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EAST AFTON FARM - 08/29/1970

Isle Of Wight - U.K.

Venue Address: East Afton Farm - Isle Of Wight, UK
Promotion: Fiery Creations Presents (Ron Faulk)
Event: Isle Of Wight Festival 1970

Also Performing:
(Various Performers)

Setlist:
House Announcer (Unknown)
Back Door Man
Break On Through
When The Music's Over
Ship Of Fools
Roadhouse Blues
Light My Fire
The End
      -Across The Sea
      -Away In India
      -Crossroads
      -Wake Up!

Recordings / Film:
Multi-track Recording
16mm Professional Film (See Below)
Amateur/Audience Recording
Backstage Interview Recording

Photographers:
Jacques Bisceglia
Charles Everest
Claude Gassian
Philippe Gras
Laurens van Houten
Jean-Pierre Leloir
Barry Plummer
Peter Sanders

Reviews / Info:
-This festival is scheduled to take place from Aug. 26th-30th.
-An estimated 600,000 - 700,000 attend this festival.
-Promotion by Ron, Ray, and Bill Foulk.
-The Doors are originally scheduled to headline on Aug. 28th.
-Promotional artwork by David Fairbrother-Roe (Poster; Handbill; Program; Ticket; etc.)
-A broadcast via satellite to the U.S. and Canada is cancelled.
-The Doors perform outdoors for approx. 1 hour and 10 minutes starting at 1:00am on August 30th.
-Due to timezome changes, The Doors are exceptionally tired during this performance.
-The Doors are captured on 16mm film but do not allow camera lighting during their performance.
-8-track recording by Pye Mobile Studios.
-The Who take the stage following The Doors.
-Jim Morrison gives an interview to John Tobler on August 30th, later published in ZigZag Magazine.
-This is The Doors final performance in Europe with Jim Morrison.
-Due to heavy financial losses, promoter Ron Faulk reports to the press that this will be the last Isle Of Wight Festival.

FIRST-HAND REVIEWS:

"The Isle of Wight is an island off the coast of Hampshire in southern England. Roughly about seventy miles from London. I took the ferry from Southampton to Cowes on the IOW and from there, I joined the other festival goers on specially designated buses that took us to the site. The festival was on a farm near Freshwater village. Unusually for the time the site was well designed with good toilet facilities, a tented village and plenty of food outlets. There was also plenty of space to pitch tents. The British weather is not like that in the USA. We are prone to sudden changes in the weather, so I came with plastic sheeting to keep out the rain. Thankfully, the weather generally stayed dry.

I enjoyed all the acts that I saw. This was for many Europeans the first time we had seen U.S. acts such as Chicago and Joan Baez. However, I went to principally see one act and one act alone, The Doors. I was too young to see them at the the Roundhouse in London in 1968. However, I had seen the Granada TV film The Doors Are Open. This turned me onto them and I had all their records.

The Doors appeared in the early hours of Sunday morning after a lengthy delay in setting up the stage for them. I do recall that there was some coloured lighting. This was unusual for the time as most British bands used neither their own lighting or fireworks as bands use today. Apparently, The Doors had objected the stage lighting and this may have contributed to the delay in their appearing. They launched into Back Door Man without so much as hello. None of the songs were introduced and you had to know their work to recognise what you were hearing. Neither Jim or any of the band members spoke to the audience. Their set was professionally played, but very subdued. I do not think that their intimate act was suited to an outside venue.

I would like to clear up a few myths. Roadhouse Blues was performed after Ship Of Fools, which does contain a single line from Land Ho, a song which was not performed. Secondly, they did not perform an encore, despite repeated calls for them to do so. The set ended with The End. I was surprised that many of their songs were not like the published versions on Elektra records. The band was very well received by the audience. We all know they are unique, so for the uninitiated poetry, politics, anarchy and rock music was quite a shock to the senses. I think they gained a lot of new fans that evening. I felt privileged to have seen one of the greatest bands bands in rock history."

Pat Barry
England
Copyright © 2019 Pat Barry

A Special Thanks to Pat Barry for providing his review of the concert to MildEquator.com!

"It was 50 years ago today, that I saw The Doors at the Isle of Wight Festival. Well, it should have been today (30th August) during the afternoon, but it was actually well after midnight (around 1:00 or 2:00am) when they actually appeared on stage. But as soon as they were introduced, the tiredness, the cold, the discomfort and the long, long wait all was forgotten. The stage was dark except for a white and red spotlight. The distinct chords that are instantly recognizable as the Doors began, and the crowd went wild. Then bathed in the red light - there was Jim Morrison. Long dark hair and thick beard, he stood centre stage looking mystical, magnificent and magical. Then he began to sing! He just stood at the microphone, all his efforts being channelled into that wonderful deep, distinctive voice and you were transported away to some kind of mental Utopia. Jim's vocals were amazing, accompanied by the mesmerizing music that is and was the unique sound of The Doors. During the set they performed Back Door Man, Break on Through, Ship of Fools, Roadhouse Blues, Light my Fire and The End, but When the Music's Over was my personal highlight, and I felt that primal scream right down to my toes - brilliant! Just brilliant."

Pauline Pitman
Worcestershire, U.K.
Copyright © 2020 Pauline Pitman

A Special Thanks to Pauline Pitman for providing her memories of the concert to MildEquator.com!

THE DOORS AT THE DOVE

Publication: Melody Maker
Issue: September 5th - 1970
Interview Date: August 29th - 1970
Publish Date: September 5th - 1970
Interview Location: The Dove - London

Info:

The Doors are briefly interviewed in London at The Dove by an unknown interviewer from Melody Maker prior to their performance at the Isle Of Wight. The band is over-tired from travelling and Jim Morrison is not present. The group discusses the Miami trial and the tentative plans to tour in Europe following the Isle Of Wight Festival.

16MM PROSHOT FILM

Info:

16mm color footage with multi-track audio. The film is dark due to the band's refusal to allow movie spotlights during the performance. A full-length multi-track recording accompanies the filmwork. An official release of this performance appeared in early 2018 on Blu-Ray and DVD, while snippets of The End and When The Music's Over are included in Message to Love, a feature documentary film released in 1997. Miscellaneous television broadcast clips of The Doors are also known to collectors.

JOHN TOBLER INTERVIEWS JIM MORRISON

Info:

This interview with Jim Morrison was conducted by John Tobler at the Isle of Wight Festival on August 30th, 1970, following The Doors performance the night before. A transcript of the interview is published in the October issue of ZigZag magazine. Jim Morrison discusses various subjects including the future of music festivals, Woodstock, and The Doors performances at the Roundhouse in London in 1968. A recording of this interview was made, and is well known to collectors.

Click To Read The Article:

ARCHIVE/MEMORABILIA:

ARTICLE #1:

Newspaper: Melody Maker
Author: Editor
Publish Date: June 27th - 1970
Copyright © Melody Maker
Isle Of Wight - Article

Contributed By: MildEquator.com

ARTICLE #2:

Newspaper: DISC & Music Echo
Author: Editor
Publish Date: June 27th - 1970
Copyright © DISC & Music Echo
Isle Of Wight - Article

Contributed By: MildEquator.com

ARTICLE #3:

Newspaper: The Charleston Gazette
Author: Unknown
Publish Date: August 13th - 1970
Copyright © The Charleston Gazette
Isle Of Wight - Article