When the first weekend of October rolls around in San Francisco, it’s time for the much-loved Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park. Some local music fans call it “that most wonderful time of year”, and the annual event never fails to deliver a diverse array of great live music. Better yet, the festival is always free thanks to funding in perpetuity from late founder Warren Hellman. As the name implies, the festival honors bluegrass and Americana, though not strictly, as it also always includes some premier rock ‘n’ roll to boost the festive vibe.
Drawing huge crowds to six different stages makes it a large-scale event, yet Hardly Strictly has a laid-back vibe thanks to the mellow mood of the diverse Bay Area crowd. They actually had to close all the gates at one point for the first time in the festival’s 26-year history, likely because of one of the best lineups in recent memory, perfect weather, and the affordability crisis, which has people extra eager to take in some appealing free entertainment.
The festivities kicked off on Monday, 28 September, with a Lukas Nelson & Friends benefit show at Sweetwater Music Hall. Co-presented by Hardly Strictly Bluegrass and Music Heals International (MHI), the show was billed to honor the late Bob Weir, who received MHI’s Rob Wasserman Memorial Ambassador Award. A portion of the proceeds was to be allocated to Sweet Relief and the Furthur Foundation, along with MHI, three noble causes.
Nelson’s bandmates included local luminaries Grahame Lesh, Dan Lebowitz, Holly Bowling, John Molo, and Paul Beaubrun. The opening set sans Nelson featured Lesh on bass for Bobby Weir classics including “Cassidy”, “The Other One”, “Estimated Prophet”, and “Only a River”. When Nelson appeared, he spoke fondly of playing shows with Weir over the years, including one night at the Sweetwater when they stayed afterwards drinking Laphroaig scotch late into the night. “He and I since had to quit doing that… You know, it’s not sustainable, and we’re all about sustainability,” Nelson wryly explained, before playing a few solo acoustic tunes.
“This one’s for Bobby; they’re all for Bobby tonight,” Nelson said reverently before his 2017 song “If I Started Over”. The soulful tune was a hit with lyrics like “What if our lives are not straight lines” and “What if we are all just dreaming… If I started over, I’d find you again.” He went on to say he knows “Bobby was a country fan at heart”, introducing “a song by my favorite country artist”. Willie Nelson‘s “Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground” was heartwarming, followed by a “Ripple” that hit deep in the feels with Nelson leading a singalong on the Grateful Dead classic.
The main set alternated between Nelson’s songs and more Dead tunes. “Fool Me Once” led to a gorgeous “Friend of the Devil”, “Just Outside of Austin” preceded a groovy “Althea”, while “Find Yourself” led into “Truckin’”. “Not Fade Away” was a fitting closer to honor Weir’s indefatigable spirit, and it was a special treat to see Lukas Nelson and Grahame Lesh playing together.
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass – Friday, 2 October
Friday afternoon saw gorgeous sunny weather in Golden Gate Park, highlighted early on by Sierra Hull and her band throwing down a vibrant set of Americana and jamgrass at the Swan Stage. “Wings of the Dawn” carried a darker, mystical tone before a jam on “Bombshell”, with Hull riffing out on mandolin. The set soared with a high-octane take on the Delmore Brothers’ “Blues Stay Away From Me”, as Hull charmed the audience singing, “Blues, why won’t you let me be / Don’t know why you keep on haunting me… True love was never meant for me.”
A cover of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” has become a Sierra Hull staple, as she puts her own unique stamp on it to update the melancholy tune many associate with the surreal 2001 film classic Donnie Darko. Hull’s emotive vocals made it feel like her own song, before a hot jam on “Lord That’s a Long Way” closed the set with a flourish to kick the festival into high gear.
A tribute set to much-loved late songwriter Todd Snider took place at the Towers of Gold stage, followed by Los Lobos at the Swan Stage at 4:00 pm. Watching this working band from East Los Angeles rock their greatest hits to a big crowd on a sunny day in the park was pure fun. “How Will the Wolf Survive” from 1984’s major label debut remains ever timely, while their infectious cover of the Richie Valens classic “C’mon Let’s Go” from 1958 remains ever timeless.
The Blaster’s “Flat Top Joint” served as something of a deep cut, with singer/guitarist David Hidalgo crediting the song to compadre Dave Alvin, whose band the Third Mind would play the festival on Sunday. Hidalgo is one of the few people who can get away with wearing an LA Dodgers cap while playing to a San Francisco crowd, and one of the few rockers who can win cheers for playing accordion (on “Kiko and the Lavender Moon”). Guitarist Cesar Rosas starred on the acoustic folk of “Volver, Volver” before the band rocked out on “Don’t Worry Baby” and “I Got Loaded”. A nod to the Grateful Dead was a hit with “Not Fade Away”, leading to a rip-rocking “Bertha”, followed by a “La Bamba” dance party into “Good Lovin’” and back into “La Bamba”.
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass run a tight ship to keep the experience flowing. My Morning Jacket hit the adjacent Towers of Gold stage the moment Los Lobos walked off the Swan Stage. The Louisville rockers have become a Bay Area favorite over the years with their uplifting tunes and vibrant rock power, making their 4:55 pm set one of the weekend’s most anticipated. “I Can Hear Your Love” had a feel-good vibe as the band slowly but surely built their sound, more so when James grabbed a Telecaster for “Mahgeeta”. Bassist Tom Blankenship laid down a great low-end melody, while James was like a Pied Piper trading riffs with lead guitarist Carl Broemel.
The vibe soared as James belted out “I’m Amazed”, which sounded amazing with the late afternoon sun shining through Golden Gate Park’s back door. It’s a song that really strikes a chord as James sings of a divided nation and wonders, “Where’s the justice?” James was back on acoustic for “Least Expected” from 2021, a hard-hitting song with a bluesy groove and deep lyrics: “We saw the teeth of the dragon in the flowers green… How much our love impacts the world we see… Only one Earth we share it all… let’s get together!” Keyboardist Bo Koster dropped a great Hammond organ solo over a hard beat from drummer Patrick Hallahan.
“Everyday Magic” from 2025’s Is album was another highlight as an inspiring melodic rocker, with James informing the gathering, “Everyday magic, a ripple in the fabric / Of all space time / Oh you have it / In your heart!” It felt like a Hardly Strictly Bluegrass anthem since the festival is one of the annual ripples in the fabric of time and space that provides recurring hope for humanity. The title track from 2011’s Circuital kept the magical vibes flowing, and James even commented afterwards on the harmonious mood. “It’s days like this that give me hope, seeing a bunch of beautiful people together, experiencing life, peace, and love, togetherness… In this beautiful, beautiful crazy world,” James said.
As soon as My Morning Jacket exited the stage after rocking out on “Dancefloors”, Lukas Nelson hit the Swan Stage with “Fool Me Once”. Yet a serious dilemma emerged: his set directly conflicted with Molly Tuttle on the Banjo Stage, ironic since they were touring together. Having caught Nelson earlier in the week, PopMatters decided to catch part of Tuttle’s set before leaving early for Oakland Arena to see jamgrass star Billy Strings.
Molly Tuttle’s upbeat cover of Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi” was a timely lament on urban development. After singing about how “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot,” she built on the theme with her own burgeoning classic, “San Francisco Blues”. The song from 2022’s Crooked Tree hit home, as lyrics referencing early-20th-century cost-of-living challenges resonated with the City’s existential real estate crisis in the early 21st century.
“Before the fires, before the quake / Before the crash of ’08 / There was magic, you could feel it in your heart / But raise the rent and scrub the street / It gets so hard to make ends meet / Now I can’t even pay to ride the cable cars,” Tuttle sang, striking a chord that rang from 1906 to 2026.
Tuttle honored another San Francisco classic when she put her own spin on the Alice in Wonderland theme of Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” in her song “Alice in the Bluegrass”. It’s a jamgrass gem in which Tuttle sings about Alice’s psychedelic adventures, before she and her band threw down a hot jam for an instant classic Hardly Strictly moment.
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass – Saturday, 3 October
The temperature rose about five degrees on Saturday, and those determined to get up close for Hot Tuna’s 2:55 pm acoustic set at Towers of Gold had to endure sweltering sunshine to do so. It was worth it, though, to see local music legends like guitarist Jorma Kaukonen and bassist Jack Casady playing back where it all began. The fact that this dynamic duo from Jefferson Airplane are still going after all these years is truly a blessing from the music gods.
PopMatters was there when Hot Tuna hit the Fillmore for a pair of sensational shows on their last electric tour in 2023, yet these octogenarian tone scientists maintain their unique sonic alchemy in the acoustic format too. They helped create “the San Francisco Sound” with the Airplane and maintain a gravitas few can match. “Been So Long” was a highlight as one of those tunes where Jack’s bass line and Jorma’s guitar melodies coalesce to generate uniquely transcendent vibrations. Drummer Justin Guip and harmonica player Ross Garren helped flesh out the sound, with Garren boosting the bluesy vibe on “Come Back Baby”.
“Sea Child” from 1972’s Burgers was another classic where Jorma’s fingerpicking melodies seemed to float above the sonic waves of Jack’s resonant bass notes. This set up the set’s shining peak on “Good Shepherd”, Jorma’s showcase song from the Airplane’s ultra-classic 1969 Volunteers album. The quartet took the tune for an extended ride with Jorma’s chords and riffs augmented by soaring harmonica swells from Garren, boosted by Jack’s deep bass notes resonating with his signature tone over the crisp beat. “Trial By Fire” fittingly closed the set, with fans enduring the heat to earn a metaphysical badge of honor.
It was another tough choice when fans had to decide whether to hoof it for 10-15 minutes from Towers of Gold to the Banjo Stage to check out Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, or take the short route to the adjacent Swan Stage for AJ Lee and Blue Summit. Welch and Rawlings drew a massive crowd, but one that was filled with chompers on the hillside. A big free festival in the park will draw casual attendees along with serious music fans, though, so it’s part of the deal.
Returning to the Swan Stage for the end of mandolin player AJ Lee’s set was rewarding as she jammed out with bandmate/guitarist Sullivan Tuttle (Molly’s brother) on “Glendale Train”. The traditional bluegrass classic about the first armed train robbery in 1866 was first recorded by the New Riders of the Purple Sage in 1971 and sounded great here.
Rilo Kiley closed out Saturday at Towers of Gold with their infectious indie rock, after the Los Angeles band stepped up as pinch hitters when Alison Krauss had to bail out due to health issues. Jenny Lewis and the boys have been on a roll since their 2025 reunion, though Lewis noted this would be their “last show for a minute” after rocking out on “The Moneymaker” from 2007’s brilliantly perfect Under the Blacklight album. I always hope they’ll play the shimmering title track, which wasn’t meant to be, but “Dreamworld” was another melodic gem from the album, with guitarist Blake Sennett on lead vocals and Lewis on dreamy harmonies.
“It’s a Hit” from 2004’s More Adventurous was another showcase for how this band crafts artful melodic layers behind Lewis’ charming vocals. She was in full rock star mode on the ever-catchy “Silver Lining”, one of the singles from 2007 that saw the crowd dancing along to her devious vocals about a love she willed to die. “What a beautiful festival, wow, unbelievable,” Lewis remarked toward the end, reveling in the late afternoon park vibes as Jim James had on Friday.
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass – Sunday, 4 October
Entering the park’s main entrance on the east side around 12:45 pm let fans walk by the Banjo Stage and catch local singer Miko Marks rocking a vibrant, bluesy sound. “Death Rolls Like Thunder” from her new album Hell or High Water had an edgy, soulful vibe with strong slide guitar as she sang about a conflict with the devil and a pale horse out on the plains.
We would have liked to catch inimitable Gen-X troubadour Steve Poltz at the Swan Stage at noon, especially after hearing he played Phish’s “Sample in a Jar” and the Grateful Dead’s “Wharf Rat”. But after being out at Oakland Arena on Saturday night for Billy Strings’ birthday show, we did all we could to make it back in for Yasmin Williams and William Tyler at 1:00 pm on the intimate Horseshoe Stage.
Putting two innovative guitarists together for an early Sunday acoustic set created a charming gospel-blues vibe. The duo spoke of meeting during the Covid-19 lockdown, playing an event at a cabin outside of Knoxville, Tennessee “while the world was still asleep”, and that it was a nice way to make music. Williams plays a lap steel guitar that she made ring with sweet harmonics on “Dragonfly” and “Juvenescence”, both from her 2021 album Urban Driftwood. The duo made a fabulous team, weaving their melodies together into transcendent sonic landscapes.
Most of the songs played were hers, though they said they’re planning a full band album together. Tyler has his own catalogue ranging from ambient cosmic country Americana that can really soothe the soul to full electric guitar rock with his band, the Impossible Truth, on 2023’s live album Secret Stratosphere, the main sound when he played a stellar show at San Francisco’s Rickshaw Stop in April 2024. “News About Heaven” from 2020’s New Vanitas EP was a shimmering highlight in this set, with Tyler saying the song was written during lockdown and might be about the afterlife.
One of the weekend’s main events followed shortly thereafter at Towers of Gold at 2:40 pm for a 60-minute set from insurgent rock ‘n’ roll troubadour Jesse Welles. He started the set solo acoustic on “The Nerd Reich”, a takedown of tech industry oligarchs that seems to pay tribute to investigative journalist Gil Duran’s book of the same title. The vibe was lit from the start as Jesse’s band joined him for “Join ICE”, a fan favorite satire of the Trump regime’s cruel war on immigrants. A 1960s vibe was in effect with bold topical songs that speak truth to power.
The rocking “Red” built on the rebellious tone as an infectious takedown of the right-wing MAGA movement. “There’s a deep swamp, and I’ll drain it / For my people are in danger / Who would’ve ever thought the Deep State / Were the National Park rangers?” Welles has developed a voice of a generation persona during his meteoric rise over the past few years, further seen here on “Domestic Error” when he sang “Hotels, casinos, and spaceships / Teslas and tunnels are fine / Folks get too close to the big White House / And they lose their goddamn minds.”
A hot jam with Welles and lead guitarist Adam Meisterhans trading licks saw the band ramp up the energy into an incendiary cover of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs”. Ever zeitgeisty as one of the most powerful anti-war songs ever, the crowd reveled as the band rocked hard on the 1969 classic against the warmongering forces of evil. Welles connected the dots to the modern day with “Masks Off”, the hard-hitting title track of his latest album. Here he calls out the grotesquely brazen nature of the Trump regime and the greedy corporate overlords that support it. The band was really dialed in, with the adoring audience cheering in solidarity.
“They said it’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, right? We’re leaning into the Hardly,” Welles remarked after rocking on “American Dreams”. A cover of Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” struck a resonant chord as well, a song that fits so well with Welles’ defiant stance against the status quo. He’s as prolific as he is insightful, with the new “Rise and Shine” making another great addition to the repertoire as he sang, “I’m on a mission now, going to free my mind. Everybody’s getting there, they’re going on their own time.”
Welles went back to solo acoustic to close out the sensational set with the charm of “Bugs”, the sociopolitical lament of “Good Morning America”, and cutting-edge truth bombs on the acerbic “War Isn’t Murder”.
Most of the huge crowd at Towers of Gold looked like it was staying put to hold down their spot for Robert Plant’s next set, understandable given the legendary singer’s lofty place in the rock pantheon. Yet you could still hear the Record Company at the Swan Stage, where their rocking set included the Grateful Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie” and The Kinks’ “All Day and All of the Night”.
Robert Plant with Saving Grace and Suzi Dian hit the stage at 4:40 for a mesmerizing 75-minute set that had fans raving. Plant pushed into fresh sonic ground with an inventive hybrid of genres, including folk, gospel, blues, and country, conjuring a shimmering sound that hit the sweet spot for Hardly Strictly. A rootsy take on Led Zeppelin’s “Ramble On” was a big crowd-pleaser early on, reworking the 1969 rock classic into an old-world Middle-Earth-style tune.
Plant said it was great to be back for his “fourth attempt to re-invent the wheel” and that “We [Saving Grace] used to come from the land of the ice and snow, but it’s not happening anymore”, so they’re from “the borders between England and Wales” where they “capture beautiful songs in the air and bring them down”. Dian starred on “Higher Rock”, where she and Plant harmonized in gorgeous fashion, with Plant also providing some bluesy harmonica.
“This time we’ve arrived as a folk group; it’s appropo; it’s very topical in the moment, especially thanks to Jesse Welles giving us some proper American folk music. Is there anybody else telling it like it is out there in music land?” Plant said in a heartwarming shout-out to Welles. “As I Roved Out” had a mystical vibe before Plant raised the energy again with a dazzling take on Led Zeppelin’s “Four Sticks”. Led Zeppelin’s “Friends” was another majestic crowd-pleaser dedicated to Dolly Parton, “going way back to when we were dreaming in color”.
“Down to the Sea” from Plant’s 1993 album Fate of Nations was another winner with a heavy sound that soared on the acoustic guitar chords, with Dian on accordion. “Babe I’m Gonna Leave You” got the space-time continuum swirling compellingly, as the classic from Led Zeppelin’s debut album conjures a universal appreciation like few other songs can. Dian also played bass on the song, further showing her multi-dimensional skills on the powerhouse performance.
The festival’s closing time slot featured Emmylou Harris on the Banjo Stage per long-standing tradition, yet for those who lean more to the Hardly side of the music scale there was also Hiss Golden Messenger at the Rooster Stage and the Third Mind at the Swan Stage. With guitarists Dave Alvin and Mark Karan, the group brings a psychedelic folk-rock vibe that pays homage to the origins of “the San Francisco Sound” in the 1960s. Alvin introduced Karan as a local who was “born and raised in the Haight-Ashbury” and singer Jesse Sykes as the band’s “songbird”. Sykes starred on the Youngbloods’ “Darkness, Darkness”, which she dedicated to Robert Plant “since I kinda ripped his version off.”
A captivating version of Pharoah Sanders’ spiritual jazz classic “The Creator Has a Master Plan” turns out to have been recorded by the Third Mind on their 2025 album Right Now! It was a peak moment in the set, with Sykes singing that the master plan includes “peace and happiness for every woman and man”. Alvin and Karan were guitar wizards on the heady jam, each ripping sweet, bluesy riffage over the melodic groove for a blissful moment on a special song that captured what Hardly Strictly and the Golden Gate Park vibe are all about.
Another stunning performance followed as Sykes introduced a song from the band’s first album from 2020, saying it was an old-time fave that’s stood the test of time, and that she loved as a teenager and “Never thought we’d have to take it again so literally”. The song was Bonnie Dobson’s “Morning Dew”, the anti-nuke folk classic popularized by the Grateful Dead and still relevant as ever with the insane nuclear weapons modernization taking place in the current era. Hearing this song in Golden Gate Park during the golden hour conjured transcendent vibes, from Sykes’ powerful vocals to Alvin and Karan tearing it up again as if their smoking riffage could fend off the greedheads and catalyze global nuclear disarmament.
The sets were both billed to end at 7:00 pm, yet those walking out past the Banjo Stage after The Third Mind’s set could still catch the end of Emmylou Harris’ set as she and her band played “Save the Last Dance for Me”. What a weekend in Golden Gate Park!
Coda: Sunday, 11 October – My Morning Jacket’s residency finale at the Fillmore
My Morning Jacket made the most of their return to San Francisco by following their festival set on 2 October with a seven-show residency at the Fillmore, stretching from 3 October to 11 October. The band had played a four-night run at the Fillmore following their BottleRock Napa set in 2024, so this run seemed poised to up the ante. The band announced that each night would represent a different color of the rainbow, and word soon got out that the residency was filled with special guests and nightly Grateful Dead covers.
“It doesn’t matter if I’m in the crowd watching a show or if I’m the one on stage playing the show, you’re lost in the world, and it’s beautiful. The energy is swirling, and I feel like we’re back home where we go after this human thing is done. When we’re in the musical realm, we’re connecting with our true spirit’s source and our true, the way things really are,” James said in a recent interview, summing up the vibes at My Morning Jacket shows and festivals like Hardly Strictly.
There’s a spiritually fulfilling energy when My Morning Jacket play at the Fillmore, with psychedelic lighting that enhanced the vibe in a multi-dimensional way as the set surged midway through with intense takes on “Victory Dance” and “Holding on to Black Metal”. A bustout of Sly Stallone’s “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” had apparently not been played since 2017 and conjured a glorious dance party.
Another special treat occurred at the end of the show when none other than Grahame Lesh joined the band on bass (in tandem with Jacket bassist Tom Blankenship) for a version of George Harrison’s “Isn’t a Pity”, followed by a magnificent rip-rocking jam on the Dead’s “Sugar Magnolia” that seemed to go on and on in glorious fashion. Then it was all feels when James and Lesh opened the encore as an acoustic guitar duo on the Dead’s “Box of Rain”, with James playing the same guitar Jerry Garcia used on the original recording from 1970’s classic American Beauty album, courtesy of the Grateful Guitars Foundation.
Seeing Jim James and My Morning Jacket pay such tribute to the Grateful Dead at the Fillmore after seeing James join Bobby Weir at the 2017 Mount Tam Sound Summit in Marin made for a fulfilling artistic arc, to say the least. The Fillmore residency was also a great way to keep the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass vibes going for an extra week. The 26th edition of the annual event was easily one of the festival’s best.
