Monterey Pop celebrates 50th with Eric Burdon, Norah Jones
MONTEREY, Calif. — The Monterey International Pop Festival turned 50 on Friday and celebrated its anniversary by kicking off another three-day concert that’s bringing back a few acts from a half century ago.
Back in 1967, the Monterey festival was the centerpiece of the “Summer of Love.” The June 16-18, 1967, event featured local San Francisco bands still in early stages of their careers, like the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin and Jefferson Airplane. And it introduced Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Otis Redding and Ravi Shankar to an American audience.
Grammy-winning record producer Lou Adler, one of the original concert’s organizers, came back to co-produce this year’s event, which runs through Sunday. For him, being back at the Monterey County Fairgrounds was like travelling back in time but also a potent reminder that so much time has passed.
“It’s emotional and, in a way, it brings back lots of memories,” Adler said. “Not just memories of the music and the spirit, but of the people I worked with to bring about Monterey the first time who are no longer with us. So many good people no longer around, and that is one of the instant memories that comes to me.”