The drama surrounding the status of Michael Lang’s Woodstock 50th anniversary celebration this August continues, as lawyers for Detsu, the Japanese company and former Woodstock 50 financier, released a statement yesterday refuting an attempt by festival organizers to gain a court order that would force Dentsu to return nearly $18 million that the company allegedly stole from Woodstock 50’s account.
As Billboard reports, a statement from Dentsu’s lawyer Marc L. Greenwald accuses Woodstock 50 LLC and Lang of “misrepresentations, incompetence, and contractual breaches” that “have made it impossible to produce a high-quality event that is safe and secure for concertgoers, artists, and staff. The production company has quit, no permits have been issued, necessary roadwork has not begun, and there is no prospect for sufficient financing. As much as the parties might wish it otherwise, the festival contemplated by their agreement cannot happen and allowing it to go forward would only put the public at risk.”
Woodstock 50’s allegations of the stolen $18 million came last week, along with accusations of defamation after Dentsu announced the festival’s cancellation (Lang quickly denied the statement), and a court hearing was scheduled for yesterday afternoon (we will update with any outcomes of the hearing as they are made available).
At the beginning of this month, Billboard also noted that multiple talent agencies representing artists on the Woodstock 50 lineup claimed that their clients no longer had an contractual obligation to appear at the fest following Dentsu cutting ties with the event.
One of the musicians set to play the 50th anniversary celebration, guitarist John Mayer of headliners Dead & Company, recently spoke with SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen (via Uproxx) about his thoughts on the Woodstock 50 drama, explaining that he had as much idea of what’s going on as most fans. He even threw in an apt Monty Python reference for good measure.
“I’m as much of a spectator as anyone else is to this wildness,” Mayer says. “I was told, ‘Yeah it’s not happening.’ There’s only one person still saying, ‘No, it’s gonna go.’ It reminds me of the scene in Monty Python [and The Holy Grail] where the knight is now missing the arm and the leg and he’s hopping up and down and saying, ‘It’s just a flesh wound.’ If those guys [Dead & Company] end up going, I will go, but it seems to me now: ‘It’s just a flesh wound’ and blood is spurting everywhere.”
Listen to a clip of Mayer’s interview below.
18 Comments comments associated with this post
Susan
May 25, 2019 at 12:24 pmBut good to see that your Latin has improved (et alii instead of et alia like you tried last time.) Way to pay attention and learn from your mistakes
Susan
May 25, 2019 at 12:22 pmJaggerrich, you’re an idiot and no one here likes you. We get it that you like John Mayer and you’re creepy
Greg the alleged Southern racist trumptard
May 16, 2019 at 10:14 am“Confederate Pride” is privately heartbroken because he wantted to “jam out” on some Jay-Z, chance the rapper, “common”, Miley Cyrus, and of sissyboy mayer. Because those acts truly embody the spirit of the original Woodstock. In all seriousness I have enjoyed black artists my whole life, just don’t feel the need to prove I be woke by listening to shit music from “artists of color”. Shit music from artists of no color (or whatever you libtsrdss call us cracker-honkies now) is just as bad. And john Mayer still sucks.
jaggerrich
May 16, 2019 at 10:10 amJohnny looks just a tad ‘NOT HAPPY’ to be hugging flaming Andy Cohen. We’ll see ya Johnny at mighty Wrigley Field for two pretty soon, and again, see if you can ‘speed up’ Bobby’ just a lil bit, 4/4 time, some 6/4 Allegros or something a little quicker, on the ‘faster tunes’. Cheers, it’s National Bloody Caesar Day!
PS: yeah…. it would have been good for ‘Bama, and Confederate-Pride if those A-laws had have been forced upon his gramps, aunts, or cousins, et alii.
Boyd
May 15, 2019 at 4:26 pmThey could just go there and play with themsefs.
Really....
May 15, 2019 at 1:45 pmYou’re all a bunch of morons. You think Furthur was better, we all agree the Grateful Dead were better but that ain’t happening either. MOVE ON.
....WHAT?
May 16, 2019 at 9:51 amI saw the GD once and Furthur 40+ times and I take Furthur every time. Furthur was great until selfish Phil & Jill pulled the plug. Read the Fare Thee Well book for details.
confederatepride
May 15, 2019 at 10:53 amJohn Mayer is a sissyboy faggot and I hate niggers. Yee-haw!
me
May 15, 2019 at 12:04 pmYou forgot to mention that you support the new Alabama abortion law which will not allow abortions even in the case of incest. Clearly, if your dad/grandpappy hadn’t inseminated your sister/mom, you wouldn’t be here to share your ignorant hate all while showing us what a coward you are hiding in the shadows… keep sticking with the losing side closetpride boy!
Greg the alleged Southern racist trumptard
May 14, 2019 at 9:16 pmYeah. Glad to see I am not alone in seeing the obvious. Further was far superior to dead and slow. And this farce is tarnishing the Woodstock legacy, Karma for trying to bring in pop and hip hop bullshit.
Chris Robinson
May 14, 2019 at 6:32 pmSad sad times when John Mayer is the spokesman for Grateful Dead,lmma gonna puke.
Gilly
May 14, 2019 at 4:24 pmIf only Mayer had said “EVEN If those guys [Dead & Company] end up going, I STILL WILL NOT go,” Then Kadlecik could sit in and no doubt Phil would fly out and we could have one more trip down memory lane that doesn’t end in hitting a flimsy dry-rotten wall that is the playing and soul of John Mayer. Just sayin’
Clark Gillies
May 14, 2019 at 7:48 pmAbsolutely, Furthur was the absolute best post Jerry GD experience ever. Dead & Slow is shit…
MarZaPhiGar
May 14, 2019 at 2:38 pmUmmmm u know i live in upstate ny. Nobody – NOBODY- gives half a fuck about this dumb show. End it.
Jeff Spicoli
May 14, 2019 at 1:45 pmTHOSE GUYS ARE FAGS!!!!
phuckdat
May 14, 2019 at 2:13 pmBased on the smiles, I’d say Mayer is the catcher and Andy is the pitcher.
PHUCKDIS
May 14, 2019 at 3:02 pmSounds about right, Andy has been on Howard Stern a few times and admitted to being a power bottom…
PHUCKDIS
May 15, 2019 at 9:15 amAndy is a power TOP, I’m sorry for the typo.