The last time I attended Strawberry Music Festival, the only things I recall are running around the meadow naked, and being covered in face paint. Now, admittedly those of you who know me might wonder if this was a recent event, but no, I was a little dude at the time, probably a bit less than knee-high.
The gently-counterculture-rebel cousin to the CBA Father’s Day Festival, Strawberry is brought to fruition and nurtured by a dedicated posse of big-hearted philosophers and tricksters. With their roots as a bluegrass festival apparent with acts on the lineup like Hot Rize, Strawberry has expanded their offerings over the years to include a global menu of music including Americana, jazz, swing, pop, gypsy jazz, folk rock, Celtic, R&B, and every flavor of blues.
Having Strawberry at the home of the Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival was akin to the traveling circus come to town. Organic and vibrant and made-in-the-USA, there’s a deep artful vibe here that I found to be warmly welcoming and inclusive. Among the cowboy hats and John Deere caps were elf ears, ballet tutus, clown noses, chicken hats, hula-hoopers, and more tie-dye per capita than a Railroad Earth concert.
The Strawberry Music Festival is in a nomadic phase at the moment, relocating to Grass Valley because their long time Camp Mather venue was unavailable after the tragic 2013 Rim Fire. I’ve volunteered and worked a number of events at the Nevada County Fairgrounds over the years (Father’s Day Festival, Celtic Festival, etc.), and it was apparent to me that Strawberry inhabited this new location as smoothly as anyone could. One of the more galvanizing elements which provided continuity to Strawberry was the legendary Hog Ranch Radio 88.1 FM who provided a direct conduit to the Strawberry experience. Excellent and earthy, they partnered with community radio KVMR to make broadcast history. Real pirate radio up close and personal.
I agreed to work the festival before I knew the lineup, and once I set up camp, I flipped through the program and had several joyful, heart-palpating revelations: Hot Rize! Kathy Kallick! Jerry Douglas! Keith Little! Steep Ravine! I grasped my hands together with glee. This was gonna be a really good festival.
And it was. My part-time gig was at the pizza booth, where owner Tom serves the BEST. PIZZA. EVER. The booth provided a sweet window to the Strawberry Way: there were veteran Strawberrians, who sagely noted that “Home is Where Strawberry Is”. There were the effusive Strawberry newbies who attended because the location was more accessible for them. There were FDF regulars who only came for the bluegrass but embraced the entire lineup before all was said and sung. And then there were Newbie-newbies: folks who had never attended a festival like this before and “only came to see Tower of Power but OMGosh all these other bands are just so AWESOME!”
Hot Rize brought it all home with their soulful and stellar classic bluegrass on Friday night. In fact, their set was so good apparently, that a praying mantis joined them on stage, perching on band member to band member, and even jumping from the mic onto Nick Forster’s face. I think the mantis liked their summer suit color. Hot Rize didn’t miss a single beat during this homage though, and handled the mantis with a witty and professional humor that set the whole crowd to giggling. For those of you who weren’t there, here’s a link to a clip of Hot Rize vs. the Mantis:
Hot Rize vs Praying Mantis
On Saturday night, Tower of Power caused everyone to abandon their chairs to dance in a frenzy of righteous R&B. I watched people I know personally, who never, ever leave their chairs, literally toss their chairs aside to do the Electric Slide. And to the challenge from the band rocketing across the fairgrounds, “Are you hip?!” Why, yes. For that moment in time, Grass Valley could claim an emphatic yes.
And then there was Sunday. That was the day I fell in love. With the T Sisters at the Revival. I was transported, fellers. With any luck, we’ll see them along with the Hillbenders and Steep Ravine on the Father’s Day Festival 40th lineup. And I’m telling you, I still have stars in my ears.
So. Strawberry. Maybe I bypassed the face painted nakedness this time but not by much. Traditional, organic, inspirational and avant garde. A festival that mixes the new with the beloved: friends,music, family, and experiences. The best pizza in the land. And a praying mantis who stole the show.
(Cameron Little celebrated his second week of being 19 at Strawberry this year, with good bluegrass, amazing people, and lots and lots of pizza dough. He was seen in camp with face paint but kept his clothes on. This time.)
