We here at SPIN.com wish we could pack you all up in our respective suitcases and stow you away to this weekend's Lollapalooza Festival in Chicago. But just because you don't have a ticket for the Windy City’s lakeside extravaganza doesn't mean you can't soak up some of the festival's top performances.

Scottish trio the Fratellis kicked off Lollapalooza this morning (Aug. 3) at the massive MySpace Stage, offering up a brunchtime serving of their ultra poppy rock gems.

Today (Aug. 3), Chicago rolled out the carpet for an eclectic collection of musicians, all arriving via plane, train, and automobile for the Windy City's massive lakeside festival, Lollapalooza. One of the disembarking acts, who happened to arrive to Lollapalooza via tour bus, was Austin, TX-based collective Polyphonic Spree.

When Perry Farrell conceived of Lollapalooza 15 years ago as Jane's Addiction's farewell tour, he probably never thought it would come to this: eight stages, more than 130 bands, and an average of 60,000 guests per day over a gorgeous, long summer weekend (August 4-6) on 69 acres of Chicago's Grant Park.

At Lollapalooza '06, Spin was on the ground with our college correspondent program. Eight college students -- four writers, four photographers -- earned the opportunity to cover the festival for SPIN.com, live, all weekend long. Now with the festival ended, our correspondents look back at the experience, and the photogs offer their best shots from the weekend.

When Andrew Bird took the stage in front of a crowd of 5,000, this chamber-pop one-man band looked terribly out of place. His sparse music is what happens when you mix Art Blakey's jazz drum beats and Broken Social Scene's eclecticism with Rufus Wainwright's vocals -- lounge music with a high I.Q. that better fits a smaller, more intimate locale than a Lollapalooza stage.

As the sun ducked under the city skyline and most Lollapaloozers lingered in anticipation of last night's headliners the Red Hot Chili Peppers, a smaller grassroots music contingency had their own plan. Commandeering the corner in front of a different stage, the plaid-clad and free-spirited didn't care if they had to watch Anthony Kiedis from afar.

Three days, dozens of bands, liters of water, a few beers, a brat or two to eat, and, almost universally, an unforgettable experience. As the local radio DJs constantly reminded all weekend long, Chicago was indeed the center of the rock universe for these three days in August. On the final day, we asked fans about their favorite Lollapalooza '06 memories.

Lollapalooza carried the banner for summer, providing great bands, excellent food, and that laid back vibe that mixes well with the August heat. But the festival also provided a perfect catalyst for summer lovin'.

Sunday morning brought rain to Lollapalooza, and the only cure was more cowbell.