Overview

1967. In many respects it was the high point of a new youth culture's emergence. The ideals of the so-called hippie era were new, held enormous promise for many young people, and got a moment of celebration in this window, before being tested more rigorously in the years that followed. If any one city is associated with the Summer of Love, it's San Francisco. The lessons that will come in this chapter focus on San Francisco and its central place in the story of a counterculture's emergence. Bands including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Charlatans, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and others were a crucial part of the wider culture that emerged. It was a culture of protest, of challenging mainstream values, of confrontational politics, and psychedelic leanings. Nothing associated with the "Establishment" was beyond the limits of the questioning that the counterculture put forward.

Amidst lessons on San Francisco and the growth of "hippie" culture, this chapter's materials will explore changes in the music — the growing interest in non-western traditions, for instance, spearheaded in many ways by the Beatles' George Harrison — and changes in how music, both live and recorded, was packaged. In many cases, the songs got longer, with guitar solos extended well beyond the usual Pop format, and the shows became "experiences," with lighting and sets becoming more central aspects. Major events, including the now-legendary Monterey Pop Festival, were showcases for the new sensibility associated with youth culture. In that window of time, careers were born quickly, and if you got on the right bill and had the right act, you could be a star almost overnight.

Amid the change and upheaval, Bill Graham's legendary shows at the Fillmore demonstrated that the hippies absorbed the heroes of earlier Rock and Roll culture — with the likes of Chuck Berry and B.B. King sharing bills with acts like the Grateful Dead.

View More

Lessons

lesson:
The San Francisco Scene, 1967

Grades: AP/Honors/101, High
Subjects: Social Studies/History

Why did nearly 100,000 young people descend upon San Francisco in 1967 for a “Summer of Love"?

Featured Resources

Video

video:
1960s Love-In Dancing

<p>1967. In many respects it was the high point of a new youth culture's emergence. The ideals of the so-called hippie era were new, held enormous promise for many young people, and got a moment of celebration in this window, before being tested more rigorously in the years that followed. If any one city is associated with the Summer of Love, it's San Francisco. The lessons that will come in this chapter focus on San Francisco and its central place in the story of a counterculture's emergence. Bands including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Charlatans, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and others were a crucial part of the wider culture that emerged. It was a culture of protest, of challenging mainstream values, of confrontational politics, and psychedelic leanings. Nothing associated with the &quot;Establishment&quot; was beyond the limits of the questioning that the counterculture put forward.</p> <p>Amidst lessons on San Francisco and the growth of &quot;hippie&quot; culture, this chapter's materials will explore changes in the music -- the growing interest in non-western traditions, for instance, spearheaded in many ways by the Beatles' George Harrison -- and changes in how music, both live and recorded, was packaged. In many cases, the songs got longer, with guitar solos extended well beyond the usual Pop format, and the shows became &quot;experiences,&quot; with lighting and sets becoming more central aspects. Major events, including the now-legendary Monterey Pop Festival, were showcases for the new sensibility associated with youth culture. In that window of time, careers were born quickly, and if you got on the right bill and had the right act, you could be a star almost overnight.</p> <p>Amid the change and upheaval, Bill Graham's legendary shows at the Fillmore&nbsp;demonstrated&nbsp;that&nbsp;the hippies absorbed the heroes of earlier Rock and Roll culture -- with the likes of Chuck Berry and B.B. King sharing bills with acts like the Grateful Dead.</p>

video:
Woodstock

<p>1967. In many respects it was the high point of a new youth culture's emergence. The ideals of the so-called hippie era were new, held enormous promise for many young people, and got a moment of celebration in this window, before being tested more rigorously in the years that followed. If any one city is associated with the Summer of Love, it's San Francisco. The lessons that will come in this chapter focus on San Francisco and its central place in the story of a counterculture's emergence. Bands including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Charlatans, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and others were a crucial part of the wider culture that emerged. It was a culture of protest, of challenging mainstream values, of confrontational politics, and psychedelic leanings. Nothing associated with the &quot;Establishment&quot; was beyond the limits of the questioning that the counterculture put forward.</p> <p>Amidst lessons on San Francisco and the growth of &quot;hippie&quot; culture, this chapter's materials will explore changes in the music -- the growing interest in non-western traditions, for instance, spearheaded in many ways by the Beatles' George Harrison -- and changes in how music, both live and recorded, was packaged. In many cases, the songs got longer, with guitar solos extended well beyond the usual Pop format, and the shows became &quot;experiences,&quot; with lighting and sets becoming more central aspects. Major events, including the now-legendary Monterey Pop Festival, were showcases for the new sensibility associated with youth culture. In that window of time, careers were born quickly, and if you got on the right bill and had the right act, you could be a star almost overnight.</p> <p>Amid the change and upheaval, Bill Graham's legendary shows at the Fillmore&nbsp;demonstrated&nbsp;that&nbsp;the hippies absorbed the heroes of earlier Rock and Roll culture -- with the likes of Chuck Berry and B.B. King sharing bills with acts like the Grateful Dead.</p>

video:
Civil Unrest

<p>1967. In many respects it was the high point of a new youth culture's emergence. The ideals of the so-called hippie era were new, held enormous promise for many young people, and got a moment of celebration in this window, before being tested more rigorously in the years that followed. If any one city is associated with the Summer of Love, it's San Francisco. The lessons that will come in this chapter focus on San Francisco and its central place in the story of a counterculture's emergence. Bands including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Charlatans, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and others were a crucial part of the wider culture that emerged. It was a culture of protest, of challenging mainstream values, of confrontational politics, and psychedelic leanings. Nothing associated with the &quot;Establishment&quot; was beyond the limits of the questioning that the counterculture put forward.</p> <p>Amidst lessons on San Francisco and the growth of &quot;hippie&quot; culture, this chapter's materials will explore changes in the music -- the growing interest in non-western traditions, for instance, spearheaded in many ways by the Beatles' George Harrison -- and changes in how music, both live and recorded, was packaged. In many cases, the songs got longer, with guitar solos extended well beyond the usual Pop format, and the shows became &quot;experiences,&quot; with lighting and sets becoming more central aspects. Major events, including the now-legendary Monterey Pop Festival, were showcases for the new sensibility associated with youth culture. In that window of time, careers were born quickly, and if you got on the right bill and had the right act, you could be a star almost overnight.</p> <p>Amid the change and upheaval, Bill Graham's legendary shows at the Fillmore&nbsp;demonstrated&nbsp;that&nbsp;the hippies absorbed the heroes of earlier Rock and Roll culture -- with the likes of Chuck Berry and B.B. King sharing bills with acts like the Grateful Dead.</p>

video:
Monterey Pop Trailer

<p>1967. In many respects it was the high point of a new youth culture's emergence. The ideals of the so-called hippie era were new, held enormous promise for many young people, and got a moment of celebration in this window, before being tested more rigorously in the years that followed. If any one city is associated with the Summer of Love, it's San Francisco. The lessons that will come in this chapter focus on San Francisco and its central place in the story of a counterculture's emergence. Bands including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Charlatans, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and others were a crucial part of the wider culture that emerged. It was a culture of protest, of challenging mainstream values, of confrontational politics, and psychedelic leanings. Nothing associated with the &quot;Establishment&quot; was beyond the limits of the questioning that the counterculture put forward.</p> <p>Amidst lessons on San Francisco and the growth of &quot;hippie&quot; culture, this chapter's materials will explore changes in the music -- the growing interest in non-western traditions, for instance, spearheaded in many ways by the Beatles' George Harrison -- and changes in how music, both live and recorded, was packaged. In many cases, the songs got longer, with guitar solos extended well beyond the usual Pop format, and the shows became &quot;experiences,&quot; with lighting and sets becoming more central aspects. Major events, including the now-legendary Monterey Pop Festival, were showcases for the new sensibility associated with youth culture. In that window of time, careers were born quickly, and if you got on the right bill and had the right act, you could be a star almost overnight.</p> <p>Amid the change and upheaval, Bill Graham's legendary shows at the Fillmore&nbsp;demonstrated&nbsp;that&nbsp;the hippies absorbed the heroes of earlier Rock and Roll culture -- with the likes of Chuck Berry and B.B. King sharing bills with acts like the Grateful Dead.</p>

video:
Communists on Campus

<p>1967. In many respects it was the high point of a new youth culture's emergence. The ideals of the so-called hippie era were new, held enormous promise for many young people, and got a moment of celebration in this window, before being tested more rigorously in the years that followed. If any one city is associated with the Summer of Love, it's San Francisco. The lessons that will come in this chapter focus on San Francisco and its central place in the story of a counterculture's emergence. Bands including the Jefferson Airplane, the Grateful Dead, the Charlatans, Quicksilver Messenger Service, and others were a crucial part of the wider culture that emerged. It was a culture of protest, of challenging mainstream values, of confrontational politics, and psychedelic leanings. Nothing associated with the &quot;Establishment&quot; was beyond the limits of the questioning that the counterculture put forward.</p> <p>Amidst lessons on San Francisco and the growth of &quot;hippie&quot; culture, this chapter's materials will explore changes in the music -- the growing interest in non-western traditions, for instance, spearheaded in many ways by the Beatles' George Harrison -- and changes in how music, both live and recorded, was packaged. In many cases, the songs got longer, with guitar solos extended well beyond the usual Pop format, and the shows became &quot;experiences,&quot; with lighting and sets becoming more central aspects. Major events, including the now-legendary Monterey Pop Festival, were showcases for the new sensibility associated with youth culture. In that window of time, careers were born quickly, and if you got on the right bill and had the right act, you could be a star almost overnight.</p> <p>Amid the change and upheaval, Bill Graham's legendary shows at the Fillmore&nbsp;demonstrated&nbsp;that&nbsp;the hippies absorbed the heroes of earlier Rock and Roll culture -- with the likes of Chuck Berry and B.B. King sharing bills with acts like the Grateful Dead.</p>

Print Journalism

article:
Monterey Pops! An International Pop Festival

Reporting for Newsweek took me to Monterey. I'd gone to work for Newsweekright out of college in 1965 – I was a reporter in the London bureau whenRubber Soul came out, Carnaby Street was jumping, and the Who were at the Marquee. In January '67, just as the '60s musical-social ball was bouncing westward, Newsweek moved me to San Francisco. I arrived in time for the Human Be-In and soon was hanging out at the Avalon and Fillmore, interviewing Jerry and Janis, and covering student demonstrations in Berkeley. In May I began to hear rumours of a huge hippie festival: all the best new bands...

article:
Grateful Dead – How the hell do ya play them five-hour sets without slinkin’ off for a leak?

Yes, it's an interesting one isn't it? I mean, five hours...that's a long time, and well...camels are different of course, so really it must be a problem. However, Smilin' Jerry Garcia doesn't let The Grateful Dead's music get bogged down with details like that. Read his answers in NME – the one that dares ask the big questions. IT'S DA Dead, mayun! Everybody's bloody grinning. The roadies who're running around Alexandra Palace launching frisbees into the stratosphere, the ones who're plugging things in and carrying things about, the Old Ladies'n Wives trucking around with their kids... Everybody is grinning. Jerry Garcia is grinning as...