Shoreline Amphitheatre is an outdoor amphitheater, in
Mountain View, California-Downtown:Mountain View has a pedestrian-friendly downtown centered on Castro Street. The downtown area consists of the seven blocks of Castro Street from the Downtown Mountain View Station transit center in the north to the intersection with El Camino Real in the south...
, USA, in the
San Francisco Bay AreaThe San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
. Inside the venue it has a capacity of 22,500, with 6,500 reserved seats and 16,000 general admission on the lawn. When the parking lot is utilized for festival stages the total capacity of the venue can reach 30,000.
History
The amphitheatre was built from 1985-1986, by the city of Mountain View, in cooperation with local promoter
Bill GrahamBill Graham was an American impresario and rock concert promoter from the 1960s until his death.-Early life:...
, as part of the Shoreline Park project. Graham designed the amphitheatre to resemble The
Grateful DeadThe Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
's "
steal your faceSteal Your Face is a live double album by the Grateful Dead, released in June 1976. The album was recorded live in concert between October 16 and October 20, 1974 at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom as part of the band's then-"farewell run"....
" image. Each row of fixed seating at the amphitheatre has a pitch of three feet, providing ample legroom and space for dancing.
The premiere season was during the Summer of 1986; it was planned to open with a concert by The Grateful Dead, who had to cancel, due to
Jerry GarciaJerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead...
's coma. They returned and performed on October 3, 1987 and June 16, 1990, these shows were recorded and later released as a live album, entitled
View from the Vault, Volume ThreeView from the Vault, Volume Three is the third release in the "View from the Vault" series by the Grateful Dead. It was released simultaneously as a three disc album on CD and as a concert performance video on DVD...
.
Anderson Bruford Wakeman HoweAnderson Bruford Wakeman Howe was a project of four progressive rock musicians, vocalist Jon Anderson, drummer Bill Bruford, keyboardist Rick Wakeman, and guitarist Steve Howe . They had played together in Yes in the early 1970s...
performed and recorded their live album, entitled
An Evening of Yes Music PlusAn Evening of Yes Music Plus is a live album by the English progressive rock side project Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe . Released on October 12, 1993, it was recorded at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California on September 9, 1989....
, here on September 9, 1989.
The
Dave Matthews BandDave Matthews Band, sometimes shortened to DMB, is a U.S. rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1991. The founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer/backing vocalist Carter Beauford and saxophonist LeRoi Moore. Boyd Tinsley was...
performed and recorded their show, on July 6, 1997, which was later released as a live album, entitled
Live Trax Vol. 17Live Trax Vol. 17 is a live album by Dave Matthews Band, and is the 17th volume in the band's Live Trax series. The album was recorded at Shoreline Amphitheatre, Mountain View, California on July 6, 1997...
.
The amphitheatre has also played host to music festivals, including The Vans Warped Tour, The
Mayhem FestivalThe Mayhem Festival is a touring metal festival that takes place during the summer. The inaugural iteration took place in 2008; the festival has since become an annual event across the United States and Quebec, Canada. The tour has been sponsored by the Rockstar Energy Company since the time of its...
, The
Area:OneThe Area Festival was a music festival founded by popular electronic musician Moby, who asserted that he was "in large part, inspired by the ethos of Lollapalooza", and wished to create a similarly "genuinely eclectic, interesting, alternative music festival". Moby organized the first such...
and
Area2 FestivalThe Area Festival was a music festival founded by popular electronic musician Moby, who asserted that he was "in large part, inspired by the ethos of Lollapalooza", and wished to create a similarly "genuinely eclectic, interesting, alternative music festival". Moby organized the first such...
,
LollapaloozaLollapalooza is an annual music festival featuring popular alternative rock, heavy metal, punk rock and hip hop bands, dance and comedy performances, and craft booths. It has also provided a platform for non-profit and political groups. The music festival hosts more than 160,000 people over a...
,
H.O.R.D.E.Horizons of Rock Developing Everywhere or H.O.R.D.E. Festival was a touring summer rock music festival originated by the musical group Blues Traveler in 1992. In addition to travelling headliners, the festival gave exposure to bands, charities, and organizations from the local area of the...
,
Projekt RevolutionProjekt Revolution is a music festival hosted by Linkin Park, bringing artists of various genres of music together. Linkin Park started Projekt Revolution in the year 2002 with just one stage...
,
OzzfestOzzfest is an annual festival tour of the United States featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon Osbourne, both of whom also organize each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne...
and
Lilith FairLilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during the summers of 1997 to 1999, and was revived in the summer of 2010. It...
.
Built on a landfill
In its opening year, a fan attending a
Steve WinwoodStephen Lawrence "Steve" Winwood is an English international recording artist whose career spans nearly 50 years. He is a songwriter and a musician whose genres include soul music , R&B, rock, blues-rock, pop-rock, and jazz...
concert flicked a cigarette lighter and ignited methane that had been leaking from a
landfillA landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
underneath the theatre. Several small fires were reported that season. After those incidents the city of Mountain View commissioned methane testing studies, to define the locus of methane vapors emanating from the soil within the amphitheater. These tests were used in developing a design for improved methane monitoring and more efficient methane extraction to assure the amphitheater became safe as an outdoor venue. Ultimately, the lawn was removed, a gas barrier and better methane removal equipment was installed, and then the lawn was re-installed.
External links