December 6, 1969
Altamont Speedway,
Tracy, California
Videos by American Songwriter
“Why are we fighting? … We need an ambulance.”—Mick Jagger from the stage.
It started out to be a kind of “Woodstock West.” People wanted to continue the wave of magic that started at the music and art fair in Bethel, New York, three months earlier. It turned out to be a symbol of the death of the ’60s. The peace and love movement that started out so hopefully came crashing down on that December day in the Alameda County area formerly referred to as The Summit. The Rolling Stones were one of the biggest bands in the world. They were making news for charging outrageous ticket prices during their U.S. tour (they ranged from $3 to $8 apiece). They decided to add one free show to the end of their tour. But things were not right from the beginning.
The Location
A free show was initially planned at San Jose State University, including The Grateful Dead and The Rolling Stones. The school had just hosted a three-day festival with 52 bands. The city of San Jose informed the concert organizers they would not be welcome at their facility. Attention shifted to Golden Gate Park as the setting and Jefferson Airplane were added to the bill. The San Francisco 49ers had a game scheduled that day. Permits from the city were denied. The Altamont Speedway outside of Tracy, California, was secured, and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Santana, and The Flying Burrito Brothers were added to the lineup.
The Stones’ U.S. Tour
The Rolling Stones hadn’t toured the U.S. since 1966. Founder Brian Jones had quit the band and then died in his swimming pool. Mick Taylor was brought in to replace him. The first gig with the new guitarist was the free show at London’s Hyde Park that turned into a memorial for Jones, who died two days earlier. The U.S. Tour began with a warmup concert in Fort Collins, Colorado, then included 23 shows nationwide. In the middle of the tour, they made an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. Their album, Let It Bleed, was released on November 28, 1969, just before the end of the tour. The documentary Gimme Shelter documents the end of the tour, and the events of the Altamont Speedway show.
Recording in Muscle Shoals
The tour was originally scheduled to end after the November 29 show at Boston Garden. A show was added in Miami as a favor to the promoter. There was a week before the show in Altamont, so the band went to Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama and recorded tracks for their next album. Three songs were recorded during their three days at the famous studio where Lynyrd Skynyrd, Paul Simon, The Staple Singers, Bob Dylan, and Bob Seger would all go on to record. The Stones flew from Alabama to Northern California.
Hell’s Angels
It was agreed that the security for the show would be handled by the local chapters of the Hell’s Angels. The British chapters had assisted with security at the Hyde Park show five months earlier. The gang members were promised beer in return for stopping crowd members from interfering with the generators or coming on stage.
The Day of the Show
The Rolling Stones arrived on the scene in helicopters. As they were walking to the backstage area, Mick Jagger was hit in the face by a man who yelled, “I hate you. I hate you.”
It was an ominous foreshadowing of the events of the day. Santana began the show without incident. They were followed by Jefferson Airplane. The Hell’s Angels had their motorcycles parked in front of the stage. They continued drinking and making a human barrier. When the crowd knocked over one of their bikes, they reacted with violence. Singer Marty Balin jumped down from the stage to try to assist, and he was knocked unconscious. When bassist Paul Kantner addressed the Angels on the mic, one of the gang members jumped on stage, grabbed a microphone, and argued with the band member. There was an uncomfortable delay, and the crowd became more and more restless. As members of the audience approached the stage, they were met with boots or pool cues. Violence was escalating quickly. The Flying Burrito Brothers performed next. Most accounts report that the tension subsided during their set. Tempers flared again when Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young came on. At this point, The Grateful Dead, who were watching from the wings, decided they were not going to perform. They left the premises.
The Stones Take the Stage
Bassist Bill Wyman had missed the helicopter, and the band had to wait for his arrival. The crowd was already anxious, and the delay did not help their condition. Multiple fights broke out among the packed crowd pushing toward the stage. The Hell’s Angels were involved in most of them. As the Rolling Stones played, they could see skirmishes happening right in front of them. Jagger would alternately plead with the crowd to settle down and with the Hell’s Angels to stand down. The band continued to play, realizing the real trouble would start if they abruptly ended the show.
“Brothers and sisters. Brothers and sisters. … Everybody just cool out,” Jagger continued to plead with the crowd.
The band went into “Under My Thumb,” and the skirmishes around the stage continued. Eighteen-year-old Meredith Hunter had been beaten by the members of Hell’s Angels. He came toward the stage with a gun and was beaten and stabbed multiple times. He was dead before he could be attended to. Hell’s Angel Alan Passaro was acquitted of the murder of Hunter on the grounds of self-defense.
The concert ended with four deaths: Hunter, two in a hit-and-run car accident, and a drowning in a canal. The idea of a free concert to celebrate life came to a close with the opposite outcome.
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Photo by Reg Burkett/Express/Getty Images
