Sweetwater was a
rockRock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music....
band originally from
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
. They were the act scheduled to play first at the
Woodstock FestivalWoodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music", held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
in 1969, although due to problems within the band, solo folksinger
Richie HavensRichard P. "Richie" Havens is an American folk singer and guitarist. He is best known for his intense rhythmic guitar style , soulful covers of pop and folk songs, and his opening performance at the 1969 Woodstock Festival.-Career:Born in Brooklyn, Havens was the eldest of nine children...
became the first performer. Sweetwater performed next, becoming the first
band to play the festival.
Sweetwater were early developers of the
psychedelic rockPsychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among garage and folk rock bands in Britain and the United States...
/
fusionA fusion genre is a music genre which combines two or more genres. For example, rock and roll originally developed as a fusion of blues, gospel and country music. The main characteristics of fusion genres are variations in tempo, rhythm and sometimes the use of long musical "journeys" that can be...
style that was popularized by
Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
to be regarded as the archetype "60s Sound".
Sweetwater was a
rockRock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music....
band originally from
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
. They were the act scheduled to play first at the
Woodstock FestivalWoodstock Music & Art Fair was a music festival, billed as "An Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music", held at Max Yasgur's 600-acre dairy farm near the hamlet of White Lake in the town of Bethel, New York, from August 15 to August 18, 1969...
in 1969, although due to problems within the band, solo folksinger
Richie HavensRichard P. "Richie" Havens is an American folk singer and guitarist. He is best known for his intense rhythmic guitar style , soulful covers of pop and folk songs, and his opening performance at the 1969 Woodstock Festival.-Career:Born in Brooklyn, Havens was the eldest of nine children...
became the first performer. Sweetwater performed next, becoming the first
band to play the festival.
Sweetwater were early developers of the
psychedelic rockPsychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among garage and folk rock bands in Britain and the United States...
/
fusionA fusion genre is a music genre which combines two or more genres. For example, rock and roll originally developed as a fusion of blues, gospel and country music. The main characteristics of fusion genres are variations in tempo, rhythm and sometimes the use of long musical "journeys" that can be...
style that was popularized by
Jefferson AirplaneJefferson Airplane was an American rock band formed in San Francisco in 1965. A pioneer of the psychedelic rock movement, Jefferson Airplane was the first band from the San Francisco scene to achieve mainstream commercial and critical success....
to be regarded as the archetype "60s Sound". In 1968-69, the band often toured with
The DoorsThe Doors were an American rock band formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, drummer John Densmore, and guitarist Robby Krieger. They are considered a controversial and influential band, due mostly to Morrison's cryptic lyrics and unpredictable...
. They were also one of the opening acts for
Eric Burdon & The AnimalsThe Animals were an English music group of the 1960s known in the United States as part of the British Invasion. Known for their gritty, bluesy sound and deep-voiced frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their signature songs "The House of the Rising Sun" and "We Gotta Get Out of This Place", the...
in 1968. One of their best-known recordings is a version of the traditional folk song "Motherless Child".
The original members of the band were Nancy Nevins (lead vocals/guitar), August Burns (
celloThe cello is a bowed string instrument. The word derives from the Italian violoncello. A person who plays a cello is called a cellist. The cello is used as a solo instrument, in chamber music, and as a member of the string section of an orchestra...
), Albert Moore (
fluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind group. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
/backing vocals), Alan Malarowitz (drums), Elpidio Cobian (
congaThe conga is a tall, narrow, single-headed Cuban drum with African antecedents. It is thought to be derived from the Makuta drums or similar drums associated with Afro-Cubans of Central African descent....
drums), Alex Del Zoppo (keyboards) and Fred Herrera (bass).
Three days after Sweetwater performed on
The Red Skelton ShowThe Red Skelton Show is an American variety show that was a television staple for almost two decades, from the early 1950s through the early 1970s. It was second to Gunsmoke and third to The Ed Sullivan Show in the ratings during that time. Skelton, who had previously been a radio star, had...
(December 1969), singer Nancy Nevins was severely injured in a car accident, which stopped the progress of the band. Due to the accident, Nancy experienced brain damage for a number of years following the collision, and permanent damage to one of her vocal cords.
The group reunited for
Woodstock '94Woodstock '94 was a music festival organized in order to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the original Woodstock Festival of 1969. It was promoted as "2 More Days of Peace and Music." The famous poster used to promote the first concert was revised to feature two birds perched on a guitar .The...
in 1994 with three original members - Nevins, Herrera and Del Zoppo. August Burns died in the 80s, Alan Malarowitz was killed in a car crash near 1981, Albert Moore died of pneumonia in 1994. Elpedio Cobian works as a film statist. In 1999, the story of the band was depicted in a
VH1VH1 is an American cable television network based in New York City...
TV-movie called
Sweetwater: A True Rock Story.
Amy Jo JohnsonAmy Jo Johnson is an American actress, singer, songwriter and musician. She is best known for her roles as Kimberly Ann Hart, the first Pink Ranger of the Power Rangers franchise in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and as Julie Emrick on The WB's college drama Felicity...
portrayed Nancy Nevins, while
Michelle PhillipsMichelle Phillips is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She gained fame as a member of the 1960s group The Mamas & the Papas, and is the last surviving original member of the group.-Early life:...
portrayed a much older Nancy.
Sweetwater discography
- Sweetwater (1968)
- Just for You (1970)
- Melon (1971)
- Cycles: The Reprise Collection (1999) - (Individually-number limited edition of 10,000 copies)
- Live At Last (2002)
Sweetwater: A True Rock Story
One of several top-notch musical biographies presented by the VH1 cable service, Sweetwater: A True Rock Story unfolds the poignant saga of the legendary L.A.-based band which "opened" the original Woodstock Festival in 1969. Nearly 30 years after this historic event, Cami Carlson (Kelli Williams), a reporter for the
MIX-TV cable music channel, is assigned to produce a "Where Are They Now?" documentary about the long-disbanded Sweetwater. Although she receives the grudging assistance of several surviving members, Carlson does not learn the full story of why Sweetwater seemingly disappeared from the face of the earth after 1969 until she tracks down the group's lead vocalist and guitarist, Nanci Nevins (played by Amy Jo Johnson in the flashback sequences, and by Michelle Phillips in the present-day scenes). As Nanci painfully recalls the devastating tragedy which all but permanently stilled her voice, Carlson comes to terms with her own private demons. Filmed in Los Angeles and Vancouver, Sweetwater: A True Rock Story first aired on August 15, 1999. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
External links