Hardly Strictly Bluegrass 2009 Lineup Announced: Steve Martin, Aimee Mann, Neko Case, Okkervil River, Old 97's And More

The always-classic, always-free tradition of San Francisco's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival is back, and this year seems to be more firmly cemented in its country roots. A partial artist lineup has just been announced and the headliners include Steve Martin, Aimee Mann, Neko Case, Earl Scruggs, Doc Watson and others.

Conspicuously absent are the heavyweight rock figures that have graced the festival in the past couple of years. We found this particularly surprising given Elvis Costello's particularly folky recent release. However, it is worth mentioning that a number of "alt country" bands are putting in appearances, including The Old 97's, Okkervil River, and Dr. Dog. It's nice to see the "rock" side of the festival continue to be represented, even if it's not by such heavyweights as Costello and Plant.

The festival will take place the first weekend in October in Golden Gate Park. Head over to the Hardly Strictly site to check out the full list.

What's Going On This Weekend

Photo courtesy of Sutanto

Hrm. You're looking for something to do? Well, there's a lot...so, take your pick!

• If you can deal with maybe getting wet, Sigur Ros is at the Greek Theater in Berkeley tonight...rain or shine.
• If you can stand vast amounts of people, lots of families, and picnic blankets, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival is all weekend in Golden Gate park.
• If nighttime bluegrass is more your thing, there's a Hardly Strictly afterparty at The Plough and Stars on Saturday night.
• If you're looking for something a tad more avante garde, Deerhoof is at GAMH on Saturday night.
• If you want something more on the "scene", New Wave City is having a Bowie dance party at DNA Lounge on Saturday night.
• The Dandy Warhols are on their first tour since leaving a major label, and are at The Warfield Saturday night.
• And finally, you can wrap up your weekend on Sunday night by seeing Iron and Wine play a benefit at Bimbo's; San Francisco's Sholi are opening.

With all that, if you can't find something to suit your fancy, well, we pity you! Stay dry kids!

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss To Headline Hardly Strictly

On the heels of their well received album Raising Sand, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss will be headlining the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park this October. The lineup this far also includes Loudon Wainwright III, Gogol Bordello, and Bonnie Prince Billy. It will always be host to such bluegrass heavyweights as Earl Scruggs and Del McCoury. As always, the festival is free, and sure to be completely mobbed from start to finish. Do as you will.

Old Show Report: Boz Scaggs At Great American 10-04-2007

Back in October, just before we went on hiatus, we managed to catch Boz Scaggs with his Blue Velvet Band at the Great American. The show was a warmup for their Hardly Strictly set, and was billed as a blues-centric set. For those not familiar, Scaggs is a San Francisco music mainstay: he started out with the Steve Miller Band in the 60's, went on to have a formidable solo career in the 70's, and is now the founder and owner of Slim's. Scaggs has always been something of a genre-hopper, ranging from straight up rock, to zydeco, to jazz, to blues. Given this, it was no surprise that Scaggs had put together a Country/Blues band for the Hardly Strictly.

While the band was something of a "heavy hitters" list, including Buddy Miller, Jon Cleary, Ricky Fatar, Dennis Crouch and Greg Leese, the show ultimately seemed to come up short. We here at H.A.D. have seen Boz out on a few of his non-rock tours, and this show simply didn't measure up. The set was a bit loose around the edges, and it never really climaxed to that "amazing" level we've come to know him for. Moreover, one of this big pluses of Boz's "other" shows is that they tend to include genre-specific reworkings of some of his hits. Granted, this isn't necessary, but it does serve to bring together his work in an enjoyable, unifying way.

Obviously this band is full of some fantastic musicians, and to say the set "came up short" is a relative one. The set was a fun mix of country and blues standards, and it was great to hear Boz singing some old Hank Williams tunes. Ultimately, it just seemed that the band was hastily organized, and that showed on stage. Given that this was a warmup for Hardly Stricty, we'd be curious to hear how that show sounded. In the meantime, we've gotta maintain the love for Boz: he's a musician's musician. Not afraid to genre hop, experiment, and get out there on a consistent basis. Moreover, as the owner of one of the city's few non-ClearChannel venues, he's doing a lot for the scene. Keep it up!

Hardly Strictly to feature Jeff Tweedy, Nick Lowe, Bela Fleck, Boz Scaggs, and more

San Francisco's favorite free fall festival (how's that for alliteration!) got its lineup announced today, and it's a doozy! The Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival has amassed an amazing group of artists for the weekend of October 5th in Golden Gate Park. Jeff Tweedy plays on Friday afternoon, Saturday seems to be crossover artists day with Boz Scaggs, Nick Lowe, and Bela Fleck all making appearances, and Sunday is going to throw some serious picking your way, with both Dave Grisman and Earl Scruggs appearing. The show is always mobbed, and it's always crazy, but it's also always free! So get out your blankets and sunglasses - we'll see you there!

Full Lineup:

The Abrams Brothers
Alison Brown Quartet with special guest Joe Craven
Allison Moorer
Austin Lounge Lizards
Bela Fleck & the Flecktones featuring Victor Lemonte Wooten, Future Man & Jeff Coffin
Belle Monroe & Her Brewglass Boys
Bill Callahan
Bill Kirchen & the Hammer of the Honky-Tonk Gods
Blanche
Boz Scaggs & the Blue Velvet Band
Buddy Miller
Charlie Louvin
Chris Smither
Dale Ann Bradley & Coon Creek
Dan Reeder
Dave Alvin & the Guilty Men
David Grisman Bluegrass Experience with special guest Curly Seckler
The Del McCoury Band
Doc Watson with David Holt & Richard Watson
Dry Branch Fire Squad
Earl Scruggs
Emmylou Harris
Fionn Regan
The Flatlanders featuring Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore & Butch Hancock
Gandalf Murphy & the Slambovian Circus of Dreams
Gillian Welch
Guy Clark & Verlon Thompson
The Hacienda Brothers
Hazel Dickens
Heartless Bastards
Hot Buttered Rum
James McMurtry
Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit
Jeff Tweedy
Jim Lauderdale
Jimmy LaFave
Jody Stecher & Bill Evans / The Secret Life of Banjos
John Prine
Jorma Kaukonen
Julay Brooks & Richard Brandenburg & the Cash Magnets
Keller Williams
Kevin Welch & Kieran Kane & Fats Kaplin
The Knitters
Laurie Lewis & the Right Hands
Los Lobos
Marley's Ghost
Mekons
Michelle Shocked
Moonalice
The Mother Hips
Ned Sublette
New Lost City Ramblers
Nick Lowe
Pete Wernick & Flexigrass
Poor Man's Whiskey
Railroad Earth
Red Wine
Ricky Skaggs & Bruce Hornsby with Kentucky Thunder
The Roan Mountain Hilltoppers
Robert Earl Keen
The Sadies
Shana Morrison & Caledonia
Songwriter Circle with Chris Smither, David Olney, Ray Wylie Hubbard & Steve Young
Steep Canyon Rangers
Steve Earle
the subdudes
Symphony Bluegrass Ramblers
T Bone Burnett
Teddy Thompson
The Whoreshoes
The Wronglers