Small Town Talk: Bob Dylan, The Band, Van Morrison, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Friends in the Wild Years of Woodstock

Hoskyns (editorial director, Rock's Backpages; Lowside of the Road: A Life of Tom Waits) relates a fascinating history and behind-the-scenes examination of life in the small town of Woodstock in the Catskills region of New York State. Visitors to the area are reminded not to be confused with the location of the Woodstock Festival of 1969; Yasgur's Farm was over 60 miles away, near Bethel, NY. Bob Dylan and his manager, Albert Grossman, were instrumental in the development of this artist's conclave during the folk scene of the 1960s. It's where Dylan recovered from his famous motorcycle accident and recorded with The Band. Other musicians performed, recorded, or resided in Woodstock, including Peter, Paul, and Mary; Joan Baez; Janis Joplin; Jimi Hendrix; Paul Butterfield; and Todd Rundgren. The era was rife with open marriages, heavy drug use, and death at a young age.