NEW YORK - It was billed as three days of peace and music. Henry Dlitz, who was official photographer at the music festival known in history as Woodstock, says it was just that.   

"People came there expecting that, and felt that from the people on stage, and from the aura and the buzz that was in the air. It really was brotherhood," Diltz recalled.

Diltz, who captured a unique pre and post festival shot of a chair, is one the photographers displaying images from that memorable weekend (which was actually in Bethel, New York) at the Morrison Hotel Gallery in SoHo. It's a month-long celebration of the concert which featured Rock legends like Janis Joplin, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Santana, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Jefferson Airplane, and so many more.

(Above: Jimi Hendrix performing at Woodstock. Photo by Henry Diltz)

There were a lot of big names, but Woodstock Co-Creator Michael Lang says it was never meant to be just a concert but instead a celebration of the 1960s counterculture - a coming together of ideas, hopes and dreams.

"It was just a sense that the world was going to be okay," said Lang. "That we were able to do this and have it work, and so maybe on a broader scale, the world could kind of survive and make it work." 

The photos show different perspectives of Woodstock, from the performers to the the estimated half-million people who made their way there to be part of it. Though many more people claim they were there.

"I think it's in the million people who say they were at Woodstock," Diltz said.

Lang says it's not about the numbers but the sight of all of those people was something to behold. 

"It was just an amazing thing to look at and see for days on end, this endless sea of people just really enjoying themeslves, being nice to each other, helping each other,  it was pretty remarkable," Lang said.

It was an event that took place toward the end of one of the most tumultuous decades in American history and defined a generation.