The tour ultimately began in Toronto at the CNE Grandstand , which was plagued with about 2500 protestors who objected to what they viewed as exploitation by promoters charging $ 14 per ticket . The opposition was organized by the May 4th Movement ( M4M ) , the left-rebel group that grew out of the May 4 , 1970 Kent State shootings . They attempted to crash the gates and scale the fence , and clashed with police , resulting in injuries to both protesters and policemen . To help calm the crowd , Metro Police Inspector Walter Magahay asked the promoter , Ken Walker , to lower ticket prices , but this would have left the promoters unable to pay the musicians . Subsequently , Jerry Garcia , in conjunction with Magahay , was instrumental in calming the unruly crowd by arranging a spontaneous free " rehearsal " concert in nearby Coronation Park upon a flatbed truck , while the scheduled show continued at the stadium . Once the free concert , which began at about 7:00 pm on June 27 , was announced , most of the ticketless fans dispersed to Coronation Park , with an initial attendance of about 6,000 , thereby resolving the protest . Once the show at the CNE Grandstand ended at 12:30 am , another 6,000 fans went to the park for the remainder of the free concert , which lasted until about 4:00 am on June 28 . Playing at Coronation Park were The Grateful Dead , Ian & Sylvia and the Great Speckled Bird , James and the Good Brothers , the New Riders of the Purple Sage ( all of whom also performed at the CNE concert ) . Other local Toronto bands also played , including January , The People 's Revolutionary Concert Band , Si Potma and P.M. Howard ( of '' Beatlemania '' fame ) . There are some reports indicating a free concert was also performed on the second day , albeit to a much smaller crowd of about 500 , as many of the protesters paid admission to the event on the second day . Many people spent the night and following day sleeping in the park until the second show at CNE Grandstand ended at 12:30 am on June 29
Kent State shootings
Kent State shootings
Festival Express