BEST ROCK FESTIVALS: ¡THE BESTS IN HISTORY!

Rock music festivals have marked generations, leaving an important mark on the music genre. If you’re a rock lover, pay special attention, because we’ll take a walk through the best rock and metal festivals in the world 🤘

Rock music festivals: A journey through time

When talking about the most important rock festivals in the world, reference is made, and for specialists in the subject, of a trip back in time. This is because they began to develop in the 60’s summoning a great number of people and followers of different bands of the time such as Queen and Pink Floyd.

Offering attendees real shows and performances that have definitely marked a before and after. Making, for example, the hippie movement became known worldwide beyond their ideals.

It’s for all of the above that rock in history has an important place and those who know a little more about music have it clear. Being one of these revolutionary festivals of yesteryear, Monterey Pop Festival, in which Jimi Hendrix, a true legend on the guitar, performed in 1967.

Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison are some of the members of the 27 Club 👀 Find out all about this conspiracy theory!

Best rock festivals in history

Within the list of best rock festivals in history, there are some that definitely stand out more than others.

Being the best-known rock festival in Europe and America mainly, and of which we’ll talk about below.

Queen at Wembley Stadium – 1992

Among the best rock festivals, can’t avoid mentioning the one held at Wembley Stadium in 1992 where tribute was paid to the great Freddie Mercury.

The great attraction of the event is that musicians of all genres gathered to pay tribute to Freddy Mercury, who had died a year earlier due to bronchopneumonia caused by AIDS.

Some of the artists who attended the celebration were: Elton John, Axl Rose, George Michael, David Bowie, Annie Lennox, Slash.

But where the audience was marked was with the appearance of the three members of the band Queen, really very emotional!

Pink Floyd at TheWall Tour, 1980 – 1981

Here is another great moment of rock festivals around the world.

Leaving an important mark on the staging, projections, huge puppets, and a wall, which of course gives the name to the tour.

Events that marked generations and that managed to consolidate the prestige of Pink Floyd.

Remaining as a milestone in the history of music, because it had been until that date the most elaborate and complex show.

To give you an idea of the magnitude and complexity of the staging, it was so ambitious that it could only be performed in four cities.

The most striking thing about the tour is that, on the one hand, it helped Pink Floyd, but the show itself meant the end of the band because at that time the members weren’t even speaking to each other.

Woodstock – 1969

This wasn’t only one of the most important rock festivals in the world, but it was also one of the most important for art. To give you more insight into this one, it was the hippie congregation with rock music that took place from Friday the 15th to Monday the 18th.

Some of the participating artists were: The Who; Richie Havens; Sweetwater; Bert Sommer; John Sebastian; Santana; Creedence; Janis Joplin; The Band; Blood, Sweat & Tears; Jimi Hendrix.

But within what marked this tremendous show are some bands that refused to participate and that their anecdotes seem somewhat far-fetched. Such is the case of:

• The Beatles, a band with which there were never clear reasons for rejection.
• Led Zeppelin, who confirmed their rejection by mentioning that there should have been another band on the list.
• The Doors, who at first accepted, but then rejected when they found out that the event would take place on a farm.

But what undoubtedly marked this festival was the drug use and the slogans of “Love and Peace” because of the Vietnam War. And so many people attended that some bands had to arrive by helicopter to areas near the stage.

Newport Folk Festival -1965

Jazz, folk, and blues dominated the festival scene long before rock took over. Things began to change in the 1960s, and one of the first and most notable examples took place on July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival.

Bob Dylan was already a legend thanks to politically charged songs like “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “Only a Pawn in Their Game.”

Until then, however, he was known as an acoustic artist, which was appropriate for this event. So it came as a surprise to everyone in attendance when Dylan “went electric,” performing a trio of songs with a band of session musicians.

Fans were so upset that Dylan had turned his back on folk – at least in their opinion – that they began to boo. The moment marked a remarkable shift in Dylan’s career, while also presaging the dawn of rock festivals.

Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival -1967

Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain were held on June 10-11, 1967, officially becoming America’s first rock festival. The event helped inaugurate the Summer of Love and laid the groundwork for future generations of festivals.

As much attention was paid to the atmosphere surrounding the music as to the music itself. To that end, shuttle buses brought attendees to the event site atop scenic Mount Tamalpais, booths housed local merchants selling everything from food to fashion, and decor throughout the grounds enhanced the festival’s psychedelic theme.

Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, The Byrds and Captain Beefheart were among the artists performing.

Other rock festivals around the world

Of course, the above rock music festivals are definitely the best in history. But this doesn’t mean that there isn’t more to know about, and so that you can cultivate your musical culture as you should, here are some other festivals to remember.

Piedra Roja Festival – 1979

Did you think that Chile was going to be left without imitating these extraordinary musical events of such a relevant genre in history and the world as rock?

It was in 1979 when in Chile took place one of the rock festivals added to the list of history, the so-called Piedra Roja Festival, also known as Los Dominicos Festival, in the district of Las Condes.

And to further mark its record in the history of Chilean rock, something very similar to Woodstock happened, including sound problems, drugs, and crime.

Bob Dylan at the Newport Festival 1965

Bob Dylan undoubtedly marked one of the most important moments of rock festivals in the world, where he went from being booed by the crowd to being acclaimed through applause asking for more from the artist.

To finish with the best rock festivals in history, we can’t fail to mention artists like The Who, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, and Rolling Stones, who also gave real shows worth remembering.