Harrisburg Rock Festival (May 17, 1975) 

By Emily R. Pettet 

So here you are, pulling up to the 5th annual spring concert for another day full of sounds and sights to shake the mundane out of you. You’d think by the fifth time around you’d be bored, but since the concert is always changing shape and turning out different acts, it always has just enough intrigue to pull a person back every time. And between the monkey grabbing a ride from a dog followed up by a nude dancer, this Festival was certainly one you were going to remember.*

While this concert wasn’t lacking in musically inclined performers, there were a couple of new acts prepared for its annual spring session. Aside from the aforementioned nude dancer, a rhythm section was included as well that made pretty good use of some conga drums. Now, as interesting as the dog and monkey act might have been to witness, it wasn’t part of the day’s itinerary, but more likely the result of some of the more colorful guests in attendance. What’s more amusing is the fact that they weren’t the only furry friends in attendance, as both a goat and a sheep were noted to be meandering through the crowd as well.

On the topic of crowds, the Rock Festival this year saw a rather dramatic decrease in attendees in comparison to the peak of over 25,000 back in 1972. Still, at 12,000-15,000 the numbers were still nothing to sneeze at. In comparison to the 4,500 in attendance at the folk music festival in ‘73, Good People Productions did well for themselves this year too. Others were recognizing its potential as a venue for more than just music as well, as one individual took the opportunity to sell some hand-carved pipes while another spread around copies of the Harrisburg Independent Press.

Unfortunately, the concert did end up attracting some trouble this year in the form of an alleged pusher that likely was responsible for a multitude of THC overdoses. At least one such case of an overdose resulted in the hospitalization of an attendee, which was when the police were consulted. The suspected pusher was escorted off of campus grounds by security personnel, but there were never any police patrols among the attendees of the concert. Aside from the THC concern, the only other documented incident was a leg injury, though it is certainly possible that others occurred.

Even in the midst of these circumstances, the 1975 Rock Festival was counted as a success. The concession stand had their own taste of victory, and was once again aided by XGI. Local bands Third Stream, Elmer’s Kids, City Limits, and more took to the stage this year with Morning Song standing as a connecting thread from the year before. And although there were some difficulties along the way, they weren’t enough to put a halt to the nine hours of music, entertainment, and whatever it was that was going on with that dog and monkey.

* A creative interpretation rendered based on facts of the event.