102: A Free Concert From Hell: Deadly Drugs, Murder and Music | Dark History with Bailey Sarian
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This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

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I just wanted to point out that this is our 100th episode of Dark History.

I got a balloon. I got a balloon just for the occasion. Okay, wow. I can't believe it. 100th episode. Thank you so much to everyone who has watched and listened to us these past few years. Dark History started out as a passion project of mine and to see like what it's become is really incredible. It's amazing. I've learned so much and that's like been the goal with the podcast. I just wanted to learn and I wanted others to learn as well.

because as cheesy as it is, knowledge really is power. Facts. So thank you. Thank you for being here and down for the ride. I appreciate you. And I love hearing your responses to the show. And also I have lots of exciting things coming up. It's going to be incredible. So now, celebration over. Let's get into it.

Okay, so I think most of us know about Woodstock, right? Hippies, music, love, peace, drugs, you know? But did you know that Woodstock has an evil cousin? In the late 60s, it was a massive music festival held in California. It was a day filled with bad drug trips, violent beatings, and even murder.

It was supposed to represent progress, but instead it exposed the dark side of music festivals. Oh baby, I'm talking about the Altamont Speedway Free Festival. I know, I haven't heard about it either.

How are you doing today? I hope you're having a wonderful day. My name is Bailey Sarian, and I'd like to welcome you to my podcast, Dark History. Here, we believe history does not have to be boring. I mean, yes, it might be tragic, it might be happy, but either way, it's our dark history. So all you have to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy.

And let's talk about that hot juicy history, goss, because today is juicy. Look, a couple of weeks ago, okay, I was at an antique store and I saw this really big Woodstock poster for sale. It was so pretty. I wanted it so bad. The lady, she wouldn't sell it to me because I'm not worthy. So I had to settle with just like watching a documentary at home about Woodstock. And this got me to Googling. I'm Googling and goggling. And next thing you know, I come across something called Altamont.

And I was like, what is this? It sounds like the name of an insurance company, right? Well, Altamont was a fire festival compared to Woodstock. Altamont, if you don't know, because I didn't know, is short for the Altamont Speedway Free Festival. First of all, mouthful, I know. So we're just going to, I'm just going to call it Altamont, okay? And second of all, I know what you're thinking, Bailey, I've never heard of Altamont.

Well, there's a reason for that. It was a complete shitshow. People got stabbed. There were rumors about women, like, giving birth at the festival. And before the night was said and done, there was a murder that happened in the middle of the festival in front of everyone. But...

In order to understand Altamont, we have to know what they were, what was the goal? What were they trying to accomplish, you know? They basically wanted to be the bigger, better Woodstock. Now, most of you guys probably know about Woodstock. It was an iconic music festival in upstate New York in 1969. And this festival was huge. It was a huge like end of the decade party of the 60s. It was like New Year's Eve on crack.

The idea was for it to be a nice little reward for everyone who had lived through the decade of trauma, war, and assassinations. Oh yeah, there were a lot of assassinations going on around this time. I mean, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, and John F. Kennedy. So it was kind of like the first mega festival and like no one had ever seen anything like it. But the organizers, they did drop the ball in one pretty major area.

That was security. Yeah, they barely hired any. In the days leading up to Woodstock, 186,000 people had bought tickets, which is a lot of people, right? But, you know, with that amount of people, they really weren't worried about security so much. But little did they know that 400,000 people were about to turn up to their little music fair.

fair. So needless to say, Woodstock, overall, it was a hit. On August 29th, 1969, a hot, sweltering summer day brought out almost half a million people. Everyone flocked to Woodstock. All the hippies rocking their tie-dye tanks, their free-flowing locks of hair, their

free-flowing bushes. Everything was just free and fun. And even when a rainstorm had rolled in, it didn't matter. It was still a freaking fun party. Sure, there was mud. Yeah, there was probably shit in the mud. It had its faults, of course. But a lot of people thought it was the best thing ever. Bands like Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Joe Cocker, and Jimi Hendrix played

And hundreds of thousands of people got to experience this three-day festival for free because there wasn't enough security to stop the people who didn't technically have a ticket.

On top of that, for this festival, they didn't even have a fence. I know. So it's like you could just walk in. Great, you're in. Woodstock was seen as like this huge positive moment in pop culture history, but little did the public know it was also a massive failure profit-wise. Right after the festival, things were not looking good for the people who organized it.

In fact, if the organizers hadn't taken a ton of footage of the festival, they would probably still be up Schitt's Creek without a paddle. But they turned the footage into a documentary called Woodstock.

And thankfully, it was a big financial success because they didn't get any money, you know? Naturally, people didn't want the good energy of Woodstock to end. I mean, they wanted to do it again. They had that high. But Woodstock would prove to be completely unattainable and honestly impossible to recreate. And for the people who hadn't made it to Woodstock, they were like...

Honestly, they got FOMO, right? They were jealous. They wanted to do it. They wanted in. Do it again. I want to go. So a new idea for a new festival came along a few months later.

So the story of Altamont starts with a little English band called the Rolling Stones. Oh yeah. In the 60s, the Rolling Stones were everything. Critics described them as the original bad boys of rock and roll. They changed the way people saw rock stars forever. The Rolling Stones were so iconic to so many people because they played edgy music that refused to conform to the standards at the time. They released a song called I Can't Get No Satisfaction.

Oh, so it wasn't Britney. Unfortunately. Okay. Well, they did. At the time it was shocking. It was sexy. There was nothing else like it out there. It became an international hit.

but Britney's was better. Plus, they would perform in these flashy outfits that totally destroyed any of society's fashion rules at the time. I mean, famous bands and singers of the time were still performing in like proper button-down shirts and dress pants, you know? And the Rolling Stones, they would come out wearing like

Top hats, skin tight suit sequins, dresses. They leaned into being bad boys and refusing to follow social norms. Honestly, hot, good for them. I love that, you know? The lead singer and kind of like the face of the Stones, Mick Jagger, was a total sex symbol in the 60s. Yeah, I guess people thought he was hot because girl, mm-mm.

You're like, ugh. Throughout the 60s, the Rolling Stones had five number one hits on the charts and millions of fans all over the world, okay? They were right up there with the Beatles. And after all these hits, the Rolling Stones were on a very successful, very profitable tour. But they wanted more.

More. They wanted to throw a Woodstock of their own. And this time they felt like the festival should be on the West Coast. They decided it would be the final show of like their U.S. tour and their last show of the 60s. And they really wanted to go out with like a bang.

Okay, also at this time, the Rolling Stones, they had a little bit of like a bad reputation going on. People were talking shit, okay? Because listen, they were charging a little too much for tickets and it was pissing people off. Their tickets were $8.50. Who do they think they are? And people were fucking outraged. $8.50? Like who's going to that?

"Huh?" Like kings and queens. He's like, "Get off your high horse." Okay, and people were being very vocal about it. And so the Rolling Stones, he like gets back to them. They're noticing a shift going on. People are mad and they needed some positive PR. So they're like, "You know what? Let's make the tickets to our West Coast experience

Free. Wouldn't that be a good idea you guys? Yeah. They used Woodstock as inspiration because they had a pretty insane lineup of world famous musicians and they were like, you know what? We're gonna do that but we're gonna do it better. They were gonna pull out all the stops and it wasn't just gonna be a Woodstock 2.0, bitch, it was gonna be the shit.

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love so I can make sure my wardrobe stays fresh and I don't blow my budget. They've got cashmere sweaters from $50, pants for every occasion, washable silk tops. And my favorite part, all Quince items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quince cuts out the cost of the middleman and pass

the savings on to us. And Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing practices and premium fabrics and finishes. I recently got this 100% European linen short sleeve shirt. Ooh, I love linen. And you know, it was so comfortable, so cute. I can finally retire my old ratty tank top off.

R.I.P. Make switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash dark history for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash dark history to get free shipping and 365 day returns. quince.com slash dark history.

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

It's easy and you can save money by doing it from your phone. Drivers who save by switching to Progressive save nearly $750 on average. And auto customers qualify for an average of seven discounts. Discounts for having multiple vehicles on your policy, being a homeowner and more.

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Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. National average 12-month savings of $744 by new customer survey who saved with Progressive between June 2022 and May 2023. Potential savings will vary. Discounts not available in all states and situations. So this epic last Rolling Stones show was set to take place on December 6, 1969 in California. They figured people would be stoked to have a festival at the end of the year. With the holidays and like the new year just around the corner, it was a way to be like...

by sixties. Okay, that's the inspo. But the problem that they were not really thinking about was the fact that they were not organized at all. The festival organizers didn't lock in any plans until just a few weeks before the festival was supposed to go down. Okay, but the worst part, the stupidest part,

They had a date in mind of when they were going to have this festival, but the organizers, they only announced the Altamont Festival to the people four days before it was going to take place. Four days. Okay. The biggest problem with Altamont was they didn't know like where to even have the festival. They're like California. Yeah.

So originally they were calling the event Woodstock West. It was supposed to take place in beautiful, lush Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. This area was like grassy, central,

Beautiful, right? It's like iconic. Everything they wanted the festival to be. So the Rolling Stones, they get on the radio and they announce the festival. They tell everyone it's going to be at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. And people are like, fuck yeah, let's go. Yeah. Like, yeah. Right? It's free. But this was new news to the city of San Francisco. They're like, huh? No. No.

I don't think so. Who did he speak to? They didn't speak to it. San Francisco had no idea. They're like, "No, get the fuck out of here." San Francisco is just not interested in hosting a big festival and having their beloved park destroyed, wrecked, shit on, who knows? So they ended up going to the Stones and they're like, "Hey,

No. And the city. They pulled out. So this left the organizers of the Altamont in a bit of a pickle. No one wanted to cancel the festival. Bad idea. They already announced it. Instead, they decided that they were going to find a new place. No big deal. New place. Okay? But at this point, they had less than four days to find a venue. Four days to find a venue.

that hundreds of thousands of people were gonna show up to, four days. The Altamont organizers, they thought that they had found another good venue option in San Francisco, but the day before the festival, after they started setting up everything, the venue got cold feet. They were scared that the fans were probably going to mess up their property, right? But it's like, damn, you couldn't let us know sooner?

Well, they had four days. It's their fault. You get it. The organizers didn't give up, though. They keep searching. Okay, they're looking. They got to find something. These venues, they need to charge the Stones to use the space. This is their show. But I guess the Stones didn't want to pay. I know. Looks like...

Okay? So now you would think at this point, you should probably just take this all in and realize that this is a sign to just cancel the festival, right? It's not gonna work. I mean, again, the festival was free, so it's not like they would have to refund anybody, right? They could have canceled or even rescheduled. There were lots of other options that they could have went with, but no.

No. The organizers were confident that they could still pull this off. So literally right before the concert, in the 11th hour, they find the venue. And it's the perfect venue. Well, if you squint, you know? And no, it wasn't like a cute farm.

Sorry, I'm just thinking about a bunch of farm animals hanging out with you. That'd be so cute. It wasn't a park. It wasn't at some stadium. This venue, it was a racetrack. Yeah, that's right. The festival was moved to the Altamont Speedway.

The Altamont Speedway was located in Alameda County, about an hour and a half away from San Francisco. Now, it was not known for its iconic views and parks like Golden Gate Park, and people didn't hold music festivals there, but it was available and they were open to taking it. But the Speedway was

basically like a glorified parking lot. It was just dry asphalt. Okay, there's no trees, there's no grass, there's no cute cows, nothing. Nothing in sight. Middle of nowhere. Okay, so you gotta like

drive out there. It was just not the first choice, you know? But the free festival, it had a pretty sick lineup, as the kids would say. So the Rolling Stones, honestly, they were just hoping people wouldn't care it was on a bunch of asphalt in the middle of nowhere because the lineup was sick, okay? They'll ignore if they're watching their favorite people on the stage, right? It's supposed to be about the music, right? Who

Who cares? Get over it, babies. The festival advertised that it would be headlined by the Rolling Stones. And the show was also set to include Fantana and the Grateful Dead.

Great. He was like, fuck yeah, that's right. Santana. So I'll just forget about it. The Rolling Stones were planning on filming the whole event. And at this time, they'd actually been already filming their whole tour for their own documentary. So they're like, hey, at least we're going to make some money off of this.

off of this festival by selling the footage, right? I mean, come on, the Stones weren't stupid. They knew a ton of people would try to get into their festival, especially with all the big bands they had secured. I mean, Santana? God, people are showing up just ready to rage. Get the fuck out of here, shut up. Finally, hours count down and guess what? It's December 6th, 1969 and it's the day of the festival.

And surprise, surprise, over 300,000 people ended up showing up. And even though the organizers verbally said they were expecting a lot of people, they weren't actually thinking about what that even means or what that looks like, you know? So right off the bat, there's issues. The roads that were leading to the festival were shut down because the Altamont Speedway didn't have enough parking. So people were just like,

abandoning their cars on the side of the road and walking miles to the speedway. At the festival itself, there were no food vendors. Yeah, not even a pretzel. Not a hot dog in sight. People who were walking into the festival, many of the time just buzzed on cheap wine and

That's not gonna be good. Yeah. Oh, my favorite part was that on top of that, they only brought in 100 porta potties for over 300,000 people. Yeah. Can you imagine? No. Actually, I've seen a porta potty that's overflowed.

Don't ask. It was awful. It was disgusting. So I imagine it was a lot of that just shit just piled to the top. I don't even know how they shit on top of that pile because it was stacked so high. But within like the first hour, first half hour, I'm sure they they ended up being filled. Right. Right.

Great. The festival organizers had the crew move in all of their gear from the old venue and they just like plopped it on the asphalt. Nothing was really like fully put together, including the stage. Now, when we think of a stage, imagine a stage. Now, I'm sure you're imagining the stage being kind of like lifted, elevated above you.

you know, a stage where one performs. But this was no stage like you're thinking in your mind. This was a DIY stage, okay? Pinterested.

and there was no barrier between the musicians and the people. The bands were performing essentially at the base of a tall slope by the Speedway. This was so people would be able to look down at the performers and still get to see at least a little bit of the show. So instead of being up,

They were down. And for the band, this gave them a really sick feeling of quote, "unease." I mean, think about it. It must have been like absolutely terrifying feeling like little tiny ants

Oh, I love ants. Surrounded by thousands of fans, like in all directions of you. And they're kind of like coming upwards. Does that make sense? I love ants. Dark history of ants. Let me know down below. But the organizers, they were like, don't worry about it. Don't worry. It's not a big deal. We're going to have security. We're going to have security to handle all

All of your unease. When the festival security was discussed, the managers of the Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane pointed out that the Hells Angels had actually provided great security at a concert in 1967. So why not just hire them? They're great. And yeah, when I say Hells Angel, I'm talking about exactly who you think. The Hells Angels biker friendship group.

Friendship, they have matching bracelets. But if you don't know, the Hells Angels, they were founded in San Bernardino in 1948 by a World War II veteran. And it started as a small group of guys who rode Harley Davidson motorcycles, just brop bropin' all over the place. But by the '60s, it was known as a quote, "Outlaw motorcycle game."

They're actually considered an organized crime syndicate by the police and the US Department of Justice. So what I'm getting at is that they're not a friendship group. Hmm, yeah.

So it's definitely just, it's a unique choice, but the Hells Angels, specifically the British Hells Angels, had actually done security for the Stones before. I mean, honestly, it probably felt like kind of cool to have a biker game for security, kind of aligning with your rock and roll brand. Like, yeah, I got security. And the best thing of all, they were available on short notice. And on top of that,

They didn't even want to be paid in money. I know, what's the catch? One of the main organizer of Altamont was the Rolling Stones tour manager, Sam Cutler. And Sam said that when he asked the Hells Angel how they would like to be paid for their services, they responded with, "We like beer."

All right, you know, cool. According to multiple angels, sorry, I was thinking about Jesus, they were paid about $500 worth of cheap beer, which is just a bargain, right? Love that. They say this is because they were, quote, "not interested in policing the event."

Okay, all right. I guess they just want to party really. It was just supposed to be like low key, whatever. They're not going to be like psycho. So they're just going to hang out and have some beer and make sure everything's okay. They had like three main jobs, the Hells Angels, to keep people off the stage, keep people off the cameras, and also keep them away from sound equipment that had been set up all over the venue.

Just look out. That's great. According to a former member of Hells Angels named Sonny, they were mostly required to, quote, sit on the edge of the stage, drink beer, and make sure there were not any murders or rapes occurring. No rapes. But murder? They were kind of...

you know, shaky on it. But what people maybe weren't thinking about was that the other show that the Hells Angels had done security for, they also had police security. So...

you know, the police did most of the heavy lifting. But at Altamont, no, it was just all of the Hells Angels. I guess this happened because Mick Jagger didn't want any police there. It was just supposed to be hippie loving environment.

but pretty much right away when the festival started, it was anything. You know that one good tank top that you wear like all year round? I mean, it fits you just right. So you wear it all the time, but maybe now it's getting a little old. Shifting my wardrobe from summer to fall is always a challenge. Luckily, Quince offers timeless and high quality items that I

love so I can make sure my wardrobe stays fresh and I don't blow my budget. They've got cashmere sweaters from $50, pants for every occasion, washable silk tops, and my favorite part, all Quince items are priced $50 to

80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quince cuts out the cost of the middleman and passes the savings on to us. And Quince only works with factories that use safe, ethical, and responsible manufacturing practices and premium fabrics and finishes. I recently got this 100% European linen short sleeve shirt. Ooh!

I love linen and you know, it was so comfortable, so cute. I can finally retire my old ratty tank top.

R.I.P. Make switching seasons a breeze with Quince's high quality closet essentials. Go to quince.com slash dark history for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. That's quince, Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash dark history to get free shipping and 365 day returns. quince.com slash dark history.

This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

It's easy and you can save money by doing it from your phone. Drivers who save by switching to Progressive save nearly $750 on average. And auto customers qualify for an average of seven discounts. Discounts for having multiple vehicles on your policy, being a homeowner and more.

So just like your favorite podcast, Progressive will be with you 24-7, 365 days a year, so you're protected no matter what. Multitask right now. Quote your car insurance at Progressive.com to join the over 28 million drivers who trust Progressive.

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The Grateful Dead's manager, a man named Rock Scully, said if the Angels hadn't been guarding that crappy stage then, quote, "That whole crowd could have easily passed out and rolled down onto the stage. There was no barrier," end quote. The only thing that was between the Wild fans and the bands were just like a few of the guys from the Hells Angels. They were

Kind of like those bouncers at the base of a concert's VIP section, where they just kind of look at you and they say, "Hey, don't do that. Hey."

No. Or maybe they pull you out of the pit. Those guys. It was kind of like that. At Woodstock, there was this unspoken understanding that everyone was in it together. Like High School Musical. ♪ We're all in this together ♪ It was like that. But at Altamont, when they were driving out to the middle of nowhere, they were starting to realize some shit, okay? They're like, "This is a little odd."

So then when they get there and they were being forced to stand on some asphalt or on a slope way far away from the stage, they're getting a little pissed. And it turns out they could barely even see anything. I mean, this was supposed to be a life-changing event, goddammit. But the vibes? The vibes at Altamont were just chaotic from the jump. After a little while, people are getting all antsy, right? So they just start pushing their way to the front to get a better view.

but the Hells Angels, they no likey. No likey that they did not like it. So they decided the best way to keep these people away from the musicians was to line up their big ass motorcycles in front of the stage, right? Never get past my motorcycle.

But hey, there's a lot of people, okay? And they were getting a little wild, wet and wild. And it's not just because they were excited for the show. It was because... Drugs.

- Yeah. - There were a lot of drugs available at Altamont. Okay, it was the 60s, shut up. Everyone was experimenting, just having a good time. Smoking a pancake, okay? Smoking a pancake, bonging a bitch. Living. The problem was that most people at this time, they loved LSD. That was their favorite drug. Wait, LSD? Why am I thinking of the Mormon church?

Sorry about that. Okay, now before the LSD people come for me, I'm not trying to judge you or your drug of choice, okay? Live, laugh LSD. I support you as long as you're being safe and not an idiot. But the LSD at Altamont was not your typical type, okay? In the 60s, LSD was being used a lot. It was a party drug known for its amazing effects. People would be like hallucinating. They'd be having visions.

having that little that's so Raven moment, just making discoveries about themselves. It was an experience. But not long before Altamont, the U.S. government started cracking down on the use and the sale of that drug because it was getting out of hand. And because of this crackdown, a lot of the drug makers of legit, like high quality LSD were either arrested or they had a close up shop. But most people didn't know about this.

And what was left after this government crackdown was LSD being cut with other drugs like speed or, in other words, meth. People are tripping, but also they're being a little chaotic. You get it. Joan was there. She told me about it. Paul died. The drugs? Too much for him. He couldn't handle. Joan? She lived. She loved. She had a good time. That's what she said. I think she slept with the...

Mick Jagger. At least that's what she told me. Ah! Are you lying? She's a little liar, but whatever. So, meth. So I need you to envision in your mind a crowd of 300,000 people

on some insane trip none of them were expecting. Yeah, these people, they're paranoid but excited. Their hearts beating out of their chest but also they want to lay down. There's no food, there's no water. Body going through it. The drug trips were apparently so bad that someone had to call the local hospitals to fly in sedatives to calm people down.

So another drug. Drugs. Writer Joel Selvin describes people experiencing absolute breakouts from their drug trips. I imagine Joel,

Holy shit. In his 2016 book about Altamont, he writes, quote, it's like a toxic mass psychosis. The drugs were terrible. End quote. Bummer, man. Doctors were called in to set up a medical tent and give people a drug called Thorazine. And this was specifically used for people having really bad, insane drug trips. And I mean, it was supposed to help, okay? But anyone who's been to like a high school party knows that

with cheap beer, bad drugs, no food? You are so fucked. Actually no, because back then you could go to sleep and wake up and you were fine. You know, try doing that today. Anyways, but bad, right? Yeah. There's really no sedative for it, right? Except Jack in the Box, their monster tacos. Yes. Shout out to the monster taco, bitch.

Please sponsor, Taco. I need that taco to sponsor me. So even with the sedatives in people's systems, the Hells Angels were having a hard time keeping people in line. People were shoving each other, they were shouting, they were climbing up expensive video equipment, you know, because they wanted to get a better view. Well, the Hells Angels are getting really, they're getting angry, but people are just straight up ignoring that. They're like, whatever, they're not police. What are they going to do? Run me over with their bike?

the Hells Angels, if you keep poking that bear, well, eventually they're gonna get a little mad and violent. And it became a total take no prisoners approach.

There were a few people who managed to get to the very front of the stage and they started like knocking their motorcycle fence over, knocking the bikes over, you know, because they wanted to get a better view. And if there's anything I know about people with bikes, you're not, you don't touch those bikies.

knock it over, they will literally knock your head off. So when people had pushed over the Hells Angels motorcycles, they took it very personally. I mean, these bikes were their most prized possessions and these people were just like disrespecting their Harleys like that? Right in front of them? No, the Angels were pissed. So you know what? They're like, "Fuck you guys." And they started to turn on the crowd. They were going to make them pay for this disrespect.

Okay, now there isn't an official number on the amount of people that were injured, but we do know dozens of people got beat the fuck up by the Hells Angels. The reports say they either beat them with their fists, full cans of beer, which ouch, or they would use motorcycle chains

beat him with that or like sawed off pool cues. I know, I was like, where the hell did they get a pool cue? You're in the middle of nowhere. Yeah, I think they brought them themselves, probably. There were reports of fights between the angels and people in the crowd everywhere. There was one woman who wandered onto the stage and a Hell's Angel decided to drag her off the stage, but by her hair.

And there were even rumors that since the police weren't there, the angels were just stealing money and drugs off of the people they were beating up. And this part made me laugh a little. Just a little. Sorry for laughing, but it did. Apparently, the Hells Angels would also rev up their engines when they decided they didn't like the music that was playing. Yeah, they would be like, I don't like this song. And they would just rev the engine.

I just think that's so immature. Like it's silly. I don't know. I thought it was funny. Shut up. Just imagine being heckled by like a beefy biker who's like three feet away from you. It's kind of, it's kind of funny. Okay. Whatever. At a certain point, the angels seemed to start turning on the bands they were supposed to be protecting. And this started pretty much...

Fucking Santana, man. Okay. Pretty much it started right when Santana opened the show. Yeah. He's like, he's like, and then Hell's Angels were like, nope.

Poor Santana. I'm sorry. That sucks. So I guess like right when Santana opened the festival, some guy took off all of his clothes. Yeah, he got butt ass naked and he ran across the stage. And honestly, I love when people do that because I'm like,

No, I don't. That's pervy. I'm a perf. But two Hells Angels pulled him from the stage and started like beating him up in front of everyone. Butt naked, getting beat up. Could you imagine? Talk about embarrassing. I hope someone got pictures. Bill Owens, who was a photographer at Altamont, saw the whole thing go down. Did he get pictures? He said, quote, "Two angels with their pool cues beat a naked guy." I'm so sorry. This is not funny.

Okay, it was clear that things were... They were getting a little...

Things were getting a little out of control, okay? And Joel, the writer of the Altamont book said, quote, "There was no central command or figurehead running the whole festival and handling like the logistics. Nobody in the crew knew who was in charge." I quote, "There was no captain." Who the fuck was in charge?

Now, when the band Ace of Cups was playing, someone in the crowd just fucking... just hurled, is the word. Hurled a beer bottle at one of the band members' heads. Yeah, and it ends up hitting one of the members on stage and...

The musician it hit was six months pregnant at the time, and the bottle caused a serious skull fracture. She had to freaking be like rushed out of the venue to have emergency surgery. What the? Like that's fucked. That's fucked. You could throw it at a big beefy guy. Well, you shouldn't. But like, that's better. Not a pregnant woman. Who's performing for you, you little cunt ass bitch. Capital C. Anyways. She lived.

Okay, so bad, right? I don't get you people who throw shit on stages. I don't get it. I don't understand what your end goal is. We all paid to be here. Like, what the fu-

Anyways, let me just stop. Okay. There was another story of this woman who was on a really bad drug trip. She fell to the ground and was getting kicked and walked on by other people who were just as high as she was. They probably thought they were like walking on clouds. I don't know. And like, it was awful.

I'm laughing because of how uncomfortable I am. Excuse me. It's not funny because that is a scary. One time I was in a mosh pit. I used to. Yeah, I was the person who got into the pit. And one time I fell. It was the scariest moment of my life. I thought for I thought I was I don't know what I thought, but I was scared out of my out of my. I don't know what I'm trying to say. I was scared.

So it's awful. Would not recommend. But nobody felt like they could just like go up to the Hells Angels guys and be like, "Hey, do your job and like protect us. She needs help." Because most of them, most people were terrified by them. They didn't really come off as helpful. Like, you know, yeah. They're not very approachable. So later in the concert, Jefferson Airplane was playing, okay?

And once again, someone in the crowd knocked over one of the bikes by the stage. Oh no. A Hells Angel pulled the guy to the ground and just started like pounding on him, beating his fucking ass. This really disturbed the lead singer of the band, Marty Balin. Marty was just watching like his fans suffering, getting beat up. And that's not what he came to do. He came to play music. Like,

It was not cool. So Marty, he tried to jump in and be like, "Hey, come on, chill. It's just a festival. Relax." But the Hells Angels, well, they've turned. They've turned to Marty and they knocked him out cold on stage in front of everyone. Who gave them beer? I mean, if the talent they were hired to protect, they weren't even safe, then who is? And baby, things were about to get way worse.

Apparently, one of the Angels was high out of his mind, so he turned his attention to the stage where the band Crosby, Stills, and Nash were playing. And I guess he picked up one of the spokes off of his motorcycle and he turned to one of the singers, Stephen Stills. He walked right up to him and just started, he just started like stabbing him in the leg over and over again.

I don't know. He's on drugs. Steven was carried away, so he obviously gets some medical attention. But even after this happened, the festiv- You know that one good tank top that you wear like all year round? I mean, it fits you just right. So you wear it all the time. But maybe now it's getting a little old. Shifting my wardrobe from summer to fall is always a challenge. Luckily, Quince offers timeless and high quality items that I

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from up top, they look down, they're looking and they see like a zombie apocalypse looking situation of high angry people. It was clear to them that there was no, there seems to be no stage, okay? And then eventually word got back to them that there were musicians who were actually injured. And most of all, security was a flop.

So helicopter, they're like, "Oh shit, that doesn't look good." So at this point, they're like, "You know what? We need to get the hell out of here. This is not going to work." So instead, they helicoptered, just kept going, okay? They're like, "Fuck that, we'll do a drive-by." Now that they weren't performing, the crowd had to wait an extra two hours before the Rolling Stones would come on. So it's packed, porta potties probably full, no water, no food.

Just alcohol, drugs, party. You get it. So they're waiting two hours, okay? I mean, the venue itself, it wasn't like fully lit. So for two hours, you're just kind of sitting in the dark or like, you know? And who knows if someone's taking a shit in front of you. They're pooping on your shoes.

Just shitting on your shoe, you don't know, until you smell it. Okay, so then also there were rumors, there had been many rumors that there were multiple women who gave birth at Altamont. I know, I know. Imagine giving birth in that. I mean, yeah, imagine. But if you were one of them, please call in or leave a comment below. I wanna hear about your experience as the baby or the mother.

Great. So by the time the Rolling Stones showed up, people were just rowdy, restless, mad, antsy, blah, et cetera, et cetera. Bad vibes. According to Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane, she said, quote, the vibes were bad. I had expected the loving vibes of Woodstock, but that wasn't coming at me. This was a whole different thing. End quote. Vibes. When the Stones started getting ready to play their show, the crowd goes wild.

It was finally happening, right? All the suffering for hours and hours was finally gonna be worth it. But this is Altamont, so, you know. Apparently just minutes after Mick Jagger showed up, some guy was like, "Lord, hey, you!" And then he just goes up to Mick Jagger and punches him in the face.

Yeah, welcome to the festival, friend. You've been initiated in. But unlike the Grateful Dead, Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones, they couldn't just turn around and leave. This whole thing was their idea and they needed the festival footage for their documentary, okay? Take the stage and play regardless. Just ignore it, you guys. Just ignore that punch to the face. Just keep going. So some people had left because they just didn't want to wait.

Okay. But plenty of people, they did stay. And it's been reported that between four to 5,000 people were just pushing their way to the edge of the stage, just trying to get closer. Like thousands of people. Okay. And these people were expecting one hell of a show after what they were put through that night.

You better dance, monkey, dance. Right after the Rolling Stones started playing, the crowds started shoving each other and shouting at the stage, just getting out all that pent-up energy from standing around all day. I watched some of the footage of the festival, and honestly, the Rolling Stones, they look a little scared.

They were not expecting this, okay? And plus, they were really disturbed by the way the Hell's Angels were treating the crowd. Mick at one point tries to do some damage control. He essentially tells the crowd, like, "Hey."

I'm not gonna play if you guys don't settle down. Like being a parent, you know? I mean, he was doing this for everyone's safety, but they didn't take it like that. They took it like children and it made him angrier. People started risking the wrath of the angels and climbing those expensive speaker towers.

all so they could get a glimpse of their favorite band. One of those fans was an 18-year-old man named Meredith Hunter. Hunter had come all the way from Berkeley to attend this free festival, and he came with his girlfriend. He was going to the festival specifically to see the Rolling Stones. I mean, apparently he was a huge fan. So after waiting hours, you know, going just being patient, Hunter's girlfriend, she was like, I want to leave, babe.

But Hunter insisted on staying. You know, he's got to see the stones. Like so many other people, Hunter decided to climb the sound equipment so he could get a better view. Unfortunately, he was spotted by an angry member of the Hells Angels. They pulled Hunter down, they slammed him onto the ground, and they started beating the shit out of him.

Before he got to Altamont, Hunter's sister had warned him. At the time, Alameda County, where the festival was taking place, was known for its racism and Hunter was Black. It was reported that he packed a gun for self-defense. And while the Angels were beating him up, Hunter just kept trying to get away. And when he finally managed to pull away from them, he pulled out his gun. There are some reports that say Hunter was going to shoot the Rolling Stones.

or he was gonna shoot someone else with his gun. And there are other reports that say Hunter was high out of his mind and he could barely walk. But no one really knows because what happened next happened so fast.

A Hells Angel named Alan Passero saw Hunter's gun. So he rushed over, he pulled out a knife and he stabbed Hunter in the side and the back over and over again. While that's happening, the Rolling Stones, they could tell something was wrong, but they couldn't see like what was happening.

They couldn't see what was going on, so they stopped playing. Some people in the crowd watched the whole thing go down and desperately tried to get Hunter some help. But according to witnesses, the Hells Angels blocked the way of anyone who was trying to get Hunter medical attention.

Mick Jagger noticed something was happening. He even called into the microphone, like, we've got someone hurt here. Is there a doctor trying to, you know, get some help for the guy? And Mick has told reporters they considered stopping the show, but the crowd most likely would have even gotten crazier and would have, quote, degenerated into a full scale riot.

Honestly, probably true. Yeah. So the Stones, they just kept playing. Nobody came to help Hunter. And sadly, he was declared dead at the scene. It happened all before the Rolling Stones even finished their set.

And here's the saddest thing. Those cameras that were recording the festival, you know, the footage for the Rolling Stones, it actually captured Hunter's last moments live on camera. Yeah, and then in the footage, you can see Alan attacking Hunter. And they even used the footage from the festival in the criminal murder trial that happened against Alan. Alan was convicted of murder, but then he was released a few years later. Yeah, I don't know.

The court had decided that he had the right to kill Hunter out of self-defense. I fucking roll. Sadly, like, Hunter wasn't even the only person who died at the festival. There was one man that sadly we don't have the name of. His identity was never released. But he too, he had died the night of the festival. There was an irrigation ditch nearby, and I guess he had gone over there.

He took some LSD, he had gone over there and he had drowned. Mark Fieger and Richard Sovlov were sitting with a group of people around a campfire after the festival had ended. So they are on the side of the street at the Altamont Speedway when

Fucking out of nowhere, they were suddenly struck by a sedan. Jesus. I mean, and on top of that, whoever did it, they fled the scene, leaving the two men dead. Mark and Richard were both only about 22 years old, and they never found the fucking driver.

The Altamont Festival disaster was on the front covers of a ton of newspapers all weekend. The people of Alameda County were not, they were not expecting this foolery going on. They thought it was gonna be, again, chill, vibes, hippies. But unfortunately, you know, news...

The end of the 60s, there was like a lot going on. And by next week, people had moved on. The story was no longer interesting. And that was it. No one was talking about how the Speedway property was damaged or how cars were stolen, how tons of people were injured or killed. And all of this, especially Hunter's murder, represented a horrible end to an era of prehistoric

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This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Most of you listening right now are probably multitasking. Yep, while you're listening to me talk, you're probably also driving, cleaning, exercising, or maybe even grocery shopping. But if you're not in some kind of moving vehicle, there's something else you could be doing right now. Getting an auto quote from Progressive Insurance.

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Episode. Now let's get back to today's story.

For years, the Stones went out of their way to not talk about this festival thing at all. They're like, "What festival? We don't know her." No, that never happens. It's a lie. They still tour today and their concerts have been described today as extremely professional and tightly organized affairs. That was a quote. I know, wah. So if you ever meet them,

Keith Richards eventually commented on the festival to the Washington Post saying, "It was just sort of a nightmarish day, not just for us, but for everybody." Between this and the death of Sharon Tate,

I know, out of left field. But think about, it's the end of the 60s. So the death of Sharon Tate, this awful festival situation. People declared that the spirit of the 60s was officially dead. It was getting real violent, wasn't it? It seemed like all the positive things that had happened in the decade were completely gone. Civil rights, gender equality, all the peace and love that came with counterculture movements. Nobody had that warm, fuzzy opposition

optimistic feeling anymore. For a while, the Rolling Stones were known as, quote, that band that was responsible for Altamont. And their reputation was only saved when they released the footage from their tour in 1970. It was a documentary called Gimme Shelter. Gimme Shelter. The documentary was about their legacy, okay? And it kind of like saved their ass and gave them their, it

It gave them back their good name because honestly, their tour looked cool as shit. They kind of glossed over the rest or how it ended, we should say. It reframed their narrative as a once in a lifetime rock band. And the Altamont Festival was just a little bump in the road. It was no big deal.

"Never happened, really." That Altamont writer, Joel, pointed out that the Stones didn't do the right thing when it came to Altamont, saying, quote, "The few times they've addressed it, there has not been the slightest acceptance of responsibility. The Stones left town without paying any of their bills. That was a pirate trip. They came to the island, they ransacked it for booty and young maidens, and then they made it back home," end quote.

Drag them, yeah. So they ended up having to face one scary consequence, though. After the film premiered, the Rolling Stones actually faced multiple assassination attempts by the Hells Angels. But...

I guess it never got to them. Nowadays, Altamont is known as like the evil cousin to Woodstock. Altamont was a free spirit. Altamont just wanted to be different, okay? Yeah. They're like, "Leave me alone, dad." It got like all this heat for bringing the peace and love movement of the '60s to an end. And like, again, no one really even got in trouble for the festival. It was essentially one big blame game. Everyone said it was the Grateful Dead's fault.

Yeah, it was their fault. Or some blamed the Rolling Stones. Their fault. Or they were like, it was the Angels. Yeah, I mean, they were just looking, it was a lot of that. No one wanted to own up to it, obviously, you know? I think we can agree that that's shitty, especially for the families of the people who were killed.

Great. But friends, let me just say this. Alt-smart is what happens when you cut corners and go with the cheaper, less safe option. That's the takeaway, right? Yeah. So next time you go to the festival and you have to go through security and they have to like search you, don't roll your eyes. Okay. There's a reason why they're trying to take your money.

Just kidding. They're trying to help and make sure no one's gonna get, you know? They're just trying to make sure things are safe. You're welcome. Well, what do you have to say? Anyone? Notes? Feedback? Suggestions? You guys never add anything. It's driving me nuts.

Paul's dead. I don't know if you know this. I'm just gonna keep pointing it out, okay? But listen, thanks for listening. Thanks for being here and hanging out with me. Let me tell you about next week because next week we'll be talking about a groundbreaking human rights movement that many people are not familiar with. This movement took on the government, the education system, and even the Vietnam War.

Yeah. And it was led by a couple of badass activists that created a union so powerful they still take on US politicians to this very day. Next week, we'll be talking about the Chicano movement.

Snaps. I'll see you there, babe. And also you can join me over on my YouTube where you can watch these episodes on Thursday after the podcast airs. And while you're there, you can also catch my murder, mystery, and makeup. Let's just forget about it. Dark History is an Audioboom original. This podcast is executive produced by Bailey Sarian High, Junia McNeely from 3Arts, Kevin Grush, and Matt Edlow from Maiden Network.

A big thank you to our writers, Joey Scavuzzo, Katie Burris, Allison Filobos, and me, Bailey Sarian.

Production lead, Brian Jaggers. Research provided by Xander Elmore and the Dark History Researcher Team. Special thank you to our expert, Nicholas Merriweather. And Jessica Charles. And I'm your host, Bailey Sarian. Thank you so much. I love to hear your guys' reactions to today's story, so make sure to use the hashtag Dark History over on social media so I can follow along.

Hattie said, "I love how Bailey is so relatable and awkward. Something that always makes me laugh is when she tries to explain her laughter. I'm laughing because." That's funny, Hattie. I agree. I am awkward. I mean, look at me. I'm trying to like read your comment. I think I need glasses, but I'm in denial. 'Cause if I get glasses, then I can't wear lashes. Laughing is how I deal with my trauma. And sometimes when I get really uncomfortable, I just laugh.

I won't tell you about the time that I accidentally laughed a little bit at someone's funeral. I'm so sorry, God. It's not because I was laughing. It's because I was just so deeply uncomfortable. And you couldn't hear me, I swear. Except the guy next to me. I know. I'm going to hell. I'm so sorry, God. I pray about it every night, Hattie. It's a lot.

Poor Hattie, I'm dropping all my trauma on her. Hattie, are you my new therapist? Rebecca Sturt said, "Can you please do a dark history episode on the history of psychiatry, Bailey? It's so fascinating and honestly terrifying." Rebecca, I was thinking about this. I was on the toilet. I read your comment and I was like,

She's onto something here. You are. I mean, hello, duh, we should. Because I'm sure if we look back, we're gonna find so much awfulness.

Thanks, Becca. Coming through with the darkness. Diane Marie said, quote, I just realized dark history has an actual theme song. Bailey has come so far. End quote. Oh my God. Thank you, Diane. Yeah. I also love our new intro music. It's so cute. Also, where'd you get that blouse? I love it. It looks so good on you. Would you say that's a chartreuse, Diane? I love it on you, girl. Works.

I hope you have a good rest of your day. You make good choices and I'll be talking to you next week. Good.

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I'm Stanzi Potenza. And I'm Brad Padre. Launching June 13th is our new podcast, Late to the Party. In this post-ironic chat show, we'll show you a window into our world of crazy post-ironic thoughts. An unlikely friendship founded on a shared love for riffs, ranting, and getting absolutely wrecked.

Consider this an invitation to our inside jokes. You're late to the party, but no one cool ever shows up on time. Follow Late to the Party on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to this kind of stuff.