On Aug. 15, 1969, one of the most iconic live music events of the 20th century began on a farm in Bethel, N.Y. Now, as the historic Woodstock Music And Art Fair approaches its 50th anniversary, the desire to honor that special moment is deepening: While a 2019 Woodstock festival has not been officially announced, Sullivan County in Upstate New York is preparing to commemorate the famous fest's 50th birthday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A bird’s eye view of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Woodstock?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Woodstock</a>! <a href="https://t.co/kuYUQn5yWm">pic.twitter.com/kuYUQn5yWm</a></p>— WOODSTOCK (@woodstockfest) <a href="https://twitter.com/woodstockfest/status/1058403368018817032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 2, 2018</a></blockquote>
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County officials recently announced that they have commissioned local artists to paint 36 dove statues in groovy '60s-inspired colors as a tribute to Woodstock, a nod to the dove in its original logo. The doves will be placed in various communities in Sullivan County by June 2019 and will remain past the anniversary in August.
Plenty of rumors continue to abound as to whether or not an official 2019 Woodstock festival will take place. One of the event original promoters, Michael Lang, has continued to leave fans eagerly hanging for more information.
On Dec. 19, Poughkeepsie Journal reported that Lang had told them there are "definite plans" for an anniversary concert next year, but it would not be held at the original location, where Bethel Woods Center For The Arts now lives. They said "an official announcement will be coming soon."
As music fans await for confirmation that a 2019 Woodstock is indeed happening, they can feel relief that the GRAMMY-winning living legend himself, Carlos Santana, is set on celebrating its 50th birthday with a special show. He and his band performed on day two of Woodstock, the same month they released their debut album, Santana.
Earlier this month he told Billboard that Santana would indeed be celebrating the 50th anniversaries of that album and their Woodstock performance, along with the 20th birthday of their GRAMMY-winning album, Supernatural, which earned the band a whopping eight wins, including for Album Of The Year, at the 42nd GRAMMY Awards. Billboard reports that he's already booked "his own show" at Bethel Woods.
"We've talked to Michael Lang, but we don't know if he has secured a place. If they invite me, I'm in," Santana said. "Woodstock and Supernatural, I view them as a gimongous door that I walked through to the other side. They took me to places I never dreamed were possible...and that just inspires me to keep reaching and searching with everything else I do."
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