Edition timeline
The Cincinnati Summer Pop Festival took place on 13 June 1970 at Crosley Field, shortly before the ballpark's final Major League Baseball game.
The Cincinnati Summer Pop Festival took place on 13 June 1970 at Crosley Field, shortly before the ballpark's final Major League Baseball game.
The main promoters were Mike Quatro and Russ Gibb, working with Cincinnati's A.
The main promoters were Mike Quatro and Russ Gibb, working with Cincinnati's A. Jaye Agency after a successful March 1970 Cincinnati Gardens rock marathon.
CityBeat's reconstruction, drawing on contemporary Billboard reporting, gives an estimated attendance of about 24,000, with tickets reported at $6.50.
CityBeat's reconstruction, drawing on contemporary Billboard reporting, gives an estimated attendance of about 24,000, with tickets reported at $6.50.
WLWT filmed the entire roughly 14-hour festival with a five-camera crew; the footage was edited into the approximately 90-minute nationally syndicated television programme Midsummer Rock, aired later that summer.
WLWT filmed the entire roughly 14-hour festival with a five-camera crew; the footage was edited into the approximately 90-minute nationally syndicated television programme Midsummer Rock, aired later that summer.
Contemporary Billboard reporting quoted in the local history records 74 arrests after the midnight close, injuries to fans and police, and about $6,000 in damage to Crosley Field facilities.
Contemporary Billboard reporting quoted in the local history records 74 arrests after the midnight close, injuries to fans and police, and about $6,000 in damage to Crosley Field facilities.
Why this event matters
Its television afterlife is central. This is a festival whose historical importance is amplified by the camera: the surviving broadcast lets a modern audience see how theatrical, abrasive and heavy mainstream festival programming had become by mid-1970. The Cincinnati Summer Pop Festival took place on 13 June 1970 at Crosley Field, shortly before the ballpark's final Major League Baseball game.
Place, site and audience
The main promoters were Mike Quatro and Russ Gibb, working with Cincinnati's A. CityBeat's reconstruction, drawing on contemporary Billboard reporting, gives an estimated attendance of about 24,000, with tickets reported at $6.50.
What the audience experienced
WLWT filmed the entire roughly 14-hour festival with a five-camera crew; the footage was edited into the approximately 90-minute nationally syndicated television programme Midsummer Rock, aired later that summer. Temporary sound, power, stage access and changeovers determined how the advertised programme became a live event.
Problems, conflict and practical limits
Midsummer Rock is strong evidence for featured performances, but its 90-minute edit is not a complete record of the roughly 14-hour day. Contemporary Billboard reporting quoted in the local history records 74 arrests after the midnight close, injuries to fans and police, and about $6,000 in damage to Crosley Field facilities.
Follow the festival beyond the field
Timeline
Related genres
More routes will be connected as the archive grows.
Related band guides
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Explore by sound
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Essential listening
Sources and further reading
- CityBeat – A Summer to RememberEditorial source spine · accessed 23 July 2026
- Contemporary Billboard report quoted and contextualised in the CityBeat historyEditorial source spine · accessed 23 July 2026
- WLWT / Midsummer Rock surviving broadcast material as moving-image evidenceEditorial source spine · accessed 23 July 2026
Image credits5 licensed images
The Alice Cooper band in a publicity photograph. The group appears in the surviving Midsummer Rock programme; this is artist context rather than Crosley Field documentation — Enigma Records — Wikimedia Commons — Public domain · source record · Public domain
Converted to WebP and resized; no generative or compositional alterations.
Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad in 1970. The image supplies period context for an act preserved in Midsummer Rock and was not made at Crosley Field — Premier Talent Associates (management) — Wikimedia Commons — Public domain · source record · Public domain
Converted to WebP and resized; no generative or compositional alterations.
Crosley Field in 1969, one year before the Summer Pop Festival. The photograph documents the venue rather than the concert — Blake Bolinger from Central NJ, United States — Wikimedia Commons — CC BY 2.0 · source record · CC BY 2.0
Converted to WebP and resized; no generative or compositional alterations.
Mountain in 1970. The group appears in the surviving Midsummer Rock programme; this is period artist context, not a Crosley Field photograph — Unknown author Unknown author — Wikimedia Commons — Public domain · source record · Public domain
Converted to WebP and resized; no generative or compositional alterations.
A 1970 trade advertisement for Traffic, one of the acts preserved in Midsummer Rock. The artifact supplies release-period context rather than festival photography — Liberty Records / United Artists — Wikimedia Commons — Public domain · source record · Public domain
Converted to WebP and resized; no generative or compositional alterations.