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Trans Continental Pop Festival [Joplin, Janis. (1943 - 1970] [Grateful Dead]. Original Concert Poster, 1970.
Original 1st printing event/concert poster for the 6/27-28/1970 stop of the Transcontinental Pop Festival, held at the CNE Grandstand, Toronto, Canada. 22.2 x 17.2 inches (56.4 x 43.7 cm). In fine condition.
The Poster for the Toronto stop on the legendary "Festival Express" train tour across Canada lists appearances by the the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, the Band, Buddy Guy, Delaney & Bonnie, Mashmakan, Charlebois, James & the Good Brothers, Eric Andersen, Mountain, Ian & Sylvia and the Great Speckled Bird, Tom Rush and Melanie. Designed by Ken Walker and John Lown, the image is featured in the Art of Rock on page 376 (plate 4.132).
It was on June 27, 1970, that the Transcontinental Pop Festival began its journey in Toronto, Canada. This festival was part of a series of concerts in Canada that became known as The Festival Express which is also the title of a documentary that was filmed at the time of the tour.
The main concept of the tour was that instead of the artists flying between show, they would all travel by a chartered Canadian National Railways train, in a total of 14 cars. The chartered train consisted of 14 cars, equipped with lounges and sleeping compartments, with electricity sockets so that musical instruments could be plugged in. The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin (with her Full-Tilt Boogie Band), The Band, Delaney & Bonnie and Friends, The Flying Burrito Brothers and Buddy Guy Blues Band all jammed, drank, slept and rode the train in between playing shows in Toronto, Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Calgary.
The journey between cities ultimately became a combination of non-stop jam sessions and partying, fueled by alcohol. One highlight of the documentary is a drunken jam session featuring The Band’s Rick Danko, Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir from the Grateful Dead and Janis Joplin.
Unsurprisingly the passengers drank the bar dry and, as is shown in the documentary, the musicians passed around a hat to collect funds to purchase more hooch. The train made an unscheduled stop to find a liquor store for much-needed supplies. Much to the bemusement of the store owner, they bought most of the contents of the store. Once they got back on the train, a raucous drunken jam featuring Rick Danko of The Band, Joplin and Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead was the order of the day. As Weir recounted decades after the fact, 'Most of us had done LSD. This was our introduction to alcohol. This was a new experience for most of us and it worked just fine.' After someone added jell caps of LSD into an oversized bottle of Canadian Club, Weir said, 'we achieved lift off.'"
The show in Toronto, which was held at the CNE Grandstand, had about 2500 protestors who objected to what they viewed as exploitation by price-gouging promoters. They attempted to crash the gates and scale the barbed wire fence and clashed with police, resulting in several injuries.
To help calm the crowd, Metro Police tried to get the promoter, Ken Walker, to lower ticket prices, but he refused. Subsequently, Jerry Garcia, was instrumental in calming the unruly crowd by arranging a spontaneous free "rehearsal" concert in nearby Coronation Park upon a flatbed truck, while the scheduled show continued at the stadium. Once the free concert was announced, most of the ticketless fans dispersed to Coronation Park, with an initial attendance of about 6,000, thereby resolving the protest. Once the show at the CNE Grandstand ended at 12:30am, another 6,000 fans went to the park for the remainder of the free concert, which lasted until about 4:00am on June 28.
Trans Continental Pop Festival [Joplin, Janis. (1943 - 1970] [Grateful Dead]. Original Concert Poster, 1970.
Original 1st printing event/concert poster for the 6/27-28/1970 stop of the Transcontinental Pop Festival, held at the CNE Grandstand, Toronto, Canada. 22.2 x 17.2 inches (56.4 x 43.7 cm). In fine condition.
The Poster for the Toronto stop on the legendary "Festival Express" train tour across Canada lists appearances by the the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, the Band, Buddy Guy, Delaney & Bonnie, Mashmakan, Charlebois, James & the Good Brothers, Eric Andersen, Mountain, Ian & Sylvia and the Great Speckled Bird, Tom Rush and Melanie. Designed by Ken Walker and John Lown, the image is featured in the Art of Rock on page 376 (plate 4.132).
It was on June 27, 1970, that the Transcontinental Pop Festival began its journey in Toronto, Canada. This festival was part of a series of concerts in Canada that became known as The Festival Express which is also the title of a documentary that was filmed at the time of the tour.
The main concept of the tour was that instead of the artists flying between show, they would all travel by a chartered Canadian National Railways train, in a total of 14 cars. The chartered train consisted of 14 cars, equipped with lounges and sleeping compartments, with electricity sockets so that musical instruments could be plugged in. The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin (with her Full-Tilt Boogie Band), The Band, Delaney & Bonnie and Friends, The Flying Burrito Brothers and Buddy Guy Blues Band all jammed, drank, slept and rode the train in between playing shows in Toronto, Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Calgary.
The journey between cities ultimately became a combination of non-stop jam sessions and partying, fueled by alcohol. One highlight of the documentary is a drunken jam session featuring The Band’s Rick Danko, Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir from the Grateful Dead and Janis Joplin.
Unsurprisingly the passengers drank the bar dry and, as is shown in the documentary, the musicians passed around a hat to collect funds to purchase more hooch. The train made an unscheduled stop to find a liquor store for much-needed supplies. Much to the bemusement of the store owner, they bought most of the contents of the store. Once they got back on the train, a raucous drunken jam featuring Rick Danko of The Band, Joplin and Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead was the order of the day. As Weir recounted decades after the fact, 'Most of us had done LSD. This was our introduction to alcohol. This was a new experience for most of us and it worked just fine.' After someone added jell caps of LSD into an oversized bottle of Canadian Club, Weir said, 'we achieved lift off.'"
The show in Toronto, which was held at the CNE Grandstand, had about 2500 protestors who objected to what they viewed as exploitation by price-gouging promoters. They attempted to crash the gates and scale the barbed wire fence and clashed with police, resulting in several injuries.
To help calm the crowd, Metro Police tried to get the promoter, Ken Walker, to lower ticket prices, but he refused. Subsequently, Jerry Garcia, was instrumental in calming the unruly crowd by arranging a spontaneous free "rehearsal" concert in nearby Coronation Park upon a flatbed truck, while the scheduled show continued at the stadium. Once the free concert was announced, most of the ticketless fans dispersed to Coronation Park, with an initial attendance of about 6,000, thereby resolving the protest. Once the show at the CNE Grandstand ended at 12:30am, another 6,000 fans went to the park for the remainder of the free concert, which lasted until about 4:00am on June 28.