Guest
Happy anniversary KFRC Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival! Rock and Roll’s least appreciated seminal event. The fact that it even took place, is a minor miracle. The festival overcame numerous obstacles including, a weather postponement, political opposition, overcrowding, transportation issues, and little to no parking, just to name a few. A reported 20,000 tickets were sold to the 4,000 seat Amphitheatre on the top of Mount Tamalpias in Marin County California. But some reports had as many as 40,000 people in attendance over the two days. The parking problem was solved by chartering school buses and shuttling the masses up a narrow two-lane mountain road to the Amphitheater. Sound insane? It was. But the Magic Mountain wrapped its loving arms around the flower children, and the rest is Rock and Roll History. Bay Area artists displayed their crafts in a Renaissance Fair inspired type setting. Over thirty musical acts preformed on two stages, and with no formal backstage area, the bands mingled freely with the crowd. A tangible vibe of peace and love filled the mountain air. Even the Hells Angels, who had promised to keep the peace in exchange for motorcycle parking, were mellow. The Fantasy Fair opened a portal to a whole new world of ideology, music, and style for a lot of us that magical weekend. In looking back more than a half century later, it makes me wonder if it was all just a beautiful dream. Not only did it really happen, it was arguably, the true start of The Summer of Love. And undeniably, America’s first, “Rock Festival.” The event was a benefit for the Hunters Point Childcare Centers in San Francisco. A film crew was hired but unfortunately, nearly all the footage has been lost and no audio of any of the performances exists. I have mixed internet footage along with eleven of my personal photos from that weekend to present and hopefully help preserve… The Fantasy Fair, music by The Doors, song Light my Fire written by Jim Morrison, John Densmore, Ray Manzarek & Robby by Suki Hill
