An article by Jim Farber of The Guardian called “The other 1969 concert that changed music: ‘one of the most important stories in rock history’” caught my eye. This concert was in the same year as Woodstock, but did not get near the notoriety.
A documentary called “Revival69” glimpses into starry Toronto Rock and Roll Revival, which gave Beatles fans a new look at John Lennon. Here are a few paragraphs:
“In the summer of 1969, promoter John Brower thought he had a foolproof plan for a classic concert. Though just 22, he had already promoted successful shows by some seminal rock bands of the day, leading to his creation of the first full-scale pop festival in his native city of Toronto. That two-day event… starred acts as hot as Sly and the Family Stone, The Band, and Blood, Sweat & Tears. But the artist who wound up stealing the show that day was none other than Chuck Berry, who hadn’t had a hit in years and who was then in his early 40s, a virtual fossil by hippie rock fan standards. None of that mattered, according to Brower. ‘Chuck was so brilliant that everyone loved him,’ he said. ‘His performance gave me the idea to get all the pioneering acts from the 50s back together to create the ultimate rock ‘n’roll revival show.’
What made it fly, however, required far more than simple serendipity. It required a full-scale shift in the winds of popular music, as well as in the life of one of its most towering figures: John Lennon. Counter to Brower’s original vision, the show that finally took place in September of 1969 wound up boasting the world premiere of Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band, which featured Yoko Ono in her most extreme live performance ever, as well as an infamous set by Alice Cooper’s group, who went on to become one of the biggest acts of the 70s. The show even birthed a trend in concert rituals that exists to this day.”
More on the concert can be found in the attached piece. Lennon wanted to introduce his new band to the world, but first he had to create the band. While it did come off, he watered down its success giving half of his time to wife Yoko, which was not well received. The introduction to Alice Cooper was noteworthy, although many exaggerations of Cooper’s antics abounded. Cooper was known for the provicative.
What surprised me is I never heard of the concert. Woodstock dwarfed it in notoriety as did the earlier Monterrey Pop Festival. I look forward to seeing the documentary.
https://www.theguardian.com/film/article/2024/jun/28/revival69-documentary-review
musingsofanoldfart 
Thanks Keith
That rings a bell from way back when.
Nearly 55 years ago, take into account that anyone under 15 should not have been there and only those into their early 70s and onwards would have likely been there.
A truly historical event.
(And Alice Cooper Vincent Furnier – is still going strong)
Roger, true that. Old Alice put out some great songs, simple rock and roll. Keith
And one who seems to be to separate his off stage life from his stage personae.
True. He has golfer Alice and rock-and-roll Alice. Keith
Note to Readers: I wrote last year about the second Atlanta Music Festival which happened a couple of years later. It was Jimi Hendrix’ final performance in front of 300,000 friends. The festival that had a horrific ending is Altamont headlining the Rolling Stones. Someone hired the Hells Angels for security, which turned out to be unwise. In their zeal to protect the bands and to the horror of the Stones, some folks were injured and killed.