Hardly Strictly Bluegrass adds Nathaniel Rateliff and more to 25th anniversary lineup
The free, three-day event set for Oct. 3-5 in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park will once again showcase artists far beyond the festival's bluegrass origins.
Bluegrass legend Peter Rowan is slated to appear with the Sam Grisman Project to revisit the music of the band Old & In the Way.
'Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is always the great homecoming,' Rowan said. 'Sharing the stage with Sam Grisman and his band of young talented players, infused with the legacy of Old & In the Way, is a real treat.'
They join a roster that already features Americana pioneer Lucinda Williams, indie rocker Courtney Barnett, jazz vocalist Samara Joy, jam band the String Cheese Incident and folk trio I'm With Her, among others.
'For our 25th birthday, we're turning the volume all the way up,' said John Caldon, the festival's executive director. 'This year is one big love letter to the music, the fans and the joy that makes Hardly Strictly Bluegrass pure magic.'
The milestone celebration includes a Sept. 13 concert at Davies Symphony Hall with Lyle Lovett and the San Francisco Symphony, and a sold-out Oct. 2 tribute to Emmylou Harris at the Masonic. Nighttime 'Out of the Park' shows will also return across Bay Area venues.
Organizers will release 'Hardly Strictly Bluegrass at 25: The Big Twang!,' a photography and essay collection featuring contributions from Harris, Steve Earle and others. (The Chronicle reporter of this article contributed interviews to the book.)
The festival, a San Francisco tradition since 2001, remains free to the public.
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