Woodstock (song)

"Woodstock"
Cover of the 1970 French single
Single by Joni Mitchell
from the album Ladies of the Canyon
A-side	"Big Yellow Taxi"
Released	April 1970
Recorded	1970
Studio	A&M, Hollywood
Genre	Folk rock[1]
Length	5:25
Label	Reprise
Songwriter(s)	Joni Mitchell
Producer(s)	Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell singles chronology
"Chelsea Morning" (1969) "Woodstock" (1970) "Carey" (1971)

"Woodstock" is a song written by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell. At least four notable versions of the song were released in the same year, 1970. Mitchell's own version was first performed live in 1969 and appeared in April 1970 on her album Ladies of the Canyon and as the B-side to her single "Big Yellow Taxi". This publication was preceded by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young's version, which appeared on their March 1970 album Déjà Vu and became a staple of classic rock radio and the best-known version in the United States. A third version, by the British band Matthews Southern Comfort became the best known version in the United Kingdom, and was the highest charting version of the song, reaching the top of the UK Singles Chart in 1970. A fourth version by studio project the Assembled Multitude also became a chart hit.

The song's lyrics refer to the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival of 1969, telling the story of a concert-goer on a trek to attend the festival. Mitchell, who was unable to actually perform at the festival herself due to scheduling conflicts, was inspired to write the song based on an account of the festival relayed to her by then-boyfriend Graham Nash, who had performed there. The anthemic song, as well as the festival it commemorates, is symbolic of the counterculture of the 1960s.