{"id":1675,"date":"2025-06-27T14:18:32","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T14:18:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/musiclegacy\/?page_id=1675"},"modified":"2026-04-02T18:11:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T18:11:25","slug":"class-of-1970","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.cortland.edu\/musiclegacy\/class-of-1970\/","title":{"rendered":"Class of 1970"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Times<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Fall semester of 1969 at Cortland began with a strange dichotomy of history playing out all at the same time.  Richard Nixon was in the White House, the Vietnam War was still raging, we put a man on the moon and half a million young people gathered in upstate New York for a music festival like no other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On July 20th<\/sup>, 1969, Commander Neil Armstrong emerged from the Apollo 11 lunar module and took the first steps by a human on the surface of the moon exclaiming \u201cthat\u2019s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.\u201d  Watched live by millions all over the world, the mission not only fulfilled President Kennedy\u2019s goal of landing a man on the moon, but it also demonstrated American technology superiority in the international Space Race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drawing almost 500,000 young people, The Woodstock Festival & Art Fair from August 15-18, 1969, was a truly harmonious weekend and took everyone\u2019s mind off the scary world. Held at Max Yasgur\u2019s farm in Bethel, NY, it is safe to say that Cortland students attended the festival before returning to classes as it was less than 2 hours from campus. Starting with Richie Havens and ending with Jimi Hendrix, the concert showcased 32 musical performers and featured iconic performances by The Who, Santana, Jefferson Airplane, Arlo Guthrie, Sha Na Na, Joan Baez, John Sebastian, Country Joe and the Fish, The Grateful Dead, Ten Years After, The Band, Sly and the Family Stone, Janis Joplin with Big Brother and The Holding Company and the introduction of a new band, Crosby, Still and Nash, who were famously \u201cscared shitless!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few months later, on December 6, 1969, hoping for a \u201cWoodstock West,\u201d the Rolling Stones and The Grateful Dead organized and headlined the Altamont Free Concert. Thinking it would be a day like the vibe of Woodstock, the band hired the San Francisco chapter of the Hells Angels as security guards, paying them $500 in free beer. As 300,000 people descended on the site with no resources, the Angels got drunker through the night.  The concert proved to be a disaster with Marty Balin of the Jefferson Airplane being knocked out and Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones being punched. It also culminating with the death of four concertgoers and many injuries.  The chaos and mayhem were included in the Rolling Stones 1970s documentary \u201cGimme Shelter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The campus was abuzz the entire Spring semester in 1970 when the news broke on April 10th, that the Beatles had broken up. Paul McCartney was promoting the release of his first solo album after John Lennon had released \u201cInstant Karma\u201d in February and said that he no longer planned to record with the Beatles. The press misinterpreted this to mean it was the end of the band. With that, the world reacted with sadness and disbelief. Paul actually wanted the band to continue and years after John died, Paul was finally able to report that John really ended the Beatles at that time. Ironically, Abby Road\u2019s \u201cThe End\u201d was the last song recorded by all four Beatles and released in mid 1969 with the prophetic words \u201cAnd in the end, the love you take, is equal to the love you make.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As seniors were a few weeks from graduation, there were major anti-war demonstrations happening at colleges across the country. At Kent State in Ohio, after several days of intense protests, the National Guardsmen were called in to suppress the rioting.  By noon on May 4th<\/sup>, 1970, armed with tear gas and bayonets fixed to their rifles, the National Guard ordered the crowds to disperse. Minutes later, without firing a warning shot, sixty rounds were discharged toward the students, killing four and wounding nine. The next day, on May 5th<\/sup>, the Cortland House of Delegates endorsed a student strike, and 3,000 students gathered to protest between Old Main and Miller outraged by the horrific news. As a result, Cortland students and faculty met in the Old Main auditorium after which the students left and proceeded to occupy The Miller Building chaining the doors shut. These types of demonstrations were happening all over the country. Photographs of the Kent State massacre along with Neil Young\u2019s song \u201cOhio,\u201d created the enduring images and sounds of the anti-war movement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notable Events<\/p>\n\n\n\n