Overview
Bumbershoot '99
As the twentieth century drew to a close, Bumbershoot entered 1999 as one of Seattle’s most enduring cultural traditions.
Nearly three decades after its beginnings as Festival ’71, the festival had grown into one of the country’s largest multidisciplinary arts gatherings. Each Labor Day weekend, Seattle Center transformed into a dense cultural landscape of music, film, theater, dance, literary arts, and visual art, a format that had defined Bumbershoot since its earliest years.
Produced by One Reel, the festival continued to present a wide range of artists and performers. Major touring acts attracted large crowds to the outdoor stages, while smaller venues across the campus hosted experimental theater, contemporary dance, film programs, author readings, and exhibitions by regional visual artists.
By the late 1990s, Bumbershoot had become something more than a festival. It was an annual gathering point for the city, a place where Seattle’s creative communities intersected with national cultural trends.
The close of the century also marked a moment of reflection. Over nearly thirty years, Bumbershoot had evolved from a civic arts celebration designed to lift spirits during an economic downturn into a nationally recognized cultural event. Yet its founding idea remained intact: a festival built around curiosity, experimentation, and access to the arts.
As Seattle approached the new millennium, Bumbershoot stood as a reminder of the city’s long commitment to creativity and of the power of a big umbrella to bring many forms of art and many kinds of people together in one place.
Bumbershoot 1999's line up included: R.E.M. / Sonic Youth / The Roots / Macy Gray / Son Volt / Death Cab for Cutie / Indigo Girls / Black Eyed Peas / Violent Femmes / Billy Bragg & the Blokes / Cake / Emmylou Harris & Linda Ronstad / Queens of the Stone Age / Everlast / Jimmy Cliff / Kate & Anna McGarrigle / The Gourds / Kathy Griffin / Janis Ian / Loudon Wainwright III / Chuck Palahniuk / Cibo Matto / Imperial Teen / Adrei Codrescu / Alejandro Escovedo / Anselm Hollo / BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet / Big Bad Voodoo Daddy / Danny Hoch / David Guterson / IQU / Lo’Jo / Los Van Van / Master Musicians of Jajouka featuring Bachir Attar / Mickey Hart’s Planet Drum / Mojo NIxon & the Toadliquors / Moon Zappa / Oleander / Oliver Mtukudzi / Olodum / Pavement / Pharoah Sanders Quartet / Red Elvises / Rennie Harris PureMovement / Robyn Hitchcock / Rocket From the Crypt / Saul Williams / Sinéad Lohan / Sista Monica / Source of Labor / Steve Winwood / The Damnations TX / The Pretty Things / The Rankins / Tom Tom Club / Tuck & Patti / Victor Hern´ndez Cruz
