Summer of Love - Music

Music

Originally, the song "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)", composed by John Phillips (songwriter for The Mamas & the Papas) was written to promote only the upcoming Monterey Pop Festival:

If you're going to San Francisco,
be sure to wear some flowers in your hair...
If you're going to San Francisco,
You're gonna meet some gentle people there.

However, the tune, sung by future Denny Doherty replacement Scott McKenzie quickly transcended its original purpose by popularizing a nonexistent but totally idealized image of Northern Californa, becoming a #4 hit in the United States and topping the charts in the U.K. to become an anthem for the entire vibe emanating from the city for most of the summer.

Music during the time went through many different evolutions and alterations. As the popularity of singles was declining, full albums and the Album-oriented Rock (AOR) radio format it spawned on college campuses became much more significant than the single-oriented Top 40 format which had enjoyed dominance for over a decade, leading even more people into awareness of the various bands.

Much of the music could be classified as either acid or psychedelic rock, which was influenced by garage bands, folk, the blues, and some Native American tribal music. Other genres and musical forms still existed, however, such as soul, R&B, rock 'n' roll, and even influences of country.

One of the changes in music was the activity of the bands and artists. During this time, bands began to host concerts for a much more mature audience rather than play for a high school dance. Bands also began to embark upon national and international tours instead of remaining within their city or state, similar to The Beatles.

Before bands started going all around the country and the world, they made names for themselves in the Bay Area in some of the notable venues at which soon-to-be famous concerts were held, including the Fillmore, the Avalon Ballroom, and Winterland. Audiences from far and wide would overfill these events to the point of becoming a health and safety hazard. Then in a number of cases, most notably the Grateful Dead, fans would follow the band around the country, if not the world, a practice which continues in some form to the modern day.