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| Hardly Strictly Bluegrass @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
If a documentary were made about this year’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, it would no doubt include a sensationalist tagline of “The Quest for Shade” or “The Battle for Hydration.” San Francisco’s biggest (and free) music festival has gathered well over 750,000 attendees in past years and despite this year’s heat wave that shot temperatures well above 90 degrees, it appeared the weekend had neared that record attendance. The immense crowd that watched Patti Smith deliver a passionate and still timely “People have the Power” late Sunday afternoon went back as far as the eye could see, up the hills and into every nook and cranny within view of the Towers of Gold stage.
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| Gravel Road @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
It was simply “damn hot” from the time the first acoustic strings were plucked with the “Songs from A Gravel Road” all-star tribute to Lucinda Williams early Friday to the final notes of the Swan Stage Sunday night by The Wood Brothers. In between, both festival-goers and performers valiantly battled the elements as organizers provided plenty of hydration opportunities and Festival hosts such as KPFA’s Tim Lynch provided important reminders to everyone to take care of each other and drink plenty of water.
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| Steve Earle @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
A large crowd had already gathered Friday as the “Gravel Road” tribute kicked things off featuring HSB legend Steve Earle (who seemed to be everywhere you turned this weekend in support of other artists), Chuck Prophet, Kelly Willis and Ismay, who welcomed everyone to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 2024. I know a lot of you are probably fans of Lucinda Williams,” she said to a roar of applause. “So, we are going to be playing all Lucinda Williams songs and our takes on the classics. Just know that she is a beacon of light to us as songwriters.”
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| Hardly Strictly Bluegrass @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
“I’ve known Lucinda for a longtime – literally since we were teenagers. We came up in the same part of Texas and it was not easy to be the only girl in that environment. And for most of the time she was…When I heard this song, I knew that it was time to really start paying attention.” With that, he delivered a tender “This Sweet Old World” while others followed with “Something About What Happens When We Talk (Prophet),” “I Just Wanted to See You So Bad (Willis with her Wonder Women of Country bandmates)” and others before concluding with a delicious sing-around take on “Jackson.”
Hardly Strictly is broken down into six stages with the four main stages locked into partnerships of timing. The Swan and Towers of Gold stages are back-to-back. While Banjo and Arrow Stages face each other. Thus, the timing of each act’s set start directly coincides with the conclusion of the act on the matching stage. And the organizers of Hardly Strictly must be commended for keeping VERY true to set times to ensure performers are given their full-time and audience members can rely on their schedule. It is the tightest, smoothest ship in the concert-going seas year in and year out.
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| Lindsey Lou @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Following “Gravel Road” Friday, Lindsey Lou delivered a fun and playful set on the Arrow Stage. Matt the Electrician took to the Horseshoe Hill Stage – tucked up in the shady meadow between the Arrow and Swan and fashioned to look like the interior of a pioneer farmhouse. The Bay Area-raised Matt (who was once a practicing electrician) showed off his signature storytelling power that he has honed in Austin, Texas over the last few years to wow the crowd that had gathered in one of the cooler spots of the festival. While taking up a smaller footprint than the larger stages which house bigger acts, Horseshoe Hill saw some of the best songwriters enter its living room throughout the weekend.
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| The Milk Carton Kids @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
A huge crowd gathered at Swan Stage for the return to HSB of Southern California’s The Milk Carton Kids – a duo of singing guitarists whose playing and vocal chops can’t help but remind a listener of the power and emotion of a young Simon and Garfunkel. Kenneth Pattengale and Joey Ryan punctuated their set with a fantastic version of “Michigan” from their 2011 album Prologue.
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| Molly Tuttle @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Across the festival and back at the Banjo Stage at the four o’clock hour, Molly Tuttle and Golden Highway took the stage with huge smiles. In what was a triumphant homecoming for the Palo Alto-born Americana darling vocalist and songwriter, Tuttle and her bandmates were gushing with happiness that spilled over to the crowd. “It’s so wonderful to be back here!” Tuttle exclaimed before starting the set with “El Dorado” and “Evergreen, OK.”
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| Molly Tuttle @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
“Hello Golden Gate Park! My name is Molly Tuttle and this is my band Golden Highway…I can’t tell you what it means to be here at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival,” she told the crowd. “I grew up in Palo Alto, California and I remember waking up so early to go with my dad to get a good spot and put our tarp down out there to see some of my heroes…What a wonderful weekend here in the city. It’s just so cool that we have this going on and that we all get to have a great time enjoying amazing music for free….”
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| Molly Tuttle @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
She then led the band through “Down Home Dispensary” - a fun song lamenting Nashville’s lack of legal marijuana. “I can smell the Down-Home Dispensary out there – wafting through the crowd. I have to tell this story. My mom took me to this festival when I was ten or eleven and it was the first-time I ever got offered a pot brownie. My mom is out here somewhere and she’s probably mortified that I told that story.”
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| Molly Tuttle @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Tuttle led her band through a great, swirling version of “White Rabbit” – a song that would be reborn in several iterations throughout the weekend. Tuttle – who has been public about having Alopecia Areata which has left her bald – talked about the condition and then removed her wig for the final songs of “Crooked Tree” and “San Joaquin.”
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| Carrie Brownstein of Sleater Kinney @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
I missed Tuttle’s poignant moment to make it across the festival grounds once more for Sleater Kinney over at the Swan stage. One of the harder music acts of the weekend features Guitarist/Singers Carrie Brownstein (who has become even more well-known over the years for her co-starring role with Fred Armisen in “Portlandia”) and Corin Tucker. Their driving, indie-pop was in rocking contrast to the softer, more acoustic-style acts that mostly dominate the festival.
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| Sleater Kinney @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
"Thank you very much. We are Sleater Kinney and we have been a band for 100 years,” joked Tucker after an opening that featured “Hell” and “Needlessly Wild.“ “We are so happy to be here on this beautiful evening in San Francisco and Golden Gate Park,“ Brownstein added before the band went into the ska-like “Price Tag.”
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| Carrie Brownstein of Sleater Kinney @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
“How’s everyone doing this evening with this very stereotypical weather?” Brownstein asked with tongue in cheek. Indeed, the weather and the concern for the crowd’s well-being would be a dominant topic throughout the weekend’s stage banter. “It feels like L.A. a little bit in a crazy weather way, but it’s still more beautiful up here. You guys don’t have that rivalry with Southern California do you?” she continued with a wry smile. “It’s all just one beautiful state.” The set was concluded with “Untidy Creatures” and “Jumpers.”
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| Glen Hansard @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Back across the Hardly Strictly grounds at the Banjo Stage, Glen Hansard’s mesmerizing, powerful performance wrapped up day one. Hansard – Irishman and star of “Once” put a bow on the festival’s opening day was a set that weaved between pin-drop tenderness and hard-driving brute force. His opening two songs of “Fitzcarraldo” and “When Your Mind’s Made Up” took the crowd on an energetic and emotional roller coaster. I had never seen Hansard in concert and he was an absolute force of talent that the giant crowd appreciated with huge roars of approval as the punishing sun set for a beautiful setting sun that Hansard called on the crowd to take in.
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| Glen Hansard @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Songs such as “Didn’t He Ramble” and “Falling Slowly” (from the “Once” soundtrack) were presented masterfully and the material off his most recent album All That Was East is West of Me Now range equally powerfully – including – "There’s No Mountain, The Feast of St. John” and “Down on Our Knees.”
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| Glen Hansard @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
“San Francisco loves you” someone up at the front of the crowd screamed out just before Hansard began his finale of “Gold.” “Thank you San Francisco. You’re the fu@#ing greatest,” Hansard replied. “This song was written as a love song to the Earth…touch it…feel it…it’s a wonderful thing. I’m getting the first wave of that mushroom, thank you,” Hansard smiled. The song was a perfect choice to close the day as the golden light of sunset washed over the crowd and stage.
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| Glen Hansard @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
After traversing over ten miles on day one and looking into a day that was the most sweltering of the weekend, I made a self-survival decision: I would focus my attention for day two around Towers of Gold and Swan Stages make the shady corner in front of stage right of Swan as my basecamp for the day. Welshman Jon Langford and the Far Forlorn started the day for me at Towers of Gold. The TOG stage - facing into the sun – without shade was already sweltering by the time Langford began his punk-influenced set at 11:40am. Despite the temperatures, his great spirit and boundless energy were on full display throughout.
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| Jon Langford @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Over on Swan at 12:45 pm, Fruition provided one of the most interesting back stories to any band performing on the weekend. Longtime buskers, they had been kicked out of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass once for unwelcomed performing. Now, signed and armed with a terrific new album How to Make Mistakes - they were welcomed back to the grounds and onto one of its biggest stages. They made the most of their Swan opportunity with a joyful, jammy set that included songs such as “Santa Fe” and “Labor of Love.” Their new songs are steeped deep in the American vibe and the performance grabbed in the crowd.
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| Fruition @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Bay Area favorites Moonalice took over the Towers of Gold Stage for a triumphant set. The band’s spread across the stage with guitarist-founder Roger McNamee, bassist Pete Sears, guitarist Barry Sless, drummer John Molo, vocalists Lester Chambers and his son Dylan, dynamic vocalists “The T Sisters” (Chloe, Erika and Rachel Tietjen) and dual keyboard/organist all-stars in Mookie Siegel and Jason Crosby.
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| Moonalice @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Together, they were (as always) incredibly dynamic to watch and listen to. Covers of “Bird Song” and “White Rabbit” had the huge crowd completely enthralled and Lester Chambers delivered a perfect and timely version of “Time Has Come Today” – The Chambers Brothers’ classic to close out the night. An interesting, but important side note: McNamee is not only a talented musician – he’s a very successful businessman and co-founder of Elevation Partners and personally funded the livestream of Hardly Strictly enjoyed by many around the world.
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| Roger McNamee of Moonalice @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Robyn Hitchcock took the Swan Stage on a magical mystery tour with his British Invasion set and won the style of the day award with his purple polka dot shirt and matching guitar. He covered The Kinks with “Waterloo Sunset,” Pink Floyd with “See Emily Play” and the Beatles with both “And Your Bird Can Sing” and “Rain.” “Waterloo” was an absolute triumph and his own songs such as “Heaven” and the closing “Element of Light” also delighted the crowd.
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| Robyn Hitchcock @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The next round of artists saw the diversity that helps make Hardly Strictly so legendary. Haley Heynderickx brought her mostly understated, acoustic, singer-songwriter approach to overwhelming appreciation from an audience fronted by mostly young females at Towers of Gold.
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| Robyn Hitchcock @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Back over at Swan – longtime Hardly Strictly regular, 68-year-old guitarist extraordinaire Dave Alvin continued his tradition of assembling a collective of talented musicians for the festival. On Saturday, he partnered with his longtime friend (and current co-creator) Jimmie Dale Gilmore to present “Dave Alvin & Jimmie Dale Gilmore with The Guilty Ones.” Their new album “Texicali” was spotlighted and Alvin continually joked with crowd about leaning into the new material despite the huge setting. “Will we play another new one?” he playfully asked. “Well, if that’s what you want to hear. Here we go.” He did revisit a couple of classics from his time with The Blasters with “Long White Cadillac” and the closing “Marie Marie.”
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| Haley Heynderickx @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Meanwhile over at Towers of Gold, the next act was another collaboration – though this one many decades younger in the making – as Madison Cunningham and Andrew Bird took the stage together as Bird-Cunningham. I hasten to admit that in all the going back and forth over artist schedules for the festival – the name did not make itself clear to me until just a few hours before the set when I finally leaned into Google to find out more.
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| Bird Cunningham @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Together, the two larger performers leaned into material from Buckingham-Nicks initial album with Cunningham’s haunting vocals – augmented by Bird’s mandolin, vocals and famous whistling. It was an interesting pairing in what seemed to be only their second gig together and their take on the only album that Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks put out before joining Fleetwood Mac was a very interesting choice. “Cunningham Bird” – the album has several songs pre-released right now with the full album coming on October 18.
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| Greensky Bluegrass @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
To finish the day, Greensky Bluegrass took to the stage with the self-mocking statement that “We are perfect for this festival as we are for sure hardly strictly bluegrass!” After opening with a rousing version of “Past My Prime,” they settled in for a touching version of “Room Without a Roof” with guitarist David Bruzza taking the lead vocals. The sky behind them began to turn golden as the performance reached the point where Mother Nature’s backlight featuring a sparkling setting sun dominated the stage lights.
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| Greensky Bluegrass @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Greensky had bookended the Bay Area summer music festival scene as they headlined the Mill Valley Music Festival back in May and were now present for October’s final hurrah in Golden Gate Park. Their cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City” was a show-stopper – as it was back in May. The Greensky version, led by mandolinist & singer Paul Hoffman sounded like the band had originated the song v. a traditional cover. Their bluegrass sound fits the song like it always belonged.
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| Greensky Bluegrass @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Greensky wrapped up with Hoffman leading “Worry for You” as swirling polka dots were projected onto the Swan canvas behind them. “Thank you very much. We are Hardly Strictly Greensky Bluegrass. We love you,” Hoffman told the crowd as the band left the stage to end day two.
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| Greensky Bluegrass @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Sunday brought back bearable temperatures – though still in the 80’s. In the cool hollow of the Rooster Stage, Bay Area singer Miko Marks shined in front of the early arriving crowd delivering a rousing set that put a jet pack on the day’s energy. Marks who took fourteen years between 2007 album It Feels Good and 2021’s Our Country has performed and toured over the last few years. With 2022’s Feel Like Going Home, she showed that she is completely back and the Americana world is a better place for it.
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| Miko Marks @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Marks’ energetic songs like the rousing opener of “One More Night” and “Ancestors” were complemented by the bluesy “River” with its powerful chorus and mournful “Hard times.” “Piece of Mind” was a soulful, gospel-inspired showcase. She finished with a stirring “Feel Like Going Home.” Next up on the Rooster, 93-year-old Ramblin’ Jack Elliott showed no signs of stopping in a set where he was joined by Steve Earle.
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| Cedric Burnside @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Over at Towers of Gold, Cedric Burnside took the audience on a ride to authentic Mississippi Delta Blues with a set that showcased his classic approach and demonstrated why he won the 2022 Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Album for I Be Trying!
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| James Hunter @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Swan saw UK soul singer and rocker James Hunter in front of a very large, early crowd for the man who has been touring the US with Bonnie Raitt. Over at Towers of Gold, AJ Lee & Blue Summit were smacked with the direct sun for the hottest part of the day for their 50-minute set that featured a blend of their own songs such as “Hillside” and “City of Glass” with covers such as “Wish I Could Say I Was Drinking” and a closing “Glendale Train.”
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| AJ Lee & Blue Summit @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
One of the most anticipated sets of the entire weekend came next at the Swan Stage when Big Star Quintet celebrated the 50th anniversary of their Radio City album. The band – started in 1971 with their debut album “#1 Record” and then 1973’s Radio City were celebrated with critical praise but torpedoed by repeated marketing failure. By the time 1974 had rolled around, the band had dissolved.
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| Big Star Quintet @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Eventually, the band’s music gained a new following and over the years, its cult status has risen among those in the music know over the years. Though fifty years have passed and only drummer Jody Stephens remains among the original band lineup, the music played Sunday still held a very modern relevance. To add to the special nature of the performance, REM’s Mike Mills who has often cited Big Star as a major influence for his most famous band, joined the quintet on bass, keyboards, cowbell and even took a turn on lead vocals on “September Gurls.” The performance was nearly the high point of the festival and probably held the top crown until a few hours later.
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| Big Star Quintet @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Over at the Arrow Stage, Bay Area favorites Wreckless Strangers drew in and rocked the crowd that had been primarily at Banjo with an energetic and engaging performance. This is a band that is not to be missed whenever they perform. Lead singers Amber Morris and guitarist vocalist David Noble front the band and give the band an enthusiastic, extremely likeable vibe with music they describe as “Bay Area Gumbo.” Featuring Bay Area keyboard royalty Austin de Lone, bassist Joshua Zucker, guitarist Rob Anderson and Mick Hellman on drums, they have formed a mature and distinctive sound.
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| Wreckless Strangers @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Songs like “Fast Girls” brought a ton of energy to the crowd and it was fun to watch as the Banjo audience (with the volume pumped in) quickly filled in as the set gained momentum and the crowd swelled to the bursting point of Arrow’s space. Wreckless Strangers has a record release party coming to Mill Valley’s Sweetwater Music Hall on November 21 in celebration of their new EP “Blue Sky Fantasy.”
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| Yo La Tengo @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
I had never seen Hardly Strictly favorite Yo La Tengo prior to Sunday and I am ashamed to admit that it may have been because I passed up seeing the band because I had ignorantly miscast them. I definitely did not understand that they are a New Jersey-originated Indie Rock band and I was blown away by their unique blend of shoegaze, indie rock and straight ahead grunge. Leader and guitarist Ira Kaplan was captivating throughout the set and delivered a performance that was even more powerful due to his balance of aggression and restraint.
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| Patti Smith @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
The biggest crowd of the weekend and the performer who overtook Big Star Quintet for most impressive performance went to Patti Smith. As mentioned at the outset, her audience was gigantic, with all ages represented and extreme diversity of fans. The singer, poet, author, painter and photographer was welcomed with thunderous applause as she took the stage waving with a big smile. She delivered an illuminating, captivating performance, while delivering evergreen messages of positivity and wariness of authority that resonated ever so strongly in this 2024 election season.
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| Patti Smith @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
She entered with a light jacket but thrust into the still direct sun of San Francisco’s hottest weekend, she quickly removed the jacket within ninety seconds of starting her performance. Her “Dancing Barefoot” and “Ghost Dance” led the set into her first cover of Bob Dylan’s “Man in the Long Black Coat” – a stunning interpretation of the song as Smith used her hands as much as her voice to convey the story.
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| Patti Smith @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
Near the end of her set, she performed a unique cover of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” that bounced between poetry and alternative anthem and had the crowd in a frenzy. She took the crowd even higher with her stirring rendition of “People Have the Power” to finish the set with the entire audience arms up in the air in what felt as much a mass protest as it did a Music Festival.
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| The Wood Brothers @ Golden Gate Park (Photo: Sean Reiter) |
After Smith’s stunning performance, many made their way across the park to see Emmylou Harris’ close out the Banjo Stage for the weekend. Over at Swan Stage, The Wood Brothers trio delivered a nice, set that almost seemed calming after Smith’s performance as the air finally cooled to a more traditional Golden Gate Park climate for those who remained.
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