The true heroes of Woodstock

Forty years after Woodstock, people still romanticize the legendary festival—perhaps excessively. If the proof isn’t in Ang Lee’s upcoming dramedy Taking Woodstock (starring Demetri Martin) or in the “40th Anniversary Ultimate Collector's Edition” copy of the film on DVD, it's definitely in tomorrow night's, Aug. 17, Film On The Rocks pairing of the 1970 doc with local rockers Something Underground, who have promised a long string of guest musicians and an all Woodstock-inspired (read: covers) set list. That in mind, The A.V. Club takes a look at a few of the true heroes of Woodstock—still living, mind you—and see how these legends would fare in a concert today.

Band: The Who

Why they’re the real heroes: They went on at 4 a.m., played all of Tommy, and Pete Townshend smashed his guitar into war protestor Abbie Hoffman when he ran onstage to grab the mic after they finished “Pinball Wizard.” Showmanship + reckless violence = awesome.

Original members still alive: Two of the four—guitarist Pete Townshend and singer Roger Daltrey.

Likelihood of them performing today: Very plausible. Although they’re short two of the arguably greatest musicians in rock history (bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon), their 2006 performance at the United Center proved that they're still worth seeing. Yes, they mainly just stick to the hits when they perform (making them more suited for a festival than a one-off concert), but to see Townshend do the windmill thing with his arm while Daltrey swings the mic around like a lasso is still an awe-inspiring sight and sound.

Band: Creedence Clearwater Revival

Why they’re the real heroes: Their radio-friendly, country-fried rock ‘n’ roll served for a more organized and tight show than, say, the stoned confusion of The Grateful Dead’s 50-minute long jam on “Turn On Your Love Light.” It's important to remember there's still an audience who's watching, and they might not be on as good of drugs as the band.

Original members still alive: Three of four—John Fogerty, Stu Cook, and Doug Clifford.

Likelihood of them performing today: It’s not going to happen. They've been broken up for nearly four decades now, and the split was far from amicable. If they were to reunite, the tour would just be three grown men standing onstage and not speaking to each other. No, it’s more likely that John Fogerty would try to pull together another all-star band with less-than-successful results. Maybe it’s just best to have a Fogerty-free concert.

Band: Sly & The Family Stone

Why they’re the real heroes: The funk-rock band played some of their hits to ecstatic reviews. More importantly, Sly Stone showed up and wasn’t too strung out to perform. Sly’s renditions of “I Want To Take You Higher,” “M’lady,” and “Dance To The Music” were probably enough to convert a few hippies to the burgeoning funk scene.

Original members still alive: There were nearly two-dozen members of the band over the span of the Family’s career, so it’s hard to keep track. When Sly Stone played two years ago, he played with three original members of the band.

Likelihood of them performing today: It depends on Sly’s mood and whether he’s clean. When Sly played in the summer of 2007, he certainly didn’t carry the same spark that he used to, which garnered mixed reviews through his short European tour. But if he gave it his all and stuck pretty faithfully to the material that he laid down in the late '60s, it could be an incredible show. Those songs are exactly what it takes to make one of the many drunk moms and dads in an audience get up and dance. But is that really an act worth doing?

Band: The Band

Why they’re the real heroes: Although The Band got its break through Bob Dylan, its ability to write great American music dwarfed anything Dylan did with albums like Nashville Skyline. The Woodstock-based underappreciated rock legends managed to make a rootsy sound that brought together soul, country, and early rock 'n' roll.

Original members still alive: Three of five—Levon Helm, Garth Hudson, and Robbie Robertson.

Likelihood of them performing today: Slim. Robbie Robertson has been pretty averse to a Band reunion after he said “no more” with The Last Waltz. Without Richard Manuel and Rick Danko’s voices, the show would just feel empty, anyway. It would just be better to have The Levon Helm Band play, since they’ve been established for so long, and maybe have Robbie and Garth make some guest appearances.

Band: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young

Why they’re the real heroes: Right as the singer-songwriter movement was about to explode with the likes of James Taylor and Joni Mitchell, there was already a supergroup of singer-songwriters pumping out hit after hit.

Original members still alive: All four of them (one of very few bands that are all still alive and playing from that era).

Likelihood of them performing today: Quite likely—they toured as recently as 2006 (and CSN have been performing this year). It could be a great show as long as they don’t play any material off of Neil Young’s terrible anti-George W. Bush Living With War album (as they did in the film CSNY Déjà Vu). Otherwise, if they stick to “Ohio” and their other hits, they still have great voices and can still pull off some good harmonies.