On this day  in 1967, the Monterey International Pop Festival was held in California

After the success of the Monterey Jazz Festival and the Big Sur Folk Festival  was observed, spectators believed the festival to be a way to validate rock music as an art form in the same ways as jazz and folk. 

The event was planned over 7 weeks by John Philips of the Mamas & the Papas, Alan Pariser, record producer Lou Adler and publicist Derek Taylor. Adler later reflected that “Our idea for Monterey was to provide the best of everything  – sound equipment, sleeping and eating accomodations, transportations – services that had never been provided for the artist before Monterey.” 

The artists all performed for free, with the proceeds being donated to charity, though their flights and accomodation were provided. Each artist was assigned a 40 minute set, though several performers had shorter sets. The artists included giant acts like Simon and Garfunkel, Jefferson Airplane, The Byrds, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Ravi Shankar, Otis Redding and Eric Burdon and the Animals. Hendrix’s performance has become legend, with  it being an early example of his use of amp and guitar feedback when performing. 

The impressive line-up and legendary performances soured Monterey achieved its goal of legitimising rock music as an art form, and it is remembered as one of the pivotal moments in rock history.