This Day in 1991: Jane’s Addiction Headlines the First Lollapalooza

27 years ago today, the first date of the first Lollapalooza festival took place, offering concertgoers the opportunity to see several of their favorite alt-rock artists back to back in a day-long extravaganza.

Devised by Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell, who had been inspired by such UK music festivals as Reading and Glastonbury, the original Lollapalooza – unlike the version that exists nowadays at Chicago’s Grant Park – was a road show, moving from city to city throughout the United States. The main stage lineup was pointedly diverse, offering artists from rock, rap, and industrial music, the side stage delivered the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow, and there were various booths and tents around the stages.

This was the lineup that first year:

Jane's Addiction
Siouxsie and the Banshees
Living Colour
Nine Inch Nails
Violent Femmes
Fishbone
Ice T & Body Count
Butthole Surfers
Rollins Band
Lords of Acid
EBN

Lollapalooza was an annual thing from 1991-1997, then it went on hiatus until 2003, at which point it toured around again. Its absence apparently failed to make the fans’ hearts grow fonder, however, because the 2004 tour ended up being canceled due to low ticket sales. As a result, Farrell decided to try to really emulate those British festivals, locking down two days during the summer of 2005 for a stationary Lollapalooza in Chicago’s Grant Park. The idea proved to be a successful one, and the festival has continued to be held in the same location every year since.