The Haight: Love, Rock, and Revolution Hardcover – October 14, 2014

Large coffee table book. Quite heavy because the paper stock is thick and sturdy.The photo quality is extraordinary and clearly came from the original negatives. Many pages fold out to twice the width of the book.Most of it provides a behind-the-scenes photographic story of all the SF musical artists we love (especially Airplane, the Dead, and Janis). But it also tells a complete history of the Haight - from the promising early years to the eventual demise. Paraphrasing Joel’s description:“The Haight was getting tough. The Free Clinic was forced to close after the City denied funding. Drugs had changed from pot to speed and heroin. The Psychedelic Shop closed and gave away all its merchandise. Many of the tribal elders urged people to move out of the neighborhood. Many did. In a year, the place had gone from a happy hippie paradise to a debauched hell on earth. The utopian experiment had failed.”Read this book and you’ll feel like you experienced the whole trip first hand. Especially the fun glory years at the beginning.

I was lucky enough to be in college in Palo Alto, just down from The City, from the late '60s to the early '70s. I was (and still am) a rabid music fan. I spent many an afternoon in the Haight and in the Panhandle area at free happenings and concerts. I was there for the free outdoor concerts by The Dead, Jefferson Airplane, and many, many other local bands. A couple of music-loving friends and I saw riveting performances by Janis Joplin with Big Brother (very loud), the original Santana Blues Band, and all the other fine bands from both the area and from outside California at the Fillmore and Avalon ballrooms. I was there for the People's Park fiasco, the free speech gatherings, and all the rest. I saw the tour buses that rolled through the Haight area to see the hippies and watched as street people held up pieces of mirror to reflect back on the "straights". And I was there for the "death of hippie" walk too. I was very lucky to have pretty much seen and heard and absorbed it all.This fine book is one of the best I've seen that gives a feeling of actual involvement, of "being there", being a part of it all instead of just another photographer taking pictures of the "weirdos with long hair and funny clothes". These photos take me back to those streets and those times when everything was in flux, anything could (and usually did) happen, and anything seemed possible.For those others like myself who were there, this collection of photographs will awaken memories from those days. For those who weren't around or couldn't be there to experience it all in person, this book will give you insight into an unrepeatable period when everything seemed new and exciting, and slightly twisted. That era wasn't just about the "name" bands, the wild thrift shop clothing, or the bra-less girls, the "love" beads and incense. It was about real people looking for something different--some made it and some didn't. There are a lot of faces in these pictures that go to the heart of that period and locale. That's the real story. And this great book takes you there.

My copy arrived this afternoon and I can't put it down. Rarely has a book captured the soul of a time as well as this one does.Every page is filled with words and images that allow anyone who was personally connected with The Haight to recapture those precious days. For those who never had a personal connection, this book is a goldmine of information that really allows you to understand the impact that that place and that time had on our society. Even today.Pretty much everyone knows that Jim Marshall was the greatest rock photographer in history. But what is clear from this 296 page monster is the fact that he was also a first-class historian who captured the shots that allow us to place context around the iconic photos we all cherish.Sure the photos of Jimi at Monterey, Janis, Dylan, The Beatles and the Dead (and TONS MORE) are all here. but for me the most interesting photos are those that show us the whole scene. The music. The atmosphere. Stanley Mouse. The tension between generations. Hippies. Straights. The brilliant Bill Graham. Race relations. Krishna devotion.Marshall's eye captured ALL OF IT. And it's all here. Hundreds and hundreds of photos.Some of my favorites...a photo of a note on a phone booth warning "don't say anything on this phone that you wouldn't say to a cop"....a picture of tourists in their cars driving through the Haight and looking both shocked and fascinated by what they see...and a shot of Jimi playing a free concert in the Panhandle in 1967. The look on Jimi's face as he squeezes a sound from his guitar is one for the ages (I WANT ONE!).To be honest, this book ought to be adopted by every college in the world that has a course on the 60s. Joel Selvin's text is deep, thoughtful, and laden with fascinating details that stay fixed in your brain as you go chapter to chapter neatly marrying the photos into the history lesson you've just absorbed.The Marshall Estate has totally aced this book. Kudos to everyone who made this happen..

My wonderful hubby got me this as a christmas gift, it had been on my want list for awhile. It was well worth the wait. I was born in 1972 and missed the wild 60's but I am a huge Doors fan and that drove me to learn about this roller coaster period in our history. I live near Port Arthur, Tx where Janis is from. She is quite prominent in our local museum, you could say she is the star of said museum and it's main draw. This book is heavy on Janis trivia and photos and stories. I am also an artist who took photography in college as part of my degree, I adore a good photographic book, especially one done by such a master of his craft. I am currently looking at other books by the author, hungry for more. Ravenous really because this book was just that good! It arrived well packaged and no dings or messed up dust jacket. It is a heavy book so I plan to put a cover on it to protect it. LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!

As expected, Marshall's photographs are great but i found Joel Selvin's writing rather predictable and for someone with so much knowledge of the music of the era it was disappointing to read that Country Joe & The Fish's track 'Janis' appeared on their first album which it certainly did not. When it comes to the Monterey festival all of the acts that he praises (Hendrix, The Who, Redding and Ravi Shankar) have nothing to do with the Haight. And why is smashing or burning your guitar necessarily artistic whilst a quieter but tight set from Jefferson Airplane mean that they were 'destroyed' by Hendrix? Worth buying if just for the wonderful photography.

I am very impressed with this book. As I have had a lifelong interest in the San Francisco scene I had to buy a copy as soon as I saw it. The photographs will be familiar to many readers as they have appeared in various publications over the years. It is, however, great to have them all in one large volume. I have already spent many happy hours leafing through it.The photographs are set out in chronological order within four chapters:The Haight Begins.Sights and Sounds.The Perfect StormReverberation.Each chapter has sections on specific topics such as Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, Bob Dylan Comes to Town, The Trips Festival, Hells Angels and The Hippies, The Grateful Dead Come to the Haight etc, etc. Whilst the photographs are predominately black and white there are numerous colour photos. Some pages are given over to single photos whilst other pages contain several. There are also a few pull out sections.The text does not give us any new information but is great to read in conjunction with the pictures. All in all an excellent potted history of the San Francisco scene.During my trips to San Francisco I have tracked down many of the venues where events took place. The Longshoreman’s Hall, Avalon Ballroom, Fillmore, Matrix, 710 Ashbury etc etc not forgetting, of course, Haight Street. Reading through the volume bought back many wonderful memories of those trips and has given me an urge to go again. Although incredible value for money, the book may prove to be quite expensive!I can thoroughly recommend this book to those who have a detailed knowledge of the subject and also those who are simply just interested in finding out what the sixties San Francisco scene was about.

Perfect price and packaging. Delivery was exactly as said it would be and this book is amazing, one I have been after for a while

The Haight arrived this morning. I have only flipped through it but spent over an hour doing so! What an amazing book. The photos are magical. This truly is a photographic account of social history in the making. Would highly recommend purchasing this wonderful book.

i was in America in 1967 ,but on the east coast.However the spirit of what was happening on the west coast permeated my being.The book is a treasure trove of photographs featuring all the great acts and the area known as Haight Ashbury.Buy now to avoid dissapointment.