1960s

In honor of the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, here are recommendations for films about Woodstock and the 1960’s youth and music culture.

Woodstock: 3 days of peace and music  (DVD 658)

This documentary film captures the unique communal experience and many of the performances of the most famous of outdoor rock concerts.

1968 with Tom Brokaw (DVD 8868)

1968: in that single year, MLK and RFK were assassinated, Chicago rioted, Nixon triumphed, and Tet exploded. The top music acts were the Beatles, the Doors, Otis Redding and Marvin Gaye. Man circled the Moon. From Civil Rights to Vietnam, from rock & roll to rocket science, 1968 stands out as a concentrated dose of everything we think of as the Sixties.

Alice's Restaurant ( DVD 434)

In the late '60s, a changing social and political climate inspired a new generation to create a lifestyle outside the mainstream. Twenty-two year-old Arlo's journey to find a place for himself and his music includes a visit to his dying father in the hospital, gigs in New York and romps with his friends Alice and Ray, who run a small restaurant in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. And when an incident at Alice's Restaurant plays a pivotal role in Arlo's avoidance of the draft, it send him down a road that he will consider a small price to pay to keep his freedom and his beliefs.

Steal This Move (DVD 6439)

A unique journey into the life of activist radical Abbie Hoffman as he battles for social justice and travels thru the maze of music and politics that defined the late sixties and early seventies.

Monterey Pop (DVD 2361 v.1-3)

Monterey Pop is the first filmed document of a rock festival. The Monterey Pop Festival, held on California's Monterey Peninsula in 1968, inspired Jann Wenner to launch his enormously successful "Rolling Stone Magazine." It also did much to boost the careers of many of the pop and rock stars who performed in it.

Nico Icon (DVD 1106)

Documentary about Christa Paffgen, German model, singer and occasional actress who became the pop icon Nico. Features archival footage and interviews friends and associates.

All My Loving: A Film of Pop Music (DVD 7789)

A groundbreaking documentary on music and its effect on pop culture in the late '60s, with previously unseen footage from the Beatles, Cream, Jimi Hendrix, the Who, Pink Floyd, and many more.

Bob Dylan World Tours 1966-1974 (DVD 6692)

Dylan's secluded life before his return to the road in 1974. Gilbert recreates the singer-songwriter's 1966 motorcycle accident, pays a visit to Big Pink, examines Dylan's first encounter with The Beatles, and even confronts fanatic Dylanologist A.J. Weberman. Interviews with D.A. Pennebaker, rock journalism godfather Al Aronowitz, Band drummer Mickey Jones.

Jimi Hendrix (MV 3194)

A rockumentary film tribute to Jimi Hendrix officially authorized by the Hendrix estate that includes his father's recollection of young Jimi strumming a broom as if it were a guitar, to interviews with guitarists Eric Clapton and Peter Townsend, to behind-the-scenes looks at Hendrix and the ravaging pressures of his meteoric stardoom. Includes live performances at Monterey, Woodstock, Isle of Wight festivals as well as the 1967 psychadelic classic "Purple Haze" at London's Marquee Club and "Machine Gun" at the Fillmore East. Also includes a rare 12-string guitar solo version of "Hear my train a'comin'."

The Who: The Kids are Alright (DVD 2406)

Experience the most explosive rock band ever to take the stage. If you've never experienced them live, get ready because you're going to feel like you are on stage with Pete, Roger, John and Keith during their rise through the rock n' roll hierarchy.

The Rolling Stones Gimme Shelter (DVD 1034)

A documentary on the Rolling Stones' 1969 tour of the United States, including a performance at Madison Square Garden and a free concert at the Altamont Speedway in California where violence broke out between fans and Hell's Angels who were providing security. Includes performances by Ike and Tina Turner, the Jefferson Airplane and the Flying Burrito Brothers. This special version also contains never-before-seen performances from the Madison Square Garden show, audio commentary by directors Albert Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin, excerpts from KSAN Radio's Altamont wrap-up, an Altamont stills gallery featuring the work of photographers Bill Owens and Beth Sunflower, original and re-release theatrical trailers, plus trailers for Maysles films Grey gardens and Salesman, filmographies for Maysles Films and Charlotte Zwerin, and a restoration demonstration.

Joni Mitchell: Woman of Heart and Mind (DVD 3835)

Looks back at Joni Mitchell, from her own reminiscences and those of her friends and contemporaries. Includes bits of performances from all eras of her career.

Bob Dylan: Don't Look Back (DVD 6974)

Portrait of the artist as a young man. In spring, 1965, Bob Dylan a 23 year-old, pixyish troubadour, spent three weeks in England. Follows him from airport to hall, from hotel room to public house, from conversation to concert. Joan Baez and Donovan, among others, are on hand. It's the period when Dylan is shifting from acoustic to electric, a transition that not all fans, including Baez, applaud. From the opening sequence Dylan is playful and enigmatic.

No Direction Home: Bob Dylan (DVD 4861)

Traces Bob Dylan's journey from his roots in Minnesota, to his early days in Greenwich Village, to his tumultuous ascent to pop stardom in 1966. Joan Baez, Allan Ginzberg and others share their thoughts and feelings about the young singer who would change popular music forever. Contains never-before-seen footage, exclusive interviews, and rare concert performances.

Festival Express (DVD 3999)

In 1970, such names as Janis Joplin, The Band, and The Grateful Dead traveled by a customized train for five days to Toronto, Calgary, and Winnipeg for a mega-concert at each stop. This experience was filmed and some footage was locked away, until now.

The History of Rock 'n' Roll DVD 4023 v.1-5

Interviews with rock's brightest stars from Little Richard to Bono as they recall songs and sounds that changed their lives.

Neil Young: Heart of Gold (DVD 6259)

It's Neil Young like he's never been seen before, revealing a life-affirming sentiment that transcends his music and confirms his place as one of music's most influential artists.

Grateful Dead Collection (MV 5339-5342)

Captures the best of the Grateful Dead's historic week-long marathon of shows at the world-famous Radio City Music Hall

Message to Love: The Isle of Wight Festival DVD 6816

The last great rock festival", held on the Isle of Wight in 1970

The Experimental avant garde series, 23 MV 2721

Hippie Temptation is a study of the lifestyle of hippies in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district. Explores the reasons why young people become hippies and the great dependence of the hippie culture on drugs, especially their experimentation with LSD. Includes an interview and performance with a young, obscure rock group, The Grateful Dead. Dream Flower is an educational film which examines the cultivation of opium poppys and how the sap is made into drugs.

The 20th century: the 1960s : a global revolution MV 5797 v. 7

Innocence is lost as America struggles on many levels, not only politically and militarily, but also socially. Milestones include: Tensions reach the boiling point between the United States and Cuba; the assassinations of four political leaders; Vietnam War, anti=war demonstrations and the Civil Rights Movement; the space race; the hippie culture and the British Invasion.

Gas-s-s-s; The trip DVD 7935

Gas-s-s-s. When a deadly gas kills everyone over 25, the world devolves into a chaotic struggle for power; Trip. A view of an LSD trip.

Rebels: a journey underground. Turn on the revolution MV 7408 v.3

n 1959 a twenty-six year old creative writing student named Ken Kesey became a guinea pig for LSD experiments conducted by the CIA and later used this experience to write "One flew over the cuckoo's nest." Timothy Leary, a Harvard research psychologist turned rebel guru, told people to "Turn on, tune in, drop out!" while an anti-war activist named Abbie Hoffman led a peace demonstration at the 1968 Chicago democratic convention. This film delves into the world of hippies and yippies; young people who put themselves at risk in pursuit of "perception" and democratic freedom.