“One of Us” vocalist Joan Osborne collapsed from heat stroke on the Rooster stage as temperatures hit 83 degrees, but she’s tweeted that she’s okay.
“Do any of you people have jobs?,” Chuck Prophet asked the Friday afternoon crowd at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. “I know I don’t!” And so another annual iteration of San Francisco’s beloved bluegrass festival began, as three relatively fog-free days delivered all manner of music, dancing, and good cheer.
I guess I did collapse, sounds so dramatic! It was a little bit of heatstroke and I’m now fully recovered. Thank you all! https://t.co/qi4xHMicOD
— Joan Osborne (@joan_osborne) October 7, 2019
The big story coming out of the festival was Joan Osborne’s onstage collapse from heat stroke. The Chronicle reports she was playing the last song of her set, “One of Us.” She was helped offstage without incident, and at 8:30 Sunday night she tweeted, “It was a little bit of heatstroke and I’m now fully recovered.”
Very exciting Saturday headliner Robert Plant did not disappoint Led Zeppelin fans, as his full set list in the Chronicle’s Datebook section shows he and his new-ish band the Sensational Space Shifters opened with “When the Levee Breaks” and closed it out with “Ramble On.”
Doug Peckler has some strong words to say about having to carry a clear backpack to #HardlyStrictlyBluegrass @sfchronicle pic.twitter.com/NW42CQBfhP
— Jessica Christian 👻 (@jachristian) October 4, 2019
A new ‘clear bag policy’ and heightened security measures did not significantly disrupt the fun. In fact, many were surprised at how easy it was to get through the search checkpoints. The Examiner quipped that Hardly Strictly Bluegrass had “not-so-strict bag policies.”
Closing the day at the Banjo Stage was the luminous Emmylou Harris, who has played every #HardlyStrictlyBluegrass festival to date. Mixture of heartbreaking ballads & upbeat numbers (“How High The Moon” was delightfully jazzy). Ended with Neil Young’s “Long May You Run”. Indeed! pic.twitter.com/xJCjDQtQDI
— Grave Sin (@cultdung) October 7, 2019
And of course Sunday night wrapped up with “the Church of Emmylou,” or rather, EmmyLou Harris’ traditional close-out performance, which she ended with a cover of Neil Young’s “Long May You Run”.
Crowds are so large that people are sitting on portable potties. #HardlyStrictlyBluegrass pic.twitter.com/iRcCmSbn45
— Samantha Laurey (@LaureySamantha) October 7, 2019
Related: Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Isn't Actually Endowed Forever; Or Technically At All [SFist]