We Are Woodstock: 50 Years Later
A glimpse into the life of a writer whose song opened the iconic event
50 years ago today, Woodstock happened. It was heralded as a celebration of peace, music and love, and was one of the greatest iconic cultural events of the 20th century.
The first musician in the lineup was Richie Havens, and the first song he performed was a song called From the Prison.
My dad wrote that song.
…my dad wrote the song that opened Woodstock. And I honestly never knew that before yesterday.
Jerry Merrick (a.k.a my dad) met Richie Havens in Greenwich Village in the 60’s. Dad was living in a building where everyone just kind of wandered in and out of each other’s apartments. The story goes that one day he was sitting on top of a refrigerator writing a song (as one does), when 6′ 6″ tall Richie Havens strolls by him on his way to see someone else living in dad’s apartment.
Richie sees my dad sitting atop the refrigerator, nods, and says “far out.”
They were friends from that point on.
Richie went on to record two of my dad’s songs: Follow in 1967 (which Rolling Stone dubbed a “Sixties folk epic”), and From the Prison in 1968.
When 1969 rolled around, dad’s publisher Artie Kornfeld was the music promoter for Woodstock and the best friend of Woodstock producer Michael Lang.
Which is why it’s mind-blowing that when it came time to actually go to Woodstock, my dad simply… opted out.
Dad’s decision to not go to Woodstock has always been infuriatingly mind-blowing to me and my siblings. He knew it was going to be THE iconic cultural event of his time — how could someone with the sort of insider access he had simply not go?
And, more importantly, how could he deprive us of ability to brag to our friends that he had gone?
He *loved* telling stories from those days, but he had zero regrets about not going to Woodstock. By the time Woodstock came, he had gotten frustrated with the music industry and my mom hated crowds, so they decided to stay home.
Had this decision been made today — in the age of Instagram, likes, and FOMO — it would seem like an impossibly reckless decision with dire social consequences.
He didn’t care. He built a frog pond instead.
It was upon doing research for this story that I discovered that his song From the Prison had been the opening song at Woodstock. He never talked about it. And what is just as baffling: he had never even told me about this song. If I had written the song that opened Woodstock, I would have made a billboard poster telling the world about it. Maybe even t-shirts.
I listened to Richie’s rendition of From the Prison for the first time yesterday. (You can listen here.)
Hearing the lyrics and understanding the significance of them being sung at Woodstock without my dad in attendance hit me in a way I wasn’t expecting.
From The Prison
It’s a window of experience
It’s a broken window pane
It’s a hurt in the eye where the glass has glanced
To be bothered once again
To be bothered once againTake the time to think about it
“There’s no time” I heard you say
Make no time in the space within a dream
And you’ll find eternal day
And you’ll find eternal dayTo be kind to the next door baker
To be kind to the jailhouse crew
To be kind to a child in a fantasy wild
Is the best thing you can do
Is the best thing you can doSave your love for every moment
Save your love for every day
Save your love for every moment
And forever give your love away
And forever give your love away
And forever give your love away
The lyrics embodied his philosophy of giving love and kindness to literally every person he met.
Love and kindness was also the point of Woodstock.
But he didn’t need to go to Woodstock to BE Woodstock.
Even for those of us that were born after Woodstock, the event stands in our minds as a festival that defined a movement. And that movement wasn’t limited to a generation, but instead was a counter-culture that extends to include every person who embraces the ideals of the event; a peaceful, pro-inclusion, beacon of empowerment for people of incredibly diverse backgrounds.
Thousands of people were disappointed when the Woodstock50 concert was cancelled last month, but the event organizers put it beautifully when they released the following statement:
As people all over the world celebrate Woodstock’s 50th Anniversary, we hope this moment in time serves to reinforce the values of compassion, human dignity, and the beauty of our differences embraced by our original festival in 1969.
We don’t need to attend a music festival in order to be reminded to be compassionate, treat one another with dignity, and celebrate the beauty of our differences.
In a world that is becoming increasingly desensitized to name-calling and traded insults by people in power, we can each be the counter-culture that sets an example for the establishment by proving that love is bigger than hate.
We are capable of showing love to people who might not deserve it.
We can embrace the people who share values that are different than ours.
We can use our words to uplift and empower.
We are bigger than the narrative created for us.
We are Woodstock.
So “save your love for every moment, and forever give your love away.”
PostScript
And now, for a moment of unabashed pride. After my dad and I performed on stage together in 2007, he emailed some of the photos of our performance to Richie. Richie’s response is below:
Thanx for the Pics… It’s so far out seeing your daughter…
Last time I saw her she was 10 or so… Far Out… you
two look great together… I hope to see you soon and
jam a little :)Say Hi to everyone for me… Stay well and safe
Richie
Far out.
Special thanks to my sisters Rebecca Stogsdill and Naomi LaClair for giving me some backstory and old photos.
