In an attempt to recapture the “magic” of Woodstock (an overrated event) but on the West Coast, the Rolling Stones ended their tour by having a festival with CSN&Y, Santana, Jefferson Airplane and Grateful Dead as openers. It wasn’t thought out very well which is more evidence of why Boomers aren’t capable of long-term planning as a generation. The venue, a race track, wasn’t decided upon until two days before the concert. Hiring the Hell’s Angels as extra security was another demonstration on how drug-addled the Stones and their handlers were.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock for decades, we all know how it ended. One of the bikers killed audience member Meredith Hunter during the Stones’ set. Mick Jagger was pretty lucky too. Hunter was aiming a gun at the stage so the biker was acquitted of murder or manslaughter. You can see the whole thing play out in the documentary Gimme Shelter. Many pundits (a polite word for overpaid blowhards on TV and radio) say it brought the Sixties to a dark ending. No shit! To quote a lesser-known Eighties band, the Rainmakers…
The generation that was supposed to change the world,
Is still looking for its car keys.
A decade which started off optimistically closed with violence, cynicism and Tricky Dick in the White House. I’d say it was thanks to the Boomers being a spoiled bunch of pricks who really just wanted to get high and laid while they attended practically free college before entering an affordable Economy. At least the Boomers got to own houses and had little student loan debt before they kicked down the ladder on Gen X and the Millennials. But hey, we younger people should revel in their old music to soothe those economic injuries that will never heal.
Today, the Rolling Stones still exist as a lucrative touring enterprise because they haven’t made a decent album in 35-plus years (my vote is Tattoo You is when they last bothered to try). One critic called them Rolling Stones, Inc. as they charge hundreds for nosebleed seats. I believe they’re flogging their dead horse some more as Mick recently fathered an eighth kid. Now Austin has a disgusting race track which doubles as an overpriced stadium venue (thanks Gov. Goodhair and failed Energy Secretary, a chimp could’ve done a better job), the Stones can rip off thousands there as other overrated bands have since it was completed. It’s a better alternative to them and their moronic fans destroying Zilker Park as they did in 2006.
Given this is Texas, a place filled with ammosexuals, booze being served, weed is a given, IQs always drop in huge crowds and the show is at a race track, I hope History doesn’t repeat itself minus a biker gang composed of mentally damaged WW2 vets.