Alison Krauss performs during the 46th Annual Willie Nelson 4th of July Picnic at Austin 360 Amphitheater at The Circuit of The Americas on July 4, 2019 in Austin, Texas. The Hardly Strictly Bluegrass lineup is growing. Krauss & Union Station are among the latest acts announced for the free Oct. 2-4 festival in Golden Gate Park.
Scott Moore/Austin American-Statesman
Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas will return to Golden Gate Park this fall, according to the second wave of performers announced for San Francisco’s free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival.
The latest additions to the lineup also include acclaimed mandolinist Sierra Hull and a tribute to the late Texas singer-songwriter Joe Ely.
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass is scheduled to run Oct. 2-4 across multiple stages in Golden Gate Park.
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The acts revealed Wednesday, Aug. 5, broaden a bill that already includes My Morning Jacket, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Old Crow Medicine Show, Kathleen Edwards, Hiss Golden Messenger and Bay Area bluegrass band AJ Lee & Blue Summit.
Krauss, one of the most decorated artists in Grammy history, is touring again with Union Station and Dobro player Jerry Douglas. The group’s polished blend of bluegrass, country and roots music gives the lineup another major act firmly connected to the genre at the heart of the festival’s name.
Alison Krauss (left) and Buddy Miller perform at the 2008 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival with Robert Plant. Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas, Sierra Hull and a tribute to the late Joe Ely with the Flatlanders and friends are among the latest acts announced for the free Oct. 2-4 festival in Golden Gate Park.
Michael Macor / The Chronicle 2008
Krauss has appeared at Hardly Strictly in several configurations over the years, including with Union Station and in collaboration with Robert Plant.
Wednesday’s announcement also includes Nashville singer-songwriter and guitarist Aaron Lee Tasjan; the Darrell Scott String Band with Dobro player Rob Ickes; Irish traditional folk group Dug; Canadian dark-folk duo Mama’s Broke; Houston singer-songwriter Kam Franklin, best known as the frontwoman of the Suffers; Sonoma County singer-songwriter Ismay; country-folk musician Jesse Welles; and Hull, a Grammy-nominated mandolinist and singer.
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The Joe Ely tribute is expected to feature the Flatlanders and friends. Ely formed the influential West Texas group with Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock in Lubbock in 1971.
Ely, whose music crossed honky-tonk, country, blues and rock, died in December at age 78. He had been part of Hardly Strictly since its earliest years and appeared at the festival both as a solo performer and with the Flatlanders.
“Last year we celebrated the silver anniversary of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, kicking off a chapter of reflecting on everything we’ve built over the last 25 years,” Executive Director John Caldon said in a statement. “This October, we’re bringing that to a culmination by inviting back legacy artists like Gillian Welch & David Rawlings and Alison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas, as well as presenting a tribute concert to honor Steve Earle — a defining voice in the HSB family whose generosity and artistry have shaped who we are. As we conclude this hallmark year, we couldn’t be more excited for the next twenty-five.”
The festival weekend will begin Oct. 1 with “An Evening Honoring Steve Earle,” a benefit concert at the Masonic in Nob Hill.
The previously announced show is scheduled to feature Earle alongside Emmylou Harris, Jackson Browne, Buddy Miller, Elizabeth Cook, Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, Hot Tuna, Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams, Molly Tuttle, Shawn Camp, Stacey Earle and Victoria Williams.
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Miller will serve as musical director, with Reckless Kelly and pedal steel guitarist Greg Leisz as the backing band.
The concert will benefit Sweetwater Spectrum, a Sonoma nonprofit that provides long-term housing for adults with autism and similar intellectual or developmental disabilities.
Hardly Strictly’s Out of the Park series will also bring festival artists to venues around the Bay Area. The separately ticketed concerts include Welch and Rawlings at the Fillmore, Old Crow Medicine Show and Ismay at Sweetwater Music Hall, Kathleen Edwards at the Guild Theatre and Hiss Golden Messenger at Little Saint in Healdsburg.
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass was founded in 2001 by the late financier and banjo enthusiast Warren Hellman. The event has remained free while expanding from its bluegrass roots to encompass country, folk, rock, soul and music from around the world.
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More performers are expected to be announced before the October festival.