MANCHESTER, TN – Bonnaroo is here, and what better way to experience your favorite national brands and a little music than by camping out with thousands of strangers. But after pitching your tent in the swampy hellscape of Tennessee, experiencing the serenity of a fetid port-a-potty, and meeting your new influencer neighbor, “Kylie B,” living it up in her $4,000 glamping tent, you might be craving some creature comforts of your own. Here’s how to secure the ultimate Bonnaroo experience that’ll make you the envy of the unwashed masses before human-being-turned-cigarette Post Malone even takes the stage.
FUNDRAGING
You’ve already blown your firstborn’s college fund on festival passes, so it’s time to get creative with money. Start by hitting up any old roommates who stumbled into lucrative STEM careers while you were exploring your passion for Russian literature, then consider who among them you might have particularly damaging kompromat on. Your roommate-turned-pediatrician Owen really doesn’t want you to email his wife the Polaroids you have of “Turtle Night” back at Sigma Chi? It’s probably best that he just Venmo you a few thousand dollars in your time of need so that they never see the light of day.
SECURING PRIMO DIGS
Booking sites like Hotels.com or Airbnb can be expensive, and during festival season, availability is limited. Instead of stressing out with a last-minute scramble to find a place to your standards, try heading straight to Google Earth. With satellite technology, you can easily see which nearby McMansions look empty during the summer months. Nervous about trespassing? Bone up on Tennessee’s excellent stand-your-ground laws. Once you’ve established residency, even a returning homeowner can be escorted off their own property using any means necessary.
EATING LIKE A ROCKSTAR
Festival food is notoriously overpriced and underwhelming. But the headlining artists at these festivals come with specific riders that all but guarantee a yummy backstage spread. Since anyone under 5’6″ with a shaved head and the confidence of a middle-aged white man can pass for Flea, you’re virtually assured a seat at the table once you whisk past security into the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ dressing room. Over 5’6″? Throw on a backward baseball cap and cosplay as drummer Chad Smith or his lesser-known doppelgänger, Will Ferrell.
DRIVING IN STYLE
Did you know that Tesla owners get roadside assistance anywhere in America? Of course, you don’t own a Tesla, but your ring-light-bathed glamper neighbor Kylie B sure does. A standard box cutter will make quick work of the tires on her new Model S. When the tow truck arrives, simply decline the repair and ask them to drop you at your new house. Your compelling tales of every performance you’ve witnessed over the weekend are sure to win over the driver, so at the festival’s end, don’t hesitate to make him take you all the way back to your old life in Iowa and your wistful year-long wait before you can do it all again.
Greg Hess is a comedy writer and performer in Los Angeles. His work has been featured in The American Bystander, The Onion, Shouts & Murmurs, Points in Case, and he cohosts the hit satirical podcast MEGA.
Artist:Frontier Ruckus Hometown: Detroit, Michigan Latest Album:On the Northline (out February 16)
(Editor’s Note: All answers provided by Matthew Milia.)
If you had to write a mission statement for your career, what would it be?
“Celebrate the minutiae.” It’s no secret that that’s what my lyrics are all about. Specificity, specificity, specificity. I truly believe that the universal resides in the particular. And, that by singing about things in extreme detail, enormous truths are unlocked. Hence my apparent mission to name every landmark of my local universe/my personal mythology: The mall where my mom worked when I was a kid, my Catholic grade school, the soccer field where I first experienced the holy human emotion of humiliation.
On the Northline is a continuation of that ongoing catalog of catharsis. Me constantly digging deeper in the junk drawer of memory. You’d think that approach would be an almost unlistenably niche experience for the audience – but I’ve found it to be the opposite. I was so stunned the first time we played in London and kids in the front row were singing lyrics back to me about obscure Michigan towns and situations. They told me after the show that I might as well have been singing about their own towns, that the truths were universal. That was one of the best feelings ever.
What has been the best advice you’ve received in your career so far?
We once opened for blues harmonica legend Charlie Musselwhite in Houston and his parting words for us were: “Remember, the only chords you need are I, IV, and V.” Anyone who’s listened to Frontier Ruckus knows I definitely did not heed that advice, as I’m constantly trying to insert labyrinthine chord progressions and every melodic trick I’ve absorbed from 38 years of listening to pop radio.
Advice that we’ve found more apt came from our first manager, Dolphus Ramseur – an old-school North Carolinian known for discovering the Avett Brothers. He would always say, “Matthew, a career’s not a rocket ship, it’s a balloon ride.” And though we’d often laugh at the down-home, fortune cookie flavor of that mantra, it proved truthful time and again. The little career peaks came and went – playing Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, whatever. But the thing that really allowed us to build anything of lasting value was the very gradual “one fan at a time” approach. Back-alley performances of the song someone wanted to hear, who drove from another state, sending out lyrics that someone wants tattooed in your handwriting, favoring intimate living room shows over bar gigs. I’m sure my bandmates Davey and Zach would agree, those are the things that have made Frontier Ruckus a glorious balloon ride.
How often do you hide behind a character in a song or use “you” when it’s actually “me?”
Constantly. People think the majority of my songs addressed to a “you” are to a love interest or even an enemy, depending on the song. It’s almost always me speaking to me. Sometimes encouraging myself; sometimes beating myself up. Internal monologues, at least mine, are mercurial and neurotic. Putting them into song really helps me work through some stuff, psychologically. That bit of distance allows me healthy perspective. A chance to pep myself up to fight another day. To quote myself singing to myself: “If only you knew what you are.”
Which artist has influenced you the most – and how?
It’s no doubt cliched, but it has to be Dylan. My dad raised me on him and it’s what activated my love for language. The potential playfulness of words. Their athleticism and malleability. The infinitude of connotation. The element of surprise packed into unexpected metaphor. How a line can be drop-dead-serious and winking at the same time. I also think Dylan is an underrated melodist and chordal architect. Look at all the non-12-bar-blues songs on Blonde on Blonde. The energy is propellent, continually cascading in an amphetamine avalanche. And it’s not just the words, it’s the chords providing the lyrics a perfect vehicle to ride in. The erosion of really intentional chord progressions in modern music is something that worries me quite a bit.
What other art forms – literature, film, dance, painting, etc. – inform your music?
I studied poetry in college under an incredible poet named Diane Wakoski who came out of the New York beat scene. She really informed my fondness for striking images, unexpected metaphor, and surprise revelations. Other than my bandmate David Jones, she was one of the earliest champions of my writing who helped me hone my voice and style.
Sometimes I wanna write songs that feel like a David Lynch film: A shiny Americana veneer on the surface, a severed ear of fractured emotion buried in the grass. I love quaint things with a shady underbelly. I’m obsessed with ’90s sitcoms set in New York, but with obvious LA studio back-lot sunlight. Any art form where sharply antithetical images are juxtaposed in magnetic conflict inspires me. On the Northline hopefully portrays a similar landscape: An insular world where the darkness and light necessitate one another.
The bluegrass community is collectively grieving two major losses as both Jesse McReynolds and Bobby Osborne – two revered and iconic Bluegrass Hall of Fame-inducted mandolinists and Grand Ole Opry members who helmed first-generation bluegrass bands with their brothers – have passed on. McReynolds, who was 94, died on Friday, June 23 at his home in Nashville with his wife, Joy, at his side; Osborne’s death was announced on social media early Tuesday, June 27 – he was 91. Both pickers were two of the sole survivors of bluegrass’s first generation. They leave enormous musical legacies that will live on, surely into infinity.
In 2017, the Bluegrass Situation team had the incredible honor of inviting Bobby Osborne to join our super jam at the world-famous Bonnaroo music festival in Manchester, Tennessee. To our delight, he said yes.
BGS co-founder Ed Helms and Bobby Osborne
Over more than ten years of creating and holding space for roots music in our industry, there are so many moments of which we are so proud. But one of the most memorable and meaningful BGS achievements from the past decade was hearing 20,000+ audience members and fans, packed into That Tent, roar unfathomably loud for the iconoclastic voice that made a hit of “Rocky Top” – and so many others.
That day, Bobby seemed to bask in the limelight. He was kind, down-to-earth, approachable, and seemed genuinely tickled at the fanfare and excitement that orbited him and his sharp, technicolor suit and sparkly hat. After a storied career that landed him and his brother, Sonny, in so many widely variable musical contexts, from the obscure to the mainstream, Bobby was perfectly at home at Bonnaroo. His audience knew it, and they ate it up. We all did.
Bobby Osborne with Casey Campbell (background) and Mike Barnett (foreground)
In light of his passing, the entire BGS team is holding gratitude for his kindness, generosity, and, most of all, for his music. Rest in peace to one of the most important and impactful first generation bluegrass music makers, Bobby Osborne.
We hope you’ll enjoy these back stage and performance photos, shot by Elli Lauren Photography, from Bonnaroo 2017 and the BGS Super Jam at That Tent.
Bobby Osborne, Paul Hoffman, Ed Helms, and members of Greensky Bluegrass and Bryan Sutton’s house band.
Lillie Mae and Bobby Osborne share a laugh on stage prior to their duet.
Bobby OsborneEd Helms, Casey Campbell, Bobby Osborne, and others
Bobby Osborne and Casey Campbell (background)
Bobby Osborne closes his 2017 Bonnaroo appearance with a bow and a tip of his hat.
(Editor’s Notes: Headline image of Béla Fleck & the Flecktones. Scroll to see a photo gallery.
To mark Planet Bluegrass’s 50th annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival, we asked author and music journalist David Menconi to reflect on its impact – and the vibrant community that’s grown up around this iconic roots music event.)
The circuit of roots music festivals in America has some similarities to the Professional Golf Association. There’s at least one festival as well as one golf tournament pretty much every week of the spring, summer and fall. But a few stand out as special and even career-making – golf’s four major championships, and the handful of prestigious main-event music festivals. North Carolina’s MerleFest is like The Masters, the early-season springtime kickoff each April, while late-season festivals like San Francisco’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass line up nicely with the British Open.
But there’s no question which music festival stands as the summit of the circuit, and not just because it’s in the mountains of Colorado. That’s the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, which marked its 50-year anniversary with the 2023 edition last weekend, June 15-18. The fact that Telluride has prospered for half a century makes Telluride something like golf’s U.S. Open championship, the big one that everybody wants to be a part of. Telluride’s status is something that the musicians who play it are well aware of.
Del McCoury Band performs Thursday, June 15, at the 50th Annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
“Festivals and musical trends come and go, and acoustic music has been through some serious peaks and valleys the last 50 years,” says Chris “Panda” Pandolfi, banjo player for Telluride regulars The Infamous Stringdusters, who were on this year’s lineup. “The one mainstay throughout has been Telluride Bluegrass Festival. When we started out, Telluride was the place to be and the definitive crossroads we aspired to, and it still is. Lasting 50 years is an amazing testament to its importance. Bluegrass is more popular than ever now, and Telluride is a big part of that.”
There are literally hundreds of music festivals spanning every style imaginable nowadays, including massive annual gatherings like Bonnaroo in Tennessee and Coachella in the California desert. But there were just a small handful of festivals when Telluride Bluegrass Festival started up in 1973 in the scenic Colorado mountain town that bears its name. And even though Telluride’s daily capacity of 10,000 fans is significantly smaller than a lot of the other major festivals on the circuit, it has still maintained its prestige status.
A drone shot of the festival grounds of Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
In spite of that smaller size, Telluride does have a few structural advantages that set it apart. One is a picturesque setting of surpassing natural beauty on the western edge of Southwestern Colorado’s San Juan Mountains. For performers as well as attendees, there’s not a better view anywhere than what you see at Telluride.
“The view from the crowd is amazing, but from the stage it’s the most incredible view imaginable as an artist,” says Pandolfi. “It’s this multi-layered inspirational snapshot of some of the best music fans, at the best-run festival, in the most beautiful environment in the world. I think a lot of people have this experience, knowing of Telluride as this iconic festival with an outsized reputation, but it more than lives up to the hype. First time we played there, I remember feeling intimidated because so many heavy-weight players we looked up to were there. But as soon as we got onstage, everything clicked.”
Yasmin Williams performs on Telluride Bluegrass Festival’s main stage – its sole stage.
Another major difference between Telluride and its festival peers is scale, and not just in terms of the size of the crowds. Most festivals cram as many performers onto as many stages as possible, all of them running simultaneously, resulting in sensory overload as well as the fear that you’re missing out on something elsewhere. By contrast, Telluride still has just one stage. Every act gets a solo spotlight at Telluride.
“Every year’s festival lineup is an interesting thing,” says Craig Ferguson, who oversees Telluride Bluegrass Festival under the auspices of Planet Bluegrass. “I’ve always said, just watch and it will book itself, and that’s really true. Our process is unique because we have just the one stage and not a bunch of bands, so everybody in the crowd gets to have the same experience. There’s not 18 different stages, so we can create one festivarian experience that everyone shares. We do the booking one act at a time, and we often wind up with interesting combinations.”
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss perform at Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
Indeed, those interesting combinations can venture well beyond what you see at a typical folk or bluegrass festival. Along with Sam Bush, Emmylou Harris, Peter Rowan, Del McCoury and The Infamous Stringdusters doing a Sunday morning gospel set, this year’s lineup features ringers like the West African ngoni master Bassekou Koyate and the venerable jam band String Cheese Incident. Some of the anomalous acts from previous years include pop-star jazz pianist Norah Jones, the comedic folk duo Tenacious D and even singer/rapper/actress Janelle Monae. Even with the unlikely acts, the Telluride experience sells itself. It doesn’t take much convincing to get any artist to play.
“Janelle Monae was the most interesting person to talk to,” Ferguson says. “I snuck into her RV just as she was sitting down to a meal by herself, and I was able to sit and talk to her for an hour. I think she would’ve signed up to play every year if she could have, she was so enthralled by the fact that there were elk in the park. It was the most wonderful conversation, and she was great. We’re famous for our curveballs and she was the oddest, I’ll give you that.”
BGS’s own Ed Helms with Sam Bush and Jerry Douglas at Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
Apart from the change-ups, multiple generations of musicians in the world of acoustic music count Telluride among their major artistic, career and personal milestones. One of them is Sarah Jarosz, a four-time Grammy winner who first went to Telluride as a fan at age 14 and played it herself for the first time two years later. Telluride is where Jarosz first connected with idols and future peers like Gillian Welch and Abigail Washburn. It’s also where Gary Paczosa saw Jarosz for the first time at her 2007 Telluride debut. He subsequently signed her to Sugar Hill Records and produced her first four albums.
“It’s the quintessential place to see your heroes, and even get to jam with them,” says Jarosz, who is back on this year’s lineup. “You’ll hear, ‘There’s a jam at this house down the street after the shows.’ So I brought my mandolin and before I knew it, Chris Thile was showing up. Also Jerry Douglas, Tim O’Brien. That was really life-changing, this proximity to heroes that allowed me to become friends with them. And even though Telluride is rooted in bluegrass, they always bring in artists from beyond that world – Janelle Monae, Decemberists, Alison Krauss and Robert Plant. It feels like anything can happen, and the audience that goes is very supportive of that.”
The stalwart House Band of Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
Still, no matter how far afield the lineup wanders, Telluride is ultimately rooted in bluegrass.
“Bluegrass is a fable, and a team sport,” says Ferguson. “That informs how we create the lineup. Looking to the future, socially as well as musically, we think of bluegrass as an allegory. It’s a context that is invitational to all these other styles, country or jazz or classical, and it complements all of them. That remains the heart and soul of this festival, surrounding bluegrass with these other complimentary musics. We are fortunate to be of service to the festivarian community. It’s an annual privilege to see how much it brings to people’s lives, the connection to community.”
Young festivarians celebrate Telluride Bluegrass Festival's 50th Birthday.
Nickel Creek.
Bassekou Koyate.
Greensky Bluegrass.
Charles Wesley.
Sierra Ferrell.
Mary Chapin Carpenter.
Dierks Bentley brings Long Jon to Telluride and Sam Bush up on stage.
Peter Rowan.
Chris Thile.
Gregory Alan Isakov.
The Infamous Stringdusters.
A gorgeous, though chilly, festival grounds.
Leftover Salmon.
Punch Brothers performed their last sets with Gabe Witcher as a member of the band at Telluride.
Sarah Jarosz.
Sam Bush Band with special guest Emmylou Harris.
Del McCoury joins String Cheese Incident on stage at Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
The Earls of Leicester.
Tim O'Brien Band featuring Shad Cobb, Jan Fabricius, Mike Bub, and Noam Pikelny.
Watchhouse was joined by Emmylou Harris.
Yonder Mountain String Band with Sam Bush and guests.
The crowd cheers for Yonder Mountain String Band.
Sam Bush Band backgrounded by the mountains and evening sky.
As we celebrate a decade of the Bluegrass Situation, we’ve combed through our archive to reminisce and enjoy some of our favorite moments from the world of roots music. In lieu of our usual Artist of the Month feature, we’ve decided to shine the spotlight on our own musical history. Here are 10 picks that capture the road of how far we’ve come over the last decade…
Do You Play the Banjo w/ Della Mae @ MerleFest (2013)
Kimber and Celia of Della Mae wandered the grounds of MerleFest to ask the ever-important question: “Do You Play Banjo?” (Don’t miss a true BGS highlight at 2:30)
Back Porch of America series (2013)
Our first series premiere, The Back Porch of America was like stepping back into history as host Matt Kinman visits with Mark Newberry, a fifth generation chair maker on Jennings Creek, near Red Boiling Springs, Tennessee.
See Langhorne Slim and friends Kristin Weber, Shelby Means, and Kai Welch perform “Countryside Shuffle” at the original Imogene & Willie store in Nashville for The Bluegrass Situation during our first ever AmericanaFest.
Soundcheck – Noam Pikelny (2014)
Soundcheck was a series that sat down with artists before they hit the stage. In this episode, Noam Pikelny, recipient of the Steve Martin Banjo Prize and founding member of Punch Brothers, hung out with BGS ahead of his Nashville show in support of his 2013 release, Noam Pikelny Plays Kenny Baker Plays Bill Monroe.
Bonnaroo Superjam Finale – Lake Street Dive, Dierks Bentley, The Avett Brothers, Ed Helms, and More (2014)
The Bluegrass Situation held court for five years on That Stage at Bonnaroo, curating and hosting a lineup of our favorite musicians that culminated in an epic annual Superjam. we’ll always have a fondness for this particular night, when BGS co-founder Ed Helms lead the final number “I’ve Had the Time of My Life” (yes, the one from Dirty Dancing) alongside Rachel Price from Lake Street Dive, The Lone Bellow, Dierks Bentley, Sarah Jarosz, The Avett Brothers, and many many more of our favorite folks.
Live at Telluride – Chris Thile & Edgar Meyer (2014)
Check out that view! BGS & Mason Jar Music scoured the town of Telluride, Colorado to find this perfect beautiful spot for Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile to play “Why Only One?” during Telluride Bluegrass 2014, one of several jaw droopingly gorgeous videos from the series.
Live from Old Settlers Music Festival – The Earls of Leicester (2016)
It doesn’t get much more legit than The Earls of Leicester, the bluegrass supergroup organized by dobro-master Jerry Douglas. Here, the guys gather round some Ear Trumpet Mics to bring their traditional flair to a modern audience. One thing is for sure: those bow ties have never been cooler.
AmericanaFest UK – Birds of Chicago (feat. Allison Russell) (2019)
Folk duo Birds of Chicago (aka Allison Rusell and JT Nero) perform “Try a Little Harder” for BGS-UK’s first video series. This heartfelt performance was filmed at Paper Moon Vintage in Hackney, London, during AmericanaFest UK’s 2019 conference by Wonderscope Cinema.
Shout & Shine Online – Lizzie No (2020)
Harpist, songwriter, and Basic Folk co-host Lizzie No recorded the first of our Shout & Shine Online series, which comprises short-form, intimate video performances by underrepresented artists in Americana, folk, blues, and bluegrass.
Whiskey Sour Happy Hour – “The Weight” (Superjam, feat. Ed Helms) (2020)
Presented by our co-founder Ed Helms and the Bluegrass Situation, the superjam finale of the Whiskey Sour Happy Hour series features an all-star cast performing in their homes for a great cause. Thanks to the Americana Music Association, TX Whiskey, and Allbirds for their support in helping us raise over $75,000 towards pandemic relief
This week on The Show On The Road, in honor of Black History Month, we bring you a conversation with members of foundational gospel group, The Blind Boys Of Alabama, including longtime singer Ricky McKinnie and beloved senior member Jimmy Carter, who has been with the group for four decades.
Formed in the late 1930s with talent discovered at the Alabama Institute For The Negro Blind, the Blind Boys of Alabama have superseded limitations to bring their own high-spirited version of jubilee gospel throughout the world. Their music was often the backdrop to the Civil Rights Movement as Martin Luther King Jr. toured the south, and Jimmy and Ricky are both amazed and grateful that their message is still ringing true throughout the latest iteration Black Lives Matter movement that grew during the tumultuous last year.
While the members of the band have changed through time, the group has stayed steadfast to preserving a kinetic, church-based music that doesn’t seek to evangelize, but can bring people of all faiths together. Indeed, watching Jimmy and the other bespectacled members walk with hands on each other’s shoulders into the youthful crowds of adoring festival-goers, from Bonnaroo to Jazzfest, is really something to behold.
The Blind Boys’ body of work continues to grow. In the last few decades they’ve gamely collaborated with a wide range of secular artists from Peter Gabriel to Ben Harper to Bonnie Raitt, they made an album produced by Justin Vernon, AKA Bon Iver (2013’s stellar I’ll Find A Way), and they shrewdly reworked the ominous Tom Waits classic, “Way Down In The Hole,” which became the theme for HBO’s The Wire.
Their newest full length album, Almost Home, is a particularly moving treatise on morality and mortality. It features songs written by Marc Cohn, Valerie June, The North Mississippi All Stars and many others and was the last record that longtime member and bandleader Clarence Fountain was a part of before he passed away. He was a member of the Blind Boys of Alabama for nearly sixty years.
As Jimmy playfully mentions throughout our conversation, the Blind Boys of Alabama never let being blind stand in the way of doing what they do best: putting on a show. They’re entertainers at heart and it’s no small feat that they’ve brought a nearly lost form of swinging, soulful (and expertly arranged) gospel from the small southern towns where they grew up, all the way to the White House, where they’ve held court for three different presidents. And they’ve won five Grammy Awards along the way.
Stick around to the end of the episode hear their rich cover of Bob Dylan’s “I Shall Be Released.”
The Grand Ole Opry returned to Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival this year to headline the festival’s opening night. The Opry carried on the festival’s long-standing tradition of representing country, bluegrass, and roots music with performances by Old Crow Medicine Show and fellow Opry members Ricky Skaggs and Riders In The Sky, plus special guests Steve Earle and the Dukes, Morgan Evans, Ashley Monroe, Wendy Moten, Molly Tuttle, and even the Opry Square Dancers and Opry announcer Bill Cody came along for the ride.
BGS handed off the That Tent torch to the Opry in 2018, after five years of the BGS SuperJam. You can revisit our years of BGS x Bonnaroo goodness here: 2017; 2016; 2014.
The entire cast of Grand Ole Opry at Bonnaroo gather backstage.
Of course the Opry Square Dancers came along.
Morgan Evans.
Wendy Moten
Old Crow Medicine Show acoustically electrify the crowd.
Steve Earle and the Dukes.
Wendy Moten joins OCMS.
Steve Earle and Ricky Skaggs - a truly legendary duet.
Country singer/songwriter Ashley Monroe.
Ricky Skaggs getting into it.
Riders In The Sky continually doing it the cowboy way.
A rainbowy Molly Tuttle demonstrating her incredible clawhammer guitar style.
Riders In The Sky and the packed-in Bonnaroo crowd.
Artist:Tyler Ramsey Hometown: Asheville, North Carolina Song: “Evening Country” Album:For the Morning Release Date: April 5, 2019 Label: Fantasy Records
In Their Words: “A couple of years ago my band and I started messing around with some of my older and more pared-down songs and trying to bring them into a band setting. ‘Evening Kitchen’ was a song that I had written for the Band of Horses record Infinite Arms and when we did that record it stood out because it was in contrast with the rest of the album and really bare bones. A lot of that album was lushly produced and I thought having the song recorded with a single acoustic guitar and vocals would help balance things. It worked well in the sequence of that album and led to a lot of the more intimate moments in our live shows and the direction we headed in for the live Ryman acoustic album.
“This version, called ‘Evening Country,’ was a way to reimagine the song and a chance to put it into a new frame with some truly amazing musicians. It was recorded in Louisville, Kentucky, with Seth Kauffman (Floating Action), Kevin Ratterman (Lalaland Studio, My Morning Jacket, Ray Lamontagne), and I doing the basic tracking. Seth had worked with pedal steel guitarist Russ Pahl before and we were able to get him to play on it (I still jump up and down when I hear his playing!). And the goosebump-inducing harmony vocals were sung by Molly Parden and Thad Cockrell and recorded at the Fleetwood Shack in Nashville by my old friend Bill Reynolds (former Band of Horses bassist). The opportunity to revisit this song in the way that we did has given it a new energy for me as well as new meaning.
“A wild memory of this song: years ago we were playing at Bonnaroo after Infinite Arms had been released. We finished our set and climbed down off the stage and our manager came up and told us to go back up and play a couple more songs because Bruce Springsteen had come onto our side stage to watch us play just as we were walking off. We ran back up and ended up playing ‘Evening Kitchen’ last, and all I could think about the whole time was that there was Bruce Springsteen standing fifteen feet away from me and watching us play this song I’d written — don’t f*ck it up! We made it through and headed back down off the stage and there he was with that Bruce Springsteen smile and handshakes all around. Our monitor man Jon Cronin told me afterwards that he heard Bruce say ‘That’s a good song!’ That’s enough for me!” — Tyler Ramsey
River Whyless stepped onto the stage at That Tent while the temperature was still bearable, the dust was still minimal, and the sky was bright blue — that signature Tennessee summer haze would come later. Their fiddle and harmonium wafted out over Centeroo like a roots music call to prayer. The BGS stage had begun!
Aaron Lee Tasjan and company took the stage second, with double-drummer power and super-dapper duds. Earlier in the day at the daily press panel, Tasjan referenced iconic one-liner comedian Mitch Hedberg as a personal songwriting influence and inspiration. It seems an unlikely reference point for his rockabilly-infused, hot-and-heavy rock ‘n’ roll, but it all made sense watching him live. There’s a darker, sly, unexpected humor to ALT.
Our longtime friends Mandolin Orange came third, playing with a full band — Emily Frantz in pure white head to toe, looking summery and fresh despite the now-ridiculous temperature, and Andrew Marlin lending festival cred to our entire operation with his rainbow tie-dye tee. They sprinkled old favorites in and among songs from their latest album, Blindfaller.
The crowd had now totally pushed the blanket, beach towel, and inflatable hammock loungers out of the tent, as more and more fans packed the front of the stage for Greensky Bluegrass. Their long jams, lighting design, powerful vocals, and incredible energy brought out the loudest, most raucous cheers and applause from the audience all day. No surprise there! You could hear the crowd roar from almost anywhere in Centeroo.
As Greensky finished their set and exited — to one more round of thunderous applause — dozens of stagehands, artists, and musicians descended, transforming the stage in minutes. The lights came down and the crowd cheered as the Bryan Sutton Band (seriously, could there be a better house band?) tore into a bluegrass medley of “Walkin’ Across This Land” and the burning instrumental “Cricket on the Hearth.” Then, to cheers and hoots and hollers and whistles, Bryan introduced “Andy Bernard” and “Captain Underpants” — aka BGS co-founder and our SuperJam host, Ed Helms. Ed sang Doc Watson’s bluesy “I Am a Pilgrim,” before welcoming back River Whyless to play CCR’s “Fortunate Son.” Baskery, a Swedish Americana (Swedecana?) trio who had performed earlier in the day at the New Music on Tap Lounge were next, performing a bluegrass-tinged, folky cover of Paul Simon’s “Graceland.”
Mandolin Orange returned to the stage and led an epic, all-tent sing along of “Strawberry Wine,” a song perfectly fitting for Bonnaroo. Martina McBride followed, knocking all of us out with her fringed boots and her stunning cover of the Beatles’ “Blackbird,” continuing the sing-along vibe. The night wouldn’t have been complete without a Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt Trio cover, so Baskery came back out to join Martina on “Those Memories.” No one in attendance will forget those memories anytime soon!
A couple of bluegrass tunes later and Aaron Lee Tasjan was welcomed back to promptly tear through Todd Snider’s “Pretty Boy” with the Bryan Sutton Band going electric. The incredible Gaby Moreno was next, giving the audience a muah muah muah muah “KISS” — we want more Gaby sings Prince, please!
One of the most moving moments of the night came when Lillie Mae stepped on stage to introduce one of her heroes — the bluegrass living legend, Bobby Osborne. Before he had played or sung a single note the audience applauded for a solid two minutes. Seeing an enormous crowd at a music festival like Bonnaroo acknowledge the talent and impact of Bobby Osborne was outright stunning, but Lillie Mae, Bobby, and Bryan’s three-part harmony on “Beneath Still Waters” was earth-shattering. A long, long round of applause came again. On “Once More” they struck up an amazing three-part blend … once more. At 85, Bobby has still definitely got it and Bonnaroo knew it.
Greensky returned to the stage once again to cover the Boss, rocking it out on “Atlantic City.” Ed called the whole cast back to the stage, Bobby in his bright blue suit and iconic hat, among them. From somewhere in the crowd, someone shouted “Rocky Top!” Others agreed. They knew what was coming. Ed kicked off the Tennessee state song on banjo and Bobby sang the iconic lyrics that he and his brother Sonny first made famous. Not a single person in That Tent or overflowing out of it did not sing along.
For the grand finale, Ed introduced our closing number. Waving U.S. flags on stage, the whole group belted and swayed to the unforgettable, patriotic lyrics of “God Bless the USA.” The climax of the song was not its final chorus, with dramatic stop and crash cymbals though, it was its second chorus, when Gaby Moreno stepped forward and sang in Spanish:
Y a los que murieron por dármela Nunca voy a olvidar Ni a los inmigrantes Que luchan hoy Con coraje, amor y fe Esta tierra es rica en diversidad God bless the USA!
What pride to be from America Where I live in freedom I’ll never forget those who died To give that right to me Nor all the immigrants Who fight today With courage, love and faith This land is rich in diversity God bless the USA!
And if that wasn’t exactly what the world needs right now, then it must need John Mellencamp. Right out of “God Bless the USA,” Bryan Sutton morphed the song into “R.O.C.K in the USA.” Last-minute, surprise guest Margo Price sang a verse and rocked out on tambourine with long-time friend Aaron Lee. The musicians all traded solos, launching a friendly musical battle between Greensky’s Anders Beck and Paul Hoffman, as Gaby and Martina shouted along and U.S. flags still waved. Then, Ed signaled the band to drop out, leaving just the crowd singing, jumping up and down with beach balls flying — and our fifth annual Bluegrass Situation SuperJam hosted by Ed Helms came to a close.
You probably already know about the BGS Stage at Bonnaroo 2017 happening on Sunday, June 11 with Aaron Lee Tasjan, Greensky Bluegrass, Mandolin Orange, and River Whyless. But, once again, we’ll be hosting our fifth roots music SuperJam to close out the last night of ‘roo.
As always, the Bluegrass Situation brings together the best of bluegrass, Americana, folk, and country for a rip-roaring round of fun guests, left-field covers, and classic favorites.
The 2017 BGS SuperJam will be hosted by BGS’s own Ed Helms with the Bryan Sutton House Band and all the artists from our day stage, as well as Gaby Moreno, Martina McBride, Baskery, Lillie Mae, and more.
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