Steven Tyler of Aerosmith recalled an unsettling experience at Woodstock, describing how “people were walking around with water guns full of acid, squirting them in your face.”
By Website Content Manager
As Aerosmith got ready to perform at Woodstock 1994, Steven Tyler reflected on his experience at the original Woodstock, sharing his memories of the event.
In August 1969, a canceled gig allowed Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler to join the crowds at the original Woodstock Music and Art Fair. At that time, Tyler, then 21, and a friend decided to head to Bethel, N.Y., with a tent and car after their show in New York’s Greenwich Village was canceled during the festival weekend.
Reflecting on the experience as Aerosmith prepared for Woodstock ’94, Tyler recalled, “I came, I saw, I conquered.” He even encountered future Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer on the festival grounds but was “so high I couldn’t speak.”
Tyler remembered Woodstock as “a great place to get messed up.” He recounted how people were walking around with water guns filled with acid, squirting them at others, which would have you tripping in no time.
Tyler reflected, “It was another generation. Drugs were really the thing to do… There were 450,000 people just floating around, running around naked, laughing and screaming.”
He recalled setting up their tent near the Hog Farm and following a path marked “Groovy Way” to the stage each day. The music left a lasting impression on him: “I remember Country Joe & the Fish, Janis Joplin, Santana, The Who… Music was the savior.”
Tyler ended up staying in Bethel longer than planned because heavy rains had soaked into his car’s gas tank. He and his friend spent an additional day and a half at the site, observing the extensive clean-up effort. They even took a Coca-Cola cooler, which Tyler still had in 1994.
Aerosmith performed as the next-to-last act on the Saturday night (Aug. 13) at Woodstock ’94, taking the stage just before Metallica on the festival’s north stage. Their 24-song set featured eight tracks from their then-current Get a Grip album, as well as covers of Jake Holmes’ “Dazed and Confused,” Henry Mancini’s “Peter Gunn” theme, The Beatles’ “Come Together,” James Brown’s “Mother Popcorn,” and a Joe Perry-sung version of Fleetwood Mac’s “Stop Messin’ Around.”
The band’s then-manager, Tim Collins, famously clashed with co-producer John Scher backstage after seeing Metallica do things Aerosmith had been told they could not.
Recently, Aerosmith has made headlines again as the band announced their retirement from touring. They canceled all dates on their Peace Out farewell tour due to a vocal cord injury that Tyler sustained in September 2023. The band stated that despite months of intense efforts and having the best medical team, a full recovery from Tyler’s vocal injury was not possible.