As I have seen this many times since it first came out on in the theater and then on VHS, I now just fast-forward chapters on the DVD to the music, enjoying my favorite performances in this epic documentary of the most famous rock concert of all time.

There is a lot to enjoy, including the stuff between the music if you have never seen this before. It certainly captures the wildness of the late 1960s, the good and the bad. It really brings you back to a unique time in American history. For someone who was part of that time, things that were "cool" back then now look and sound a little stupid and naive, but it's still fun to watch. Not only do you get a ton of music, but you see a half million people weathering storms, the mess, drugs, port-o-johns, drugs, dancing, skinny-dipping, drugs, eating. You get the idea.

Music-wise, everyone has their favorites so I'll put a plug or two in for the artists I've always enjoying watching-seeing the most in this movie: Ten Years After; Sly And The Family Stone; Canned Heat, The Who, Richie Havens, Santana, Sha Na Na, Country Joe And The Fish, The Jefferson Airplane and Crosby, Stills and Nash.

At almost four hours, you can choose from a variety of music acts, enough to give you at least an enjoyable couple of hours of that alone, if you wish. This is a must- have for music fans of that era.

This is a documentary of the iconic 1969 three-day music festival in upstate New York. The use of the split screen is interesting. It gives the movie a sense of chaos and energy. The performances are iconic to say the least. It is a little funny to follow Sha Na Na with Joe Cocker. The cheesiness of the choreographed dancing clash decisively with the raw power of Cocker. The music is generally great, raw, and close-up. There are some other scenes like the yoga class that breaks up the movie and gives it some fun. It's also gets full marks for being a time capsule of that landmark event. It does run long but it was quite an event.

The trouble I have watching this movie today is - "Where did the last thirty six years go?" I was on my way to the original "Peace and Arts Festival" before the crush of traffic on Sullivan County's portion of Route 17 and my own youthful practicality decided against it. For a brief hour or so I abandoned my car on the side of the road to make the trek to a then unknown location, but it seemed odd to me that as many people were coming from the direction of Yasgur's Farm as going toward it. With estimates of how much further ranged from a couple of miles to as much as twenty, I reversed course, and by the time I got halfway home, the skies opened up in buckets of rain.

In another odd bit of serendipity, when the film came out I was going to college in Buffalo, New York, and wound up heading to Toronto with a buddy for a day trip. While there, we couldn't pass up the theater marquis promoting "Woodstock", and saw it on 'foreign' soil so to speak. Like it was yesterday. The film's odd legacy would continue, shortly after I saw Wavy Gravy in person at a university drug symposium - "What we have in mind is breakfast in bed for four hundred thousand!"

I'm sure everyone has their favorite acts from the Woodstock bill. The 25th Anniversary DVD managed to tack on a memorable Janis Joplin performance, along with the electrifying 'Voodoo Child' number from Jimi Hendrix. The spirit of the entire three day adventure seemed to be epitomized by Joe Cocker's stirring 'With a Little Help From My Friends', that along with the unlikely appearance of a trio of nuns walking through the pasture, one of them flashing a peace sign.

It was a bit surreal back then, and even now to realize that a city of almost half a million people came together for a weekend, enjoyed three days of peace and music, and then disbanded quietly while a nation watched in wonder. Nothing quite like it has ever been attempted since, and it may be the moon and stars may never line up quite the same way again.

For those who live nearby the original Woodstock site in Bethel, there are subtle present day reminders of past glory, like the colorful 'Yasgur Farms' dairy trucks making local deliveries. A more auspicious presence is the newly opened 'Bethel Woods Center For The Arts' that had it's grand opening in 2005. One of the debut performances during the inaugural season featured a return visit of Woodstock alumni, Crosby, Stills and Nash, this time with fellow musician Neil Young. You can learn more about the center at http://www.bethelwoods.us/

Reminiscing about the heady days of 1969 and Woodstock, a lot of nostalgic thoughts come to mind. Janis, Jimi, Jerry Garcia and Max Yasgur have passed on, while bands like The Who and CSNY are still capturing the magic for legions of (aging) fans. Seeing the movie after all these years inspires me to alter slightly that old adage about lemons; in the playful spirit of the hippie generation, 'If life hands you mud, make mudslides'!