In October 2024, Michael Esposito’s Swami Salami: The Best of the Beloved Woodstock Times Cartoons debuted in the run-up to Christmas and was embraced by Woodstockers far and wide. The first printing sold out, and the publisher, Will Nixon, ordered a second printing. Copies may be found at The Golden Notebook, H. Houst & Son, Garden Café, Freeweaver, Mirabai, and Jean Turmo.

If you’re unfamiliar with Michael Esposito’s alter ego, Swami Salami, you’re in for a treat. For over 40 years, the little gent has opined about life in Woodstock from the off-beat perspective of a spiritual guru. Swami expresses an easy live-and-let-live attitude and puts you at ease with his fey perspective.

Swami Salami is the creation of Michael Esposito, a rocker and artist who arrived here in 1967, before the festival. His father taught at West Point, and he was destined for a military career. However, a childhood bout with rheumatic fever got him classified as 4F and ineligible for the army. So, instead, he studied art at Syracuse University. He started in a New York City advertising office but threw this over after two weeks and pursued playing guitar in the musical hotbed of Greenwich Village. He soon connected with the Blues Magoos, a psychedelic group that scored big with “We Ain’t Got Nothin’ Yet.” This tune went to number five on the Billboard charts, and the Magoos toured the country with fellow chart-toppers Herman’s Hermits and The Who. After this heady experience, Michael came to Woodstock and never left.

Now in his 80s, Michael presides over the Old Spokes Home, a bike shop. He also paints and plays bass for the Marc Black Band. The handsome Bushwhack Books edition of Michael’s cartoons features a warm introduction by Geddy Sveikauskas, former publisher of the Woodstock Times and current publisher of HV1. It also has a short, illustrated biography by Will Nixon.

If you want a piece of Woodstock Nation for a friend anywhere across the country, consider purchasing the book. The 368-page title features cartoons from the 1970s to the 2000s and sells for $24.95.

~Weston Blelock