Taking another look at the bloodshed of Altamont

Images from the Rolling Stones concert at Altamont in Livermore, Dec. 1969. Images from the Rolling Stones concert at Altamont in Livermore, Dec. 1969. Photo: Beth Bagby Photo: Beth Bagby Image 1 of / 10 Caption Close Taking another look at the bloodshed of Altamont 1 / 10 Back to Gallery

Four months after Woodstock celebrated the free-spirited nature of the 1960s, Altamont brought the decade to a crashing close. The free festival, which took place at a speedway 50 miles east of San Francisco on Dec. 6, 1969, lives in notoriety as one of rock music’s great debacles — the site where 18-year-old Meredith Hunter was stabbed to death as the Rolling Stones played “Under My Thumb.”

In his latest book, “Altamont: The Rolling Stones, the Hells Angels, and the Inside Story of Rock’s Darkest Day,” former Chronicle Pop Music Critic Joel Selvin talks to the key players of the day to get the definitive account of what went down when a crowd of 300,000, more than a dozen rock groups and the Hells Angels — hired for $500 in beer to be stage guards — came together in the arid valley. He celebrates the book’s release with a signing party on Tuesday, Aug. 16, at Great American Music Hall, featuring a set by Rudy Colombini and the Unauthorized Rolling Stones. Selvin spoke to us about the lure of Altamont.

Q: What is it about Altamont that keeps us interested?

A: It’s one of the few dark days in the history of rock. This was the anti-Woodstock. It also took place in December of 1969, so it bookmarked the end of the ’60s in a chronological way. The loss of innocence that day really is why this has lasted and why it endures as a cultural touchstone.

Q: What compelled you to revisit an incident that happened nearly 50 years ago?

A: There was a story to be straightened out. “Gimme Shelter,” which was produced in partnership with the Rolling Stones, is a great movie, but it’s not a journalistic document. No one has touched this topic since Rolling Stone magazine’s epic “Let It Bleed” issue in 1969. Until that report came out, the media had presented Altamont as a triumph. The Chronicle headline said, “300,000 Say It With Music.” The New York Times noted the murder of one concert attendant in its story. Everyone fell in with this “Woodstock of the West” myth.

Photo: AP Music fans gather for the 'Gimme Shelter' rock concert at the...

Q: Were there any lingering myths you debunked?

A: I worked with Scott Dudek, a private investigator, who was the homicide investigator who closed the Altamont cold case in 2005. One of my goals was to give the Hells Angels back their names. They didn’t have names. I found out who the people were. I gave them their names. I wanted to paint them honestly and faithfully. A lot of people think if Alan Passaro, who was accused of killing Meredith Hunter, had not been a Hells Angel he would have been considered a hero. I think that’s true.

Q: Why is that?

A: Meredith Hunter was holding a gun. There’s no telling what he would have done with that gun. In America, a person who pulls a gun in a crowd is to be taken down.

Q: There were 300,000 people there that day. How many noticed anything was amiss?

A: Many people who attended Altamont thought it was a great day and a great concert. The Stones played an incredible set. The sound system was poor, so out in the crowd it was hard to tell what was going on. George Lucas was on the film crew that day — it was his first major job. They sent him and Robert Elfstrom up to the top of this hill and they spent all day futzing with this long lens, trying to keep it in focus. When it was all over, they were both convinced they had been to Woodstock.

Photo: 20th Century Fox A still from the documentary film 'Gimme Shelter', showing audience...

Q: People like to contrast Altamont with Woodstock. Was it really that different?

A: Woodstock was very close to being a total disaster. It’s a point I make in the book. The whole event was taken over by a crowd and turned into a free concert by force.

Q: Were the late ’60s a lot darker than everyone remembers?

A: It was a time of a lot of hopes and aspirations that were unfounded in reality. Altamont was one of the dead ends.

Q: How did it change the music industry?

A: Altamont was a huge turning point for both the Rolling Stones and the Grateful Dead. The Dead determined never to have anything to do with the mainstream audience ever again and dedicated themselves to their audience and their community. The Stones, who were this fearless and fierce band, lost something at Altamont that they never regained; some fire went out in them.

Q: The Rolling Stones are playing Desert Trip in the Coachella desert later this year. How do you think it will be different from Altamont?

A: I would bet they don’t invite the Hells Angels.

Aidin Vaziri is The San Francisco Chronicle’s pop music critic. E-mail: avaziri@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MusicSF

Joel Selvin’s “Altamont” Book Launch Party: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 16. Free. Great American Music Hall, 859 O’Farrell St., S.F. www.slimspresents.com