I went to Del Mar California in June with Annelin to see Melanie of “Lay Down the Candles In the Rain” fame, Country Joe• without the Fish (still singing, “Well its one, two, three what are we fighting for”), Canned Heat (light a couple members), Jefferson Starship (minus Grace) and Big Brother and the Holding Company (with a stand in for Janis). They were all playing at the Del Mar Exhibition grounds on a racetrack just outside of San Diego. It was billed “Legends Of Woodstock” which I’m sure made the “Legends” cringe when the promoters pitched it to them. Surprisingly though it raised itself well above the kitsch that it threatened to devolve into. Not only nostalgic, it showed why some of these artists had such a good run. There were some great songs played by some great musicians and after four decades there was only a little rust showing on some of them.

Big Brother was outstanding. They were my least favorite band when I was a kid but they made me a fan that night. The musicianship was outstanding and they brought along a Janis stand in who in my opinion was every bit as good and maybe better than the original. Overall it was a magical night for the now blue haired Woodstock generation that showed up complete with the mandatory space cadets and dancing divas and that smell of cannabis in the air.

I saw Country Joe and the Fish almost forty years ago in an event at Clark Stadium they called “the Orange County Pop Festival.” Albeit it wasn’t in Orange County but it sounded good and it made us all feel like for a moment at least we were in California. Also playing that night were a host of others including Quicksilver Messenger Service and Alvin Lee and Ten Years After  who closed the night doing a half hour version of their “I’m Goin’ Home.”