September 13th, 1969. The Rock and Roll Revival is held at Varsity Stadium in Toronto before a crowd of 25,000. Twelve hours of music is presented by iconic, first wave pioneers like Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bo Diddley and Jerry Lee Lewis. Representing the (then) current generation of bands are the Doors, Alice Cooper and Chicago.
John Lennon, who had not set foot onstage for a proper gig since Candlestick Park in 1966, was invited to attend. Insisting on performing, he brought Eric Clapton, Klaus Voormann, Alan White and Yoko out for a rough and ready set that mixed oldies with a couple of new tunes. His appearance was unexpected, the audience erupted and a good time was had by all. The gig was filmed and professionally recorded. The resulting LP, Live Peace in Toronto, hit record stores just three months later.
It all happened a half century ago. Crank it up...
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