Richie Havens, the veteran folk singer whose frenetic guitar strumming and impassioned vocals made him one of the defining voices and faces of Woodstock and 1960s pop music, died Monday of a heart attack at his home in Jersey City, N.J. He was 72. His death was confirmed by his booking agent, Tim Drake. The Brooklyn native with the powerful ripsaw voice galvanized rock fans as the opening act at Woodstock, the festival billed as "Three Days of Peace and Music" in upstate New York in August 1969. His performance of "Freedom/Motherless Child," adapted from a black spiritual he learned as a child, became a landmark anthem of the event, which included performances by Jimi Hendrix, The Who, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. "Richie Havens was one of the nicest, most generous and pure individuals I have ever met," Stephen Stills said in a statement Monday. "He always caught fire every time he played." Originally scheduled as the fifth act o
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