Dave Brock, of Hawkwind, plays at Afton. Picture by Chris Weston Photography.
PICTURE GALLERY
MUSICBY THE time they got to Afton they were 600, not 600,000, strong as they had been 40 years before.
And age may have withered the original IW Festival-goers and musicians who performed there in 1970 but enthusiasm for the music genre and the freedom of festival was undimmed.
The 1970 festival was the last, great, festival of the Island’s three and turned into a monster.
No-one every really knew how many people attended but the galaxy of stars included Jimi Hendrix.
Also in the rock firmament was Hawkwind but they decided to protest against commercialisation by playing outside the main arena.
Over this August Bank Holiday weekend, they re-visited the patch of Freshwater turf to play to a boutique gathering of several hundred people.
The band, famous for their hit single Silver Machine, organised Hawkfest and topped the bill of the event that was brought to the Island to celebrate the anniversary.
The line-up included Girlschool, Here and Now, former Hawkwind producer Dick Taylor, from the Pretty Things, Mr Quimby’s Beard, Krankschaft, the Lloyd Langton Group, Syren and Hawkwind offshoot band TOSH (Technicians of Spaceship Hawkwind).
It was acknowledged as the strongest Hawkfest line up ever but the newest festival to the Island will not be a regular in the calendar.
Hawkwind said Hawkfest came about after the systematic dismantling of the free festival movement in the mid to late 80s, the band being regular visitors to Stonehenge and many of the smaller events that took place each summer.
The first Hawkfest was held in 2002 in Devon and saw fans of the band travel from around the world. It has been held sporadically since in various places.
"We wanted to come to the Island to mark the anniversary and we are pleased we did," said Hawkwind manager Chris Tait.
"We were limited to a maximum of 1,000 people and we were not at all bothered that 600 came.
"This is not a commercial venture and the more people come the less intimate the atmosphere. We were particularly pleased that there were 120 children who really enjoyed the weekend too.
"Who knows? We might come back to mark the 50th anniversary."
Reporter: richardw@iwcpmail.co.uk
• Pictures from our online gallery www.iwcpgallery.co.uk below.
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