March 22, 2009 20:27

Woodstock set for 40th anniversary festival?

Organisers are seeking funding for a new event this summer

Woodstock co-founder Michael Lang says he is seeking funding for a 40th anniversary concert of the legendary festival to take place this summer.

Lang says he wants the festival to be free, environmentally friendly and to possibly take place in New York.

"We want to have as small a carbon imprint as we can and use as many green techniques as we can," he told Billboard.

"There would be a lot of legacy bands [performing] – The Who, Santana, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Joe Cocker maybe. And it would be people like Steve Earle and Ben Harper. There's certainly room for the (Red Hot) Chili Peppers and Dave Matthews...that would be the shape of the music."

The original Woodstock took place in New York in 1969 and featured career-defining sets from Jimi Hendrix and The Who. Since then, organisers have held several anniversary festivals, with the last one in 1999.

Notoriously, Woodstock 1999 descended into violence during sets by Limp Bizkit and Red Hot Chili Peppers. New York State Troopers and local police were forced to enter the festival grounds to quell rioting, and it was later confirmed that four people were raped during the event.

Speaking at South By Southwest festival, Lang stated that he doesn't believe Woodstock's reputation has been tarnished by the 1999 festival.

"I think it always hearkens back to the '69 event, somehow," he said. "When people think [of Woodstock] they don't think '99 or '94. They think [of] the '69 event. I think [1999] has its ramifications, but I don't think it did any real damage in that sense."

He added that he is also considering holding a concurrent Woodstock at Berlin's Tempelhof airport.