Rolling Stone issue #40 had a cover date of August 23, 1969. 40 pages. 35 cents. Cover photo of Jerry Garcia by Baron Wolman.
Features: “The Grateful Dead” by Michael Lydon; “James Taylor on Apple: ‘The Same Old Craperoo'” by Jerry Hopkins; “The Dope Story” by Joe Pilati; “Newport 1969” by Jan Hodenfield; “The Doors in Mexico” by Jerry Hopkins.
News: TV Discovers the Music Scene; “Felix Finally Gets His Own” by Ben Fong-Torres; Woodstock Festival Is On the Run; Pop Comes Back To Miami; Airplane Puts RCA Up Against Wall; The Sound of One Side Negotiating; Country Joe Is Fixin’ to live; “All along the Hash Trails” by Samy H. Abboud; A Sky Pilot in San Francisco; James Brown at City Hall; John and Yoko’s Wonderwall; “Us Dope Crisis: Who’s Holding?” by Ben Fong-Torres and Geoffrey Link; Leary Busted in LSD Death Case; Dylan Booked for Isle of Wight; Aretha: Troubles In Motor City; “Faith Plays Soft At NY Debut” by Jan Hodenfield. And Random Notes on Jimi Hendrix, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Lothar and the Hand People, Expo 70, Eric Burdon, the Plaster Casters, and Ronald Reagan.
Full-page ads: Bread on Elektra; Faithful Friends by the New York Rock and Roll Ensemble on Atco; Hallelujah by Canned Heat on Liberty; Mountain by Leslie West on Windfall; Blind Faith on Atco (“available in two (2) different jackets”); Then Now And Inbetween by the Kinks on Reprise; Condor RSM and GSM sound modulators.
More ads: Elyse Weinberg on Tetragrammaton; Fairport Convention on A&M; “Ralph Gleason’s 4-Hour Anthology of S.F. Rock” on KSAN-FM95; Woodstock Music and Art Fair; The Wild West Festival; Farewell Aldebaran by Judy Henske and Jerry Yester on Straight.
Reviews: From Elvis in Memphis, Elvis Presley (by Peter Guralnick); Love Man, Otis Redding (by Ed Leimbacher); Soft Parade, The Doors (by Alec Dubro); “Honky Tonk Women”, The Rolling Stones> (by Greil Marcus); Suitable for Framing, Three Dog Night (by Bruce Miroff); With A Little Help From My Friends, Joe Cocker (by John Mendelsohn); NRBQ (by Langdon Winner); Live at the Golden Bear, Junior Welis (by Pete Welding); With a Little Help From My Friends, Steve Cropper (by John Morthland); M.P.G., Marvin Gaye (by Jack Egan); Hallelujah!, Canned Heat (by Barret Hansen); Black Snake Blues, Clifton Chenier (by Ed Leimbacher).
Columns: “Books” by Gary Von Tersch (on I Am Curious by Vilgot Sjoman on Grove Press); “Books” by Conrad Silvert (on The Teachings of Don Juon by Carlos Castaneda on Ballantine).
Poetry: “Butterfly Garden” by William Witherup.
Subscription offer: Subscribers could get four free Ballantine books (Bob Dylan’s Don’t Look Back; The Essential Lenny Bruce; The Jefferson Airplane and the San Francisco Sound by Ralph J. Gleason; and The Teachings of Don Juon by Carlos Castaneda) with 50 cents for shipping and handling. $6 for 26 issues; $10 for 52.
Previously: Issue 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39.