The Woodstock festival held in 1969 at Yasgur’s farm, Bethel, New York, is one of those truly emblematic moments in the history of contemporary music, and indeed in the birth of americana. And of course it’s spawned a truly great song – Joni Mitchell’s composition of the same name. She was not performing there herself: legend tells us that her then manager thought her time would be best spent with an appearance on the Dick Cavett show but, having been in a relationship with Graham Nash, who performed at the festival, Mitchell was inspired to write her homage to the festival.
And, remarkable writer that Mitchell is, the song survives as one of her very best. Lyrically, she describes in four lines the hopes and challenges of a generation, singing “We are stardust/ We are golden/ And we’ve got to get ourselves/ Back to the garden”.
My own introduction to the song was the sublime version by Matthew Southern Comfort, dating from 1970, and featuring track-defining pedal steel from Gordon Huntley, the beautifully melodic and languid playing fitting the “peace and love” vibe perfectly. This was also my introduction to the pedal steel – an enduring love to this day.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young released their version of the song the same year, a single from the classic Déjà Vu album. As different as could be imagined from the Matthews Southern Comfort version, this is an out-and-out rocker, with a classically dirty opening riff from Neil Young, and vocals by Stephen Stills. Their version carries the anger of the counterculture, and the empowerment of the gathering of a huge crowd, while the Matthews Southern Comfort version leans to the spiritual side, reflecting the opening line “I came upon a child of God, he was walking along the road, and I asked him “where are you going“? And this he told me…“ and it’s implication of not just a music festival, but a mystical journey through life.
I suspect, memory not always being so reliable, that this was also the first time I heard Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, on an Atlantic sampler album which still sits in my vinyl collection. Certainly, it led to me to explore their wider catalogue, and enduring legacy.
And of course, no homage to this song can be complete without Joni Mitchell‘s own version – recorded for the Ladies of the Canyon album in 1970. Her version of her song features melodic electric piano, and her remarkable vocal range, with a gospel choir echo summoning up the spirit of the “summer of love”, a message of both reflection, and optimism, and a stunning vocalisation outro.
Fast forward to 2025 – UK outfit the Wandering Hearts had long harboured a dream of producing their own version of Déjà Vu, and what a fine record its realisation is. In theory a risky decision to cover such a classic album, but they bring true spirit to their recording – and, even more, to their full band live performance of their album, at the Union Chapel in 2025. Their show commenced with a short acoustic set of their own songs, beautifully delivered, but when they came back on with the full band, they had also entered into the 70s spirit in their dress – see the live video of their show! Of course, Woodstock was a true highlight of the set–55 years on!
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