For three days in 1969, tens of thousands of people camped out at a now-defunct a dirt track about three quarters of a mile long outside Prairieville.
It was the end of August. And as 225 reports, the dedicated masses remained planted in front of the stage despite Louisiana’s unforgiving summer heat.
“It was the festival of no sleep,” says Paul Waguespack of Baton Rouge.
News articles at the time referred to the festival as Louisiana’s version of the Woodstock Music and Art Fair, though the festival’s real name was the New Orleans Pop Festival. That was a misnomer of sorts; the festival was actually closer to the Capital City than New Orleans—around 15 miles outside of Prairieville.
The organizers went with the New Orleans name because the Crescent City was more widely recognized than Prairieville and, in their minds, more likely to attract attendees during a year when 18 other music festivals sprouted in fields and stadiums across the country.
The festival was held just two week after Woodstock and featured performers Janis Joplin, Grateful Dead, Sweetwater, Santana, Canned Heat and Jefferson Airplane.
But while Woodstock attracted hundreds of thousands of attendees, the New Orleans Pop Festival only attracted about 30,000. In fact, little of the festival is remembered outside of local accounts.
“I had never experienced anything like that,” says Waguespack, who purchased a $8 ticket at a local radio store. “It was an eye-opener, for sure. A great deal of fun.”
