This weekend we are celebrating the 50th Anniversary of what many consider the most important event in music history. Almost a half a million people gathered at Max Yasgur’s farm in New York for 3 days of peace, love, and music, and the lineup was phenomenal.
Looking back, it’s crazy how much things have changed since then, especially when it comest to how much concert tickets cost, which really, is a direct relation to how much artists get paid for their shows.
A 3-day pass for Woodstock was $18 in advance, and $24 at the gate (of course we all know how the “at the gate” thing went). Today, that’s the equivalent of about $125 bucks.
So, yeah, it made me wonder how much each artist that performed at Woodstock got paid, and it is really surprising!
Jimi Hendrix was the top paid performer. He made $18,000.Blood Sweat and Tears was reportedly paid $15,000. Joan Baez and CCR got $10k, and The Band, Janis Joplin, and Jefferson Airplane were paid $7,500.
The Who is said to have been paid somewhere around $6,000, but in a Rolling Stone report their road manager collected $11,200 before the band took the stage.
I think the one that surprised me the most was Joe Cocker only making $1,375! Oh, and Santana only got paid $750!
Here’s the complete list, according to numerous online reports:
1. Jimi Hendrix – $18,000
2. Blood, Sweat and Tears – $15,000
3. Joan Baez – $10,000
4. Creedence Clearwater Revival – $10,000
5. The Band – $7,500
6. Janis Joplin – $7,500
7. Jefferson Airplane – $7,500
8. Sly and the Family Stone – $7,000
9. Canned Heat – $6,500
10. The Who – $6,250 (or $11, 200)
11. Richie Havens – $6,000
12. Arlo Guthrie – $5,000
13. Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young – $5,000
14. Ravi Shankar – $4,500
15. Johnny Winter – $3,750
16. Ten Years After – $3,250
17. Country Joe and the Fish – $2,500
18. Grateful Dead – $2,500
19. The Incredible String Band – $2,250
20. Mountain – $2,000
21. Tim Hardin – $2,000
22. Joe Cocker – $1,375
23. Sweetwater – $1,250
24. John B. Sebastian – $1,000
25. Melanie – $750
26. Santana – $750
27. Sha Na Na – $700
28. Keef Hartley – $500
29. Quill – $375