consider myself a 'baby boomer.' I came of age during the early 1980's Reagan era. But along with the "flapper generation" of the 1920's, and the 'greatest generation' of the 1940's, I look up to the 1960's generation as one of the greatest and most influential of the past century.