Erie Canal Soda Pop Festival
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The Erie Canal Soda Pop Festival also known colloquially as the Bull Island Rock Festival, was a
rock festival A rock festival is an open-air rock concert featuring many different performers, typically spread over two or three days and having a campsite and other amenities and forms of entertainment provided at the venue. Some festivals are singular even ...
held on the
Labor Day Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United St ...
weekend of 1972 near
Griffin, Indiana Griffin is a town in Bethel Township, Posey County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 172 at the 2010 census. History Griffin was originally called Price's Station, and under the latter name was laid out in 1881 by William Price, a ...
on Bull Island, a strip of land in
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
but on the
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
side of the
Wabash River The Wabash River ( French: Ouabache) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed May 13, 2011 river that drains most of the state of Indiana in the United States. It flows fro ...
. A crowd estimated at 200,000 to 300,000 attended the concert, four times what the promoters estimated. Food and water were in short supply, and the gathering descended into relative chaos. After the show was finished, remnants of the crowd burned the main stage.Woodstock on the Wabash: The Bull Island rockfest, 40 years later
September 2, 2012.


History


Planning

Several months before the festival, promoters Tom Duncan and Bob Alexander held a very successful small festival at
Bosse Field Bosse Field is a baseball stadium located in Evansville, Indiana. Opened in 1915, it was the first municipally owned sports stadium in the United States and is the third-oldest ballpark still in regular use for professional baseball, surpassed o ...
in
Evansville Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in S ...
,
Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
, the Freedom Festival and Ice Cream Social. That show included acts such as
Ike and Tina Turner Ike or IKE may refer to: People * Ike (given name), a list of people with the name or nickname * Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969), Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II and President of the United States Surname ...
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New Riders of the Purple Sage New Riders of the Purple Sage is an American country rock band. The group emerged from the psychedelic rock scene in San Francisco in 1969 and its original lineup included several members of the Grateful Dead. The band is sometimes referred ...
, and
Edgar Winter Edgar Holland Winter (born December 28, 1946) is an American musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist, playing keyboards, guitar, saxophone, and percussion, as well as singing. His success peaked in the 1970s with his band the Edgar Winter Group ...
. Based on that success, Duncan and Alexander planned a bigger festival. The Erie Canal "Soda" Pop Festival was originally slated for
Chandler, Indiana Chandler is a town straddling Ohio and Boon Township in Warrick County, Indiana, United States, located just east of Evansville, Indiana along the Ohio River. The population was 3,693 at the 2020 census, making it Warrick County's second-most po ...
, a small town near
Evansville Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in S ...
, Indiana. However, various court battles stopped the festival from performance anywhere in the Hoosier State. Shortly before the start of the concert, the promoters decided on a site near Griffin in
Posey County Posey may refer to: Places * Posey, California * Posey, Illinois * Posey, Texas * Posey, West Virginia * Posey County, Indiana * Posey Township, Indiana (disambiguation) People * Posey (Paiute) (1860s–1923), Paiute chief * Posey (surnam ...
, Indiana referred to locally as "Bull Island". Due to the changing course of the Wabash River, Bull Island is located east of the Wabash River but is part of the State of
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
. Thus, Bull Island was out of the jurisdiction of the various Indiana courts. The
White County, Illinois White County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 13,877. Its county seat is Carmi. It is located in the southern portion of Illinois known locally as " Little Egypt". Histo ...
government in the city of Carmi was surprised that the venue had suddenly ended up in its backyard, and was unable to stop the concert.


The concert

The promoters initially estimated a crowd of 55,000. As the Labor Day approached, it became obvious that a much larger crowd was coming to the festival. As Bull Island was accessible by only two roads, traffic was backed up for 20 miles (30 km) from the festival. Since Bull Island was technically part of Illinois but the only access was through Indiana, police protection and crowd control during the festival were non-existent. Coordination between the Indiana police and the Illinois police was woefully inadequate. The only police on the festival grounds were three county deputy sheriffs from
White County, Illinois White County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 13,877. Its county seat is Carmi. It is located in the southern portion of Illinois known locally as " Little Egypt". Histo ...
trying to police a crowd of 200,000 to 300,000. The scheduled lineup included
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
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Allman Brothers Allman may refer to: Music *The Allman Brothers Band, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame southern rock band, formed by Duane and Gregg Allman *The Allman Joys, an early band formed by Duane and Gregg Allman *The Gregg Allman Band People *Allman (surname) ...
,
John Mayall John Mayall, OBE (born 29 November 1933) is an English blues singer, musician and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band that has counted among it ...
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Canned Heat Canned Heat is an American band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1965. The group is noted for its efforts to promote interest in blues music and its original artists and rock music. It was founded by two blues enthusiasts Alan Wilson and Bob ...
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Albert King Albert Nelson (April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), known by his stage name Albert King, was an American guitarist and singer who is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time. He is perhaps b ...
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the Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...
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Mike Quatro Michael Quatro (born 12 June 1943, Detroit, Michigan, USA) is a keyboard player and songwriter who has released eleven albums since 1972. He specializes in keyboard-driven progressive rock. Career Quatro's music gained popularity in Detroit, Mi ...
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Black Oak Arkansas Black Oak Arkansas is an American Southern rock band named after the band's hometown of Black Oak, Arkansas. The band reached the height of its fame in the 1970charting ten albums according to Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Their style is punctuated ...
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The Chambers Brothers The Chambers Brothers are an American psychedelic soul band, best known for their eleven-minute 1967 psychedelic soul hit "Time Has Come Today". The group was part of the wave of new music that integrated American blues and gospel traditions wit ...
, Boones Farm,
Slade Slade are an English rock band formed in Wolverhampton in 1966. They rose to prominence during the glam rock era in the early 1970s, achieving 17 consecutive top 20 hits and six number ones on the UK Singles Chart. The ''British Hit Singles ...
, Birtha,
Nazareth Nazareth ( ; ar, النَّاصِرَة, ''an-Nāṣira''; he, נָצְרַת, ''Nāṣəraṯ''; arc, ܢܨܪܬ, ''Naṣrath'') is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel. Nazareth is known as "the Arab capital of Israel". In ...
, and Delbert & Glenn. However, the only actual performers included
Flash Cadillac & the Continental Kids Flash Cadillac & the Continental Kids, now known as Flash Cadillac, is an American retro rock 'n' roll band known for their appearance as the band "Herby and the Heartbeats" in the 1973 film '' American Graffiti'' and a 1975 episode of ''Happy Day ...
, Black Oak Arkansas, Ramatam, Mike Quatro, Bang, Cheech & Chong,
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, Albert King, Brownsville Station,
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, Canned Heat,
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, Ravi Shankar,
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and Frosty, Amboy Dukes, Farm, CK Thunder, the Eagles, Birtha, and Gentle Giant. Vince Vance and the Valiants played after
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of The Amboy Dukes.


Difficulties and aftermath

Over the three days, the festival drifted steadily into chaos. Food and water were in short supply. A torrential rain soaked the festival. A truck bringing food into the festival was hijacked, looted and burned. When some vendors overcharged for food and drinks, the crowd turned over many of the RVs and robbed the vendors. On the Sunday evening, some starving festival-goers killed a local's cow that was still on the island, but did not have any means of butchering it. Drugs were freely available in a makeshift "shopping district", where dealers openly displayed their illegal goods. Numerous bands quickly cancelled, and three concert goers drowned in the Wabash River. As the festival ended, what was left of the crowd destroyed the music stand by fire. The promoters later explained that they had sold 30,000 advance tickets for $20 and $25 each, and had estimated a crowd of no more than 55,000 would attend. Thus they were completely unprepared when more than 200,000 people showed up. Following the concert, the promoters were subjected to multiple lawsuits by the owner of Bull Island, the vendors, the
Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...
, the
State of Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
, and the
State of Indiana State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
. The court found the promoters to be in contempt of court and fined them several thousand dollars.


See also

*
List of jam band music festivals This is a list of jam band music festivals. This list may have some overlap with list of historic rock festivals and list of reggae festivals. Jam bands are musical groups who relate to a unique fan culture that began in the 1960s with Grateful ...


References


External links


Evansville Courier
September 2, 2012.

January 8, 1995.

Vol 1, 1994
The Bull Island Rock Festival (Book)
{{Rock festival 1972 in music Rock festivals in the United States Pop music festivals in the United States Music festivals established in 1972 Folk festivals in the United States 1972 music festivals