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Breaking Down and Lighting Up the History of 4/20, From High School Note-Passing to Covert References in Rock

The true origins of ‘420’ were murky for a long time, until Oxford English Dictonary recognized it in 2017.

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The origins of “420” as weed-related slang were hard to pin down for a long time. But the lore is rich with endless references. So many that it would take several lifetimes to compile every weed reference in popular culture. Plus, there would still be new ones emerging every day. Since we don’t have the research funding for that particular project (unless the Ohio Cannabis Museum wants to hit me up), we’ll focus on a few sneaky 420 references in music.

In June 1966, Bob Dylan released “Rainy Day Women No. 12 & 35” on his double album Blonde on Blonde. With its talk of getting stoned and the ramshackle backing music, “Rainy Day Women” was written off as simply a “drug song.” At the time, Dylan responded to the........

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