This performance is legendary. The members of his band had to sing the backing vocals because the female backing singers got caught up in the chaotic traffic.

When Joe Cocker died, Paul McCartney said about the cover version: "It was just mind-blowing, totally turned the song into a soul anthem and I was forever grateful for him for doing that."

I worked there, directing traffic and such. We all saw how that worked out. Of all the astounding performances this is my favorite. That festival was second to none, never to be equalled.

I worked at a casino in Oregon in 2008. We had lots of shows there. I usually worked dispatch. I never worked the concerts. I saw that Joe Cocker was coming to do a show. I signed up for some overtime to work this one. When they were finished placing all the officers in their designated area, I still hadn't received where I would be doing security. They finally call my name and say, "We'll need you back in the green room with the artist." I was like, what?! Are you kidding me?! Needless to say, I greeted him off of his tour bus and showed him where he would be getting ready. I was freaking out! He was so nice and deeply humble. Right before he was going on, he asked me if it was ok if he held my arm on the way to the stage. It was dark, and he didn't want to trip and fall. Absolutely, Mr. Cocker!! After he went on stage, I was allowed to go out front and watch his show. Totally amazing. I'll never forget it. Even losers get lucky sometimes. 😉

No auto tune at Woodstock, just many of the best musicians of that time playing their hearts out and singing for eternity in that historic concert weekend in 1969. Any performance at Woodstock is worth seeing/hearing but check out Jimi Hendrix and his defining set there, do Voodoo Child and be amazed! Enjoy. 🎵🎸🎤🎹🎶

We didn't have such thing as autotune in 1969 no computer enhancement at all. Pure talent.

I don't know why but this song and his performance has tears running down my cheeks. ❤😊

Proudly waving my hippie hands in the air, I was there. Attendance was estimated at 500,000 people! Yes, it was indeed at Woodstock. It was a sea of mud, but everybody was incredibly kind to everybody else. ❤😊☮️✌️🕊

That is a Hammond B3 Organ. In the late 60s through the 70s it was the dominant organ used in rock. Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Steppenwolf, THe Allman Brothers Band, Procol Harum, The Band, and on and on. Virtually every performance at Woodstock was phenomenal. In spite of the weather, in spite of the endless crowds, in spite of the problems, and in spite of (or because of) the drugs, the performers came through in a big way.

He's the reason that at 13 three girls ran off to Woodstock. I turned 14 at Woodstock. Watching these videos take me back to when life was so simple. This is the spirit that keeps boomers going.

Iconic Woodstock ,I was there in 69. 17 years old with no money, I ate every day I slept were ever I wanted . The music from that era will never die even when all who there pass away. Joe Cocker brought so much passion and soul to his cover.

From the UK ~ I grew up in Sheffield, same as Joe Cocker. The band had two beautiful back up singers caught in the epic traffic jam on the way to Woodstock. That’s why the band’s singing falsetto. Joe did wonderful covers of Bob Dylan’s I shall be released, Just like a woman & Catfish, and Leonard Cohen’s Bird on a wire & First we take Manhattan. A great singer.

I was so blessed to have lived through those years,60,70,80'90's and the raw talent we had. We thought it would never end one great artist after another, sometimes so many at one time. There are some modern artists but so few as recording companies are just interested in most sales. So they could care less if the song is auto tune and no one goes out on tour

Joe sang like he’s life depended on it !!!!!

I was at Woodstock for all 3 days. The music was legendary but the comraderie among the young people there was even more amazing. When I first got there I was concerned that there were so many people and nobody in charge. But I quickly realized that this was something different and special.There were no fights and everyone was helping each other. People collected food to distribute to people who didn't bring enough. People wandered from one part of the area to another just to interact with each other. I bought a hippie belt from some people who made them and were selling them. It was an unforgettable experience.

This right here is a mandatory history lesson. How soulfully sung ❤❤❤

Maddie, I believe the organ used in the song and was ubiquitous in the 60's and 70's was a Hammond B-3. It was and still is an integral part of Southern church choirs. After my past comments about Peter Frampton' voicetube, I'm afraid to make any definitive statement about the 60's and 70's(even though I lived through It). I apologize to you and your viewers for making that now obvious misstatement. I the time I thought it was true. But in life, we live and learn. I'm not going to make any snide or snarky comments about those who corrected me. That's foolish. I just hope we all can have polite, respectful, and kind comments to each other. Maddy, I thank you for your curiosity of what went on before your time, what is happening in the world today, and what the future will bring. Unfortunetely, I was not at Woodstock, I was across the world at that time.

Saw Joe Cocker a couple times. 2 hours felt like 16 minutes. He definitely left us wanting more

Close to half a million people attended this festival. All roads leading in and out were literally shut down. Three days of peace and music. ❤️❤️❤️

Hammond B3 organ with Leslie speakers...THE organ of real Rock and Roll!

1 of the greatest performances of all time. It's like opening a time capsule. Greatness at its finest!!!!

The smile on your face does this ol' hippie heart good.

Probably the best cover of a Beatles song ever. I was 10 years old when Woodstock happened. My brother was 20 years old and he was there. He came home all caked with mud and I was upset that I couldn’t go with him.

Cocker was the best. His voice sounded like he washed down a mouthful of broken glass with a bottle of moonshine.

I had a guitar teacher that told me I don’t really feel the music, and never really knew what he meant. And then I see Joe Cocker and that’s what feeling the music is

Joe Cocker's air guitar is worth a fortune now.

Was our favorite. Every tried to sing and Dance like him after that.

Joe Cocker was an English singer known for his gritty, bluesy voice & dynamic stage performances that featured expressive body movements. He recorded a few Beatles' songs "With A Little Help From My Friends", "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window" & "Something". Other hits were "Up Where We Belong" (a duet with Jennifer Warnes), "Delta Lady", "Darling Be Home Soon", "Cry Me A River", "Feelin' Alright", "The Letter", "You Are So Beautiful" etc.

One of the best live performances ever, just the soul that Joe oiured out is fantastic

Great song, thank you for the reaction Maddy, as always, appreciate your time!

I can't get enough of this Joe Cocker performance. Always watch when it shows up on my feed.😊❤

I was stationed at Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock, TX when this historic event happened. In June, 1969, only 2 months before Woodstock, my roommate and I rode our BMW motorcycles up to Denver, CO to attend the Denver Pop Festival. We knew we were WAY beyond the mileage limitation from the base, but we didn't care. We both had the weekend off and we were going. Among the acts were Big Mama Thornton; Credence Clearwater Revival; Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; Joe Cocker; Johnny Winter; Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention; Poco; The Flock; Three Dog Night; and the headliner: The Jimi Hendrix Experience. All 3 nights while we were there, announcements were being made about which bands were signing up to play at Woodstock, and every night I was blown away by the number of THE BEST groups and soloists that were being added to the already impressive list! I couldn't go to Woodstock because I didn't have enough "leave" time saved up for the trip. But I totally enjoyed the Denver Pop Festival!

so much heart and soul into a song.......................no one does it better than Joe

❤1969 Woodstock☮

Legendary performances by legendary artists at Woodstock! The Who, Santana, Sly and the Family Stone, Crosby Stills and Nash, Joan Baez, Country Joe and the Fish!

Alas, I was still in junior high when this happened. But I quickly became a Joe Cocker fan. And after hearing songs from the Mad Dogs And Englishmen Tour, I also fell in love with Leon Russell. On a regular basis I'll play the video of the Tour doing both this song and Give Me A Ticket For An Airplane. :-)

Kudos to the cameraman here, attempting to keep Joe in the frame. A+

What a great performance, certainly one of the wildest Beatles covers

I was only 11 yo and lived in Denver, But years later I was working with a co worker and he was from upstate NY he is 10 years older and he told me he was at the Concert and I laughed like sure you were. Well the next time I went to his house, he had the movie on VHS and he had it cued up to where the concert turned into a free event and people were knocking over the chain length fences and I will be damned if he wasn't filmed doing that with another buddy and his girl friend I was blown away. Of course that night he talked about the whole experience! while we smoked a few joints! 😜

SANTANA at Woodstock,,,,SOUL SACRIFICE !!!! THANKS

A star was Born at that moment at Woodstock

One of the few all time greats. Simply powerful.

The keyboard instrument is the legendary Hammond B-3 Organ and Leslie Speaker Model 122R. There is also a Leslie Model 122 however, it does not have reverb. The original Hammond B-3 was manufactured in Chicago, IL. FROM 1955-1974. It is the Hammond model preferred by jazz and rock organ players, such as Fats Waller, Wild Bill Davis, Brother Jack McDuff, Jimmy Smith, Sonny Burke, Keith Emerson, Charles Earland, Jon Lord, Brian Auger, Steve Winwood, Procol-Harem, Santana, Joey DeFrancesco, and Barbara Dennerlein. Jimmy Smith popularized the Hammond organ, and its technique of using drawbars and pedals. Having found success in jazz, the Hammond organ became popular in rhythm and blues, including Booker T. & the M.G.'s and other Stax Records artists. The Hammond was one of the first mass-produced musical instruments which combined the electrical, mechanical and acoustic worlds-it is a keyboard instrument that could produce totally new sounds, and at the same time "imitate" other acoustic instruments. The production of electromechanical organs ceased in 1974. Thereafter, Hammond built fully electronic organs. Today, Hammond-Suzuki range of electronic draw bar organs, starting with the 2002 release of a digital B3 model that mimics the design and functions of the classic B3 (without the weight). This model, as well as newer units, can be partnered with real, mechanical, rotor speaker cabinets, also from the company. Hammond-Suzuki now manufactures organs in Elmhurst, Illinois, just outside of Chicago.

That’s the classic sound of the Hammond B3 organ. When paired with Leslie speakers, magic ensues. Great observation.✌️❤️🎶

Joe did a terrific job. I felt bad for the off key backup singer. Even the other guy was looking at him like "get it together," to no avail.

I believe that "that sound" that you refer to in the beginning is a Hammond B3 electric organ with a Leslie outboard speaker and a microphone. Also, there were supposed to be female backup singers doing those intermittent parts, but they got tied up in the traffic clusterf*** so other band members took those parts.

That keyboard is the Hammond B-3 organ. Very popular in the 60s-70s

The special organ sound was created by the speakers. The speakers are working with a rotating double horn for the high tones. In the 80s I worked with a blues band in Hamburg (Germany) and our keyboarder had one of these - very heavy 😅😎 By the way - the speakers are Leslie speakers 🤪🤗

That is the distinctive sound of a Hammond B-3 organ with Leslie Speaker.... There is no other sound like it when it comes to a keyboard instrument and you are correct, many Rock bands used the Hammond and Leslie. Good catch!

Awesome song. He is feeling himself in this one. I think Joe and his friends may have been doin something back stage😂

RIP Joe one of the greatest singers of all time, a staple of the rock and roll scene for decades.

I went to one of his concerts. Grande Ballroom 1968. He was amazing!🔥🌹

Beatles song , Sergent Peppers album 1967, lennon, mcCartney .Great expression from Mr. JOE COCKER .RIP.First sung by Ringo Starr .

Now thats how you sing a song!!! Use your whole body to project your voice! Also a little help from my friends works too!! 😁❤️💛

Joe played a whole air band with his body! Amazing, soulful masterpiece of a cover.

I wasn't at this amazing festival, but seeing Joe live was a performance I'll never forget. SO FUN!!!

Max Yasgur, owner of the farm where Woodstock was held, addressing the crowd (excerpts), "I’m a farmer…… I don’t know how to speak to twenty people at one time, let alone a crowd like this. But I think you people have proven something to the world ..........This is the largest group of people ever assembled in one place. ..........But above that, the important thing that you’ve proven to the world is that a half a million kids - and I call you kids because I have children that are older than you are - a half million young people can get together and have three days of fun and music and have nothing but fun and music, and I - God Bless You for it!”

The keyboard's a Hammond Organ. Probably a B3 if you want to get geeky about it. There weren't that many electric keyboards at the time. Organs, electric pianos and Mellotrons (it played tapes of strings, horns or voices) plus a few more. Synths did exist but they were huge and couldn't really be used live for most bands.

Excellent reaction, I love Joe Cocker, well done!

🇨🇦 Actual estimates say there were over a million people thru the 3 days, and best estimates for any one band/group performance was half a million ! The boys backing Joe Cocker tried their best to cover for Joe's backup singers who were unable to get through the crowd in time to perform ! The song of course, was written and performed by the Beatles, before given to Joe who added Soul ! Another great Woodstock performance was " White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane !

the one and only Mr.Joe Cocker.we all can be glad that there are records of his many songs.someone like him was uniq and probably there will never be anyone like him again.RIP Joe

As documented in the Joni Mitchell song made HUGE by CSNY" Woodstock"....they shut down the NYS thruway sliding in the mud, running around naked and amazingly for the time getting along with the police... You should check out the movie Woodstock . The performance that I enjoy above Hendrix(,The Who, Santana , CSNY is ....Ten Years after " I'm Goin' Home" it is awesome. Alvin Lee shreds his guitar drives a beat and cuz it can get kinda chilly in upstate NY in August with his respiration flowing out of him.

This is a Beatles song written by Lennon and McCartney/ Sung by Ringo Starr. i believe this is from SGT Pepper's album 1967. Cocker made it his own.Thank you Maddy

You have to watch Santana playing “Soul Sacrifice”and so many more from the concert.Amazing

3 DAYS OF LOVE AND PEACE ❤☮

Just getting to this.. but yes ma’am. That keyboard sound was iconic. The Harmon Kadron electric organ. It was replaced by synth organs in the 70’s (The minimoog) Lenny Kravitz revived both in the 90’s and I’ve been waiting for a comeback since then.

There are few people that could cover a Beatle song and make it their own, but Joe Cocker did.

Vocals were awesome ❤

You should hear him break your heart with his rendition of YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL. It is live and very true. Or the gutbucket growl he brings to UNCHAIN MY HEART. Enjoy

I saw Joe Cocker sing this in concert in 1969 - just a few months after this performance. I didn’t know who he was at the time, he was a new artist at the time. Nevertheless he blew my mind.

I feel so privileged to have been a 60's Woodstock love child who got to experience all the 60's groups you have reacted to when they were just beginning to be known. Great reaction as usual.

Woodstock was a giant moment in American history

Great song. The studio version was used as the theme song to TV show The Wonder Years. Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin founder/guitarist, played electric guitar on the studio version. Joe Cocker had long great career. Some of his other famous early songs are The Letter (live from Mad Dogs & Englishman), High Time We Went, Feeling Alright.

The organ is indeed the Hammond B3 run through Leslie speakers that had a rotating horn that gave the sound a doppler effect (a train whistle seems high in pitch as it approaches & deeper in pitch as it recedes past you) of seeming to advance & recede the sound of the organ, it had two speed. That plus the volume pedal created the characteristic Hammond sound in Jazz & Rock.

People like Joe cocker come along once in a lifetime if your lucky, be grateful we were lucky, a total one off

54 years ago, and it never gets old. Joe was a once in a generation stage presence who’s covers were regularly better than the original.

Think about this the Vietnam war was in full swing,I was just a little kid in 1969,I can remember seeing it on the news and my dad was in the U.S.A.F.

Without question he was committed to the song. He feels the music.

For the ultimate Woodstock experience, try watching Ten Years After performing “I’m goin’ home”. Just make sure it is the full version, not just the edited highlights! It’s worth it, believe me!

Most artists get inspired my their muses. Joe Cocker got possessed by his. No exorcism is necessary, this was perfection.

peace and love

try listening to Ten Years After doin "Im Going Home" from Woodstock. They brought down the house with that performance from what I was told...I was born in 70 so I wasnt there...lol

What was crazy is his female singers couldn't get to the concert so the guys had to sing their parts. And did a fantastic job.

Hi Maddy - everyone always said Joe Cocker (RIP) was a "spastic" because he was so exalted in his movements. In fact, he was quite "normal", he just lived his beloved music to the full physically. He never stopped doing this throughout his life, it was his trademark, so to speak, along with his grating voice. A great artist from the very beginning - here in Woodstock - until his death.

Hi Maddy The Keyboard sound was from a Hammond B3 Organ and Leslie tone cabinet which was used by a lot of rock bands Young Rascals, Vanilla Fudge...

HEAVENLY,EVERY TIME I HEAR !

Legend RIP

I was a little young for Woodstock, but I had "Mad dogs and Englishmen." A sidenote: there were rock festivals all over the US throughout the 70s. I went to a few.

That organ sound is the Hammond B3. In the 60s and 70s, nearly all bands used one. In my opinion, they should be required equipment. 😊

Hello Miss Maddy, I hope you are having a wonderful week! I was a bit young to attend Woodstock in '69, although I do remember seeing interviews on television with some of the artists after they performed there. I've always been a fan of Joe Cocker even though it is hard to understand what he's saying when he's singing sometimes, but I know for sure that he means what he is saying and that he is truly feeling the music.

The Plumber from Sheffield, United Kingdom..

This performance always gives me the goosebumps, thanks

Such a unique voice. Noting wrong with his movements. He once said that once he got into the zone, that's just what his hands did 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻

Ilove your work Maddy. old goldies.❣

That's a Hammond B-3 organ, with a Leslie rotating speaker. It really came out of Black Gospel music in the Black churches, then was adopted by jazz (especially Jimmy Smith). It found its way into rock music through groups like Argent, Procol Harum, The Rascals (or Young Rascals), and The Allman Brothers Band.

Great reaction! I was 17 that year..running with my friends and having a blast listening to all the great raw talent those days. I believe you would absolutely love "Unchain My Heart" by Joe Cocker...the official video in the barroom. He's older and hasn't lost his charm❤

Was too young to go then, but 40 years ago there was a thing called The Mid Night Movie where the local theater (no a mini plex but a REAL giant screen) played Woodstock w/a thing called Dolby Surround Sound. That is as close as you could get to recreating. Other movie concerts like The Song Remains the Same. Un cut, no breaks cranked to 11!.

🎼🏆🎼🏆🎼 .. great choice Maddy !! Joe Cocker does have a great voice. He was so unique .. try "You Are So Beautiful" if you want to hear him slow down a bit.

That organ intro is amazing.

Hello again Maddy! Good reaction to Joe Cocker. Nice to see your reactions to the music I grew up with. The best years with very good music were the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, I also like the music of the 50s a lot. I am a music collector, and also compose my own music, but only on my PC these days. You were wondering what kind of Organ was used often in the 60s - 70s, it was a Hammond B-3. I have a few of those, but only as VST Plug-ins for my DAW, but they sound great. 🙂Good job, keep it up. 😉❤