Summerfest
Encyclopedia
Summerfest is a yearly music festival held at the 75 acres (303,514.5 m²) Henry Maier Festival Park
Henry Maier Festival Park
The Henry W. Maier Festival Park, also known either as the Henry Maier Festival Grounds or as the Summerfest Grounds, is a festival park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the United States. The Park is named for Henry Maier, Milwaukee's longest-serving mayor....

 along the lakefront
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The festival lasts for 11 days, is made up of 11 stages with performances from over 700 bands, and since the mid-1970s has run from late June through early July, usually including the 4th of July
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...

 holiday. Summerfest attracts between 800,000 and 1,000,000 people each year, promoting itself as "The World's Largest Music Festival
Music festival
A music festival is a festival oriented towards music that is sometimes presented with a theme such as musical genre, nationality or locality of musicians, or holiday. They are commonly held outdoors, and are often inclusive of other attractions such as food and merchandise vending machines,...

," a title certified by the Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records
Guinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...

 in 1999.

Summerfest is run by the non-profit organization Milwaukee World Festival, and features both local and nationally known music talent from a variety of music genres. The event also provides the opportunity to sample a wide variety of food from many Milwaukee-area restaurants. Other Summerfest attractions include comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...

 acts, shopping vendors, fireworks
Fireworks
Fireworks are a class of explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. The most common use of a firework is as part of a fireworks display. A fireworks event is a display of the effects produced by firework devices...

 (including "The Big Bang" on opening night), other special attractions, family activities and more.

Live musical acts are offered on 11 stages throughout the grounds from noon to midnight, including the 23,000-capacity Marcus Amphitheater
Marcus Amphitheater
The Marcus Amphitheater is an amphitheater on the south end of the Henry Maier Festival Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The amphitheater was built after an extremely overcrowded concert in 1984 to carry crowds of 25,000 fans during concerts...

. All shows are free with an admission ticket, with the exception of headlining acts at the Marcus Amphitheater. Admission is between $8.00 and $15.00, depending on the time of day. There are numerous promotions for discounted or free tickets.

History

Summerfest was conceived in the 1960s by then-mayor Henry W. Maier
Henry W. Maier
Henry Walter Maier was an American politician and mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1960 to 1988.Maier was born in 1918 in Dayton, Ohio...

. Inspired by his visit to Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest, or Wiesn, is a 16–18 day beer festival held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, running from late September to the first weekend in October. It is one of the most famous events in Germany and is the world's largest fair, with more than 5 million people attending every year. The...

 in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, Maier envisioned a similar ethnic-themed festival in Milwaukee, and in 1962 formed a panel of business and civic leaders to study the feasibility of a large-scale summer festival. By the middle of the decade, the panel drew up a proposal for a 10-day multi-event festival with the proposed name of "Milwaukee World Festival," which was changed briefly in 1966 to "Juli Spaß" (German for "July Fun") and then to "Summerfest."

The inaugural Summerfest was held in July 1968 at 35 different locations throughout the city (including Milwaukee County Stadium
Milwaukee County Stadium
Milwaukee County Stadium was a ballpark in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from 1953 to 2000. It was primarily used as a baseball stadium for the Milwaukee Braves and Brewers, but was also used for football games, ice skating, religious services, concerts and other large events...

 and Milwaukee Arena), and its events ranged from concerts to a film festival, an air show, and even a pageant. The first Summerfest was regarded as a success; the second event in 1969, was less successful, as it was plagued by additional venues, inclement weather, and severe financial debt. In 1970, a permanent central location was decided upon, and Summerfest moved to a former Nike missile site on the lakefront
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...

, where it continues to be held to this day. Also that year, Summerfest introduced its red "smiley face" logo, an insignia that has become synonymous with the event. The logo was designed by local graphic artist Noel Spangler.

It was also in 1970 that Henry Jordan
Henry Jordan
Henry Wendell Jordan was an American football defensive tackle who played for two teams, the Green Bay Packers and the Cleveland Browns, during his thirteen-year National Football League career. He played in the NFL from 1957 to 1969.Jordan attended Warwick High School in Newport News, Virginia...

 became executive director of Summerfest, a title he held during the event's early years until his death in 1977. Another public face in that position was Elizabeth "Bo" Black, who became executive director in 1984. Through her fundraising and organizing, she became a local celebrity (and almost as much a recognizable part of Summerfest as the smiley face logo) until her departure in September 2003.

Summerfest celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2007. The event's history was the subject of "Summerfest Stories", a documentary that aired in June 2007 on Milwaukee Public Television
WMVS
WMVS is a public television station located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its signal covers most of southeastern Wisconsin, including the cities of Racine, Kenosha, Sheboygan, and Waukesha....

.http://www.mptv.org/insidemptv/news/detail.php?n=185

New stages

Harley-Davidson teamed up with Summerfest to completely renovate their stage and area footprint for the 2008 festival season. The renovation improved sight lines, sound and lighting, while also increasing the area's capacity and providing for improved traffic flow in and around the stage area. Upgrades included large video screens for image magnification of performances and a comfortable seating area at the lakefront.

In 2011, a renovated Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard stage opened.

Concert history

Summerfest has been most famous for its music, ever since the first festival in 1968, when acts such as Ronnie Dove
Ronnie Dove
Ronnie Dove is an American pop and country musician.Born in Herndon, VA, Ronnie began his singing career in the clubs of Baltimore. He formed a group, The Belltones, and they played Baltimore and the East Coast for four years...

, The New Colony Six, and Up With People
Up with People
Up with People is an international education organization founded in 1968 by J. Blanton Belk, building from roots in the similar "Sing-Out" program of 1965. Up With People is best known for their musical performances by international casts consisting of 70–100 students from, on average, 20...

 performed. In 1969, Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...

 performed (see Midwest Rock Festival
Midwest Rock Festival
×The Midwest Rock Festival was a music festival held at the State Fair Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on the 25th-July 27, 1969.The festival featured Led Zeppelin, Buffy Sainte-Marie, The First Edition, Sweetwater, Pacific Gas & Electric, SRC and Shag ; Blind Faith, Delaney and Bonnie and Friends,...

). Since then, musical acts from Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...

, Tina Turner
Tina Turner
Tina Turner is an American singer and actress whose career has spanned more than 50 years. She has won numerous awards and her achievements in the rock music genre have led many to call her the "Queen of Rock 'n' Roll".Turner started out her music career with husband Ike Turner as a member of the...

, and James Taylor
James Taylor
James Vernon Taylor is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Taylor was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2000....

 to Christina Aguilera
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...

, Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...

, and Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...

 have graced the Summerfest stages. Acts with Milwaukee and Wisconsin connections have had a prominent history at Summerfest, most notably the BoDeans
BoDeans
The BoDeans are a rock band formed in Waukesha, Wisconsin in 1983 by Kurt Neumann and Sam Llanas . In 1985, after adding a drummer and a bassist, the band signed a contract with Slash Records and recorded their first album...

, The Gufs
The Gufs
The Gufs are an American pop and rock band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The band's latest album A Different Sea was released on October 17, 2006...

, Danny Gokey
Danny Gokey
Daniel Jay "Danny" Gokey is an American country music singer and church music director from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was the third place finalist on the eighth season of American Idol...

 and Violent Femmes
Violent Femmes
Violent Femmes were an American alternative rock band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, initially active between 1980 and 1987 and again from 1988 to 2009...

.

The concerts have been mostly civil events, with two notable exceptions. In 1970, a performance by the late-arriving Sly & the Family Stone
Sly & the Family Stone
Sly and the Family Stone were an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music...

 nearly resulted in a riot, and in 1973 a performance by Humble Pie & the Blackberries
Humble Pie (band)
Humble Pie was a rock band from England, finding success both in the UK and the US. They are remembered for songs such as "Black Coffee" "30 Days in the Hole", "I Don't Need No Doctor", and "Natural Born Bugie"...

 did result in a riot, along with a bonfire and about 300 arrests. As a result of the latter concert, organizers shied away from rock bands for several years, and established guidelines for "family-friendly" acts and a ban on alcohol brought in by patrons.
Live comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...

 acts have also been a part of Summerfest's history, even before a regular "Comedy Showcase" was first established in 1975. Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...

 was the main headliner at Summerfest 1969, performing two shows at Milwaukee County Stadium
Milwaukee County Stadium
Milwaukee County Stadium was a ballpark in Milwaukee, Wisconsin from 1953 to 2000. It was primarily used as a baseball stadium for the Milwaukee Braves and Brewers, but was also used for football games, ice skating, religious services, concerts and other large events...

. George Carlin
George Carlin
George Denis Patrick Carlin was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, actor and author, who won five Grammy Awards for his comedy albums....

 (opening for Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Davy Guthrie is an American folk singer. Like his father, Woody Guthrie, Arlo often sings songs of protest against social injustice...

) performed his "Seven Words You Can't Say on Television" routine at the 1972 event (and was subsequently arrested for violating obscenity laws). Prior to his arrest, he discarded a bag of cocaine to avoid further imprisonment. Since 1975, comedy acts ranging from David Brenner
David Brenner
David Brenner is an American standup comedian, actor, author, and filmmaker.-Career:Born and raised in poor areas of Philadelphia, Brenner found comedy a major source of relief from the daily trials and tribulations he faced in his youth. His neighborhood has been one of the top-ranked crime...

 and Henny Youngman
Henny Youngman
Henry "Henny" Youngman was a British-born American comedian and violinist famous for "one-liners", short, simple jokes usually delivered rapid-fire...

 to Jay Leno
Jay Leno
James Douglas Muir "Jay" Leno is an American stand-up comedian and television host.From 1992 to 2009, Leno was the host of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Beginning in September 2009, Leno started a primetime talk show, titled The Jay Leno Show, which aired weeknights at 10:00 p.m. ,...

 and Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart
Jon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...

 have performed at the event. Sandra Bernhard
Sandra Bernhard
Sandra Bernhard is an American comedian, singer, actress and author. She first gained attention in the late 1970s with her stand-up comedy in which she often bitterly critiques celebrity culture and political figures. Bernhard is number 97 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 greatest standups of...

 did TV and radio promos for its 1986 season when she was a performer there. Lewis Black
Lewis Black
Lewis Niles Black is an American stand-up comedian, author, playwright, social critic and actor. He is known for his comedy style, which often includes simulating a mental breakdown, or an increasingly angry rant, ridiculing history, politics, religion, trends and cultural phenomena...

 has become a frequent performer at Summerfest, making near-annual performances since his first appearance in 1991.

Opening headliners

  • 1968 Bob Hope
  • 1969 Dolly Parton
  • 1970 Sly and The Family Stone
  • 1972 The Doors
  • 1973 Steve Miller Band
  • 1974 Johnny Cash featuring June Carter Cash
  • 1975 The Beach Boys
  • 1976 Billy Crystal
  • 1977 Willie Nelson
  • 1978 Grateful Dead
  • 1979 Charles Aznavor/Jane Olivor
  • 1980 Kenny Loggins/Jim Messina
  • 1981 George Thorogood and The Destroyers
  • 1982 Santana
  • 1983 Eric Clapton
  • 1984 Huey Lewis & The News
  • 1985 Bryan Adams
  • 1986 The Go Go’s/INXS
  • 1987 Paul Simon
  • 1988 Sting
  • 1989 Rod Stewart
  • 1989 Richard Belzer
  • 1990 Cher
  • 1991 Whitney Houston
  • 1992 Metallica
  • 1993 Bon Jovi
  • 1994 Janet Jackson
  • 1995 Pearl Jam
  • 1997 Dave Matthews Band
  • 1998 Shania Twain
  • 1999 Paul Simon/Bob Dylan
  • 2000 Britney Spears
  • 2001 Destiny’s Child
  • 2002 Nine Inch Nails
  • 2003 Kenny Chesney/Keith Urban
  • 2004 Prince & the New Power Generation
  • 2005 John Mellencamp/John Fogerty
  • 2006 Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers/Pearl Jam
  • 2007 Steely Dan
  • 2008 Stevie Wonder
  • 2009 Bon Jovi
    Bon Jovi
    Bon Jovi is an American rock band from Sayreville, New Jersey. Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi consists of lead singer and namesake Jon Bon Jovi , guitarist Richie Sambora, keyboardist David Bryan, drummer Tico Torres, as well as current bassist Hugh McDonald...

    /Soraia
  • 2010 Tim McGraw
    Tim McGraw
    Samuel Timothy "Tim" McGraw is an American country singer and actor. Many of McGraw's albums and singles have topped the country music charts with total album sales in excess of 40 million units in the US, making him the eighth best-selling artist, and the third best-selling country singer, in the...

    /Lady Antebellum
    Lady Antebellum
    Lady Antebellum is an American country pop music group formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 2006. The trio is composed of Charles Kelley , Dave Haywood and Hillary Scott .The group made its debut in 2007 as guest vocalists on Jim Brickman's single "Never Alone", before signing to Capitol...

    /Love and Theft
    Love and Theft (band)
    Love and Theft, an American country music duo, is composed of Stephen Barker Liles and Eric Gunderson, both of whom sing lead vocals and play guitar. Love and Theft originally formed as a trio, along with Brian Bandas , in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006...

  • 2011 Peter Gabriel
    Peter Gabriel
    Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...

     and the New Blood Orchestra


Though Summerfest never became the ethnic festival Henry Maier
Henry W. Maier
Henry Walter Maier was an American politician and mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from 1960 to 1988.Maier was born in 1918 in Dayton, Ohio...

 envisioned, other ethnic festivals are held at the festival grounds
Henry Maier Festival Park
The Henry W. Maier Festival Park, also known either as the Henry Maier Festival Grounds or as the Summerfest Grounds, is a festival park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the United States. The Park is named for Henry Maier, Milwaukee's longest-serving mayor....

 throughout the summer and into autumn. Some of these events include Polish Fest
Polish Fest
Polish Fest is an annual ethnic festival held at the Henry Maier Festival Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. One of the largest Polish festivals in the United States, it attracts Polish Americans from all over Wisconsin and nearby Chicago, who come to celebrate Polish culture through music, food and...

, Festa Italiana
Festa Italiana
Festa Italiana is an ethnic festival held annually at the Henry Maier Festival Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is the largest Italian-American festival in America and features Italian music, food and entertainment...

, German Fest
German Fest
German Fest is an ethnic festival in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at the Henry Maier Festival Park, on the Lake Michigan lakefront. The genesis of German Fest occurred when Mayor Henry Maier challenged the local German-American community during a speech on May 20th, 1980, at the 20th Anniversary of the...

, African World Festival, Irish Fest
Milwaukee Irish Fest
Milwaukee Irish Fest is a yearly ethnic festival held at the Henry Maier Festival Park, on the Lake Michigan, USA, every third weekend in August. More than 130,000 people attend the Fest each year to take in nearly 250 acts on 17 stages. The four-day festival in downtown Milwaukee started in 1981...

, Mexican
Culture of Mexico
Mexico has changed rapidly during the 20th century. In many ways, contemporary life in its cities has become similar to that in neighboring United States and Europe. Most Mexican villagers follow the older way of life more than the city people do. More than 45% of the people of Mexico live in...

 Fiesta
Festival
A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centers on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community and the Festival....

, Indian Summer
Indian Summer Music Festival
Indian Summer was a short lived music festival sited in Victoria Park, Glasgow, Scotland. The two-day festival was noted for having a rather uncommonly laid-back and cosy atmosphere and for the availability of high-quality drinks and foodstuffs at its many stalls...

, Asian Moon Festival, Arab World Fest, PrideFest
PrideFest (Milwaukee)
PrideFest is an annual gay pride event held on the Henry Maier Festival Park grounds in Milwaukee on the second weekend of June. PrideFest celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2007, which was also a record-breaking attendance year with 27,467 tickets sold over three days.In 2010 Pridefest featured...

, and several run/walk charity events.

Winterfest

Beginning in the winter of 1989-90, Summerfest organizers staged a colder (in the literal sense) version of Summerfest, known as Winterfest. Rather than being chiefly set at Henry Maier Festival Park, the event took inspiration from Summerfest's early days and spread its music, comedy, and other events throughout several downtown Milwaukee locations, the central spot being an ice skating rink near Cathedral Square. Winterfest was never as profitable as its older summer counterpart, and ceased operations after the 1997-98 event.

External links

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