40th Anniversary of the Summer of Love!

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 04:44 AM

I've just returned from San Francisco where I particpated in the 40th Anniversary of the Summer of Love with 40,000 other very high people!

Among the many highlights of this event were The Jefferson Starship, who played several hits in their set, with Somebody to Love, White Rabbit and closing with Volunteers (of America). These were all Jefferson Airplane songs of course!

What a great event! I've got lots more pix and videos I'll load up over the next few days, so check back for more!

Image #1 - Marty Balin singing Volunteers with the Jefferson Starship in front of a Peter Max backdrop!

Image #2 - Taj Mahal

**wyldwynd** · 09-04-2007, 01:44 PM

Those are some great pictures Skip, I was really wanting to go to this event but was unable to make it. I'm looking forward to hearing more about your experience and seeing some more inspired images.

Peace~Love~Light

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 08:10 PM

Michael McClure (Beat Poet) recited some powerful poetry while Ray Manzarek (The Doors) accompanied with his fantastic keyboard skills. Reading poetry along with live music was very popular from the cafes of Greenwich Village to the salons of Paris in the 1960s.

That's basically what happened when Ray and a dude named Jim Morrison got together in L.A. back in the sixties.

My good friend, Lee Bridges, the Cannabis Poet, (R.I.P.) produced just such events in Paris around the time of the Student Revolution there, 1968...

Doesn't Ray look totally blissed out?

**wyldwynd** · 09-04-2007, 08:39 PM

Looks like Ray is blissed out,,,

what a totally cool vibe going on in all the images so far

must of been a awesome experience~

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 08:53 PM

I don't know how many of you can remember this band, The Charlatans. They were the first band to perform live on LSD, and a very influential group of musicians back in SF in the 60s.

From left to right, Mike Wilhelm, Richard Olsen and Dan Hicks.

This was their final performance ever as a group!

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 08:55 PM

And of course, Dan Hicks is more famous for his group, Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks who also performed at the event.

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 08:57 PM

It was great to see the New Riders of the Purple Sage perform, albeit with just a few old members present.

That's Bill Laymon on the left and David Nelson on the right. Here they're performing their hit "Panama Red".

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 09:03 PM

The Chambers Brothers had a few big hits in the 60s. Here's Lester Chambers with his band performing "Time Has Come Today", just like it was 1967 again!

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 09:15 PM

There were many speakers during the event. Here's David E. Smith, the founder of the Haight Ashbury Free Clinic. The clinic was such an important part of the Summer of Love, helping young people with their medical problems, like drug overdoses and STDs, FOR FREE (yes, see it IS possible!).

Today the Haight Ashbury Free Clinic consists of 22 separate clinics serving 34,000 people a year! What a success story from that summer!

**Skip** · 09-04-2007, 09:36 PM

Of course this Anniversary celebration wouldn't have been complete without Country Joe McDonald's band. Country Joe got the entire crowd singing along with him.

Joe kept repeating the refrain "What does it spell?", while the audience yelled "FUCK!", 32 times for a new record!

Here's Bruce Barthol (also from the Mime Troupe) with Joe singing the "I-Feel-like-I’m-Fixin’-to-Die Rag".