Hardly Strictly Bluegrass sets huge tribute concert for legendary artist
Having honored Emmylou Harris with an all-star concert in 2025, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass will now kick off its 2026 edition with a tribute to yet another longtime festival favorite:
The tribute — dubbed “An Evening Honoring Steve Earle” — is set for Oct 1 at The Masonic in San Francisco.
This Hardly Strictly Bluegrass tribute to Earle will include performances from Buddy Miller, Elizabeth Cook, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Jackson Browne, Hot Tuna, Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams, Molly Tuttle and other guests. Buddy Miller will serve as the evening’s musical director with Reckless Kelly (featuring Greg Liesz).
"We can think of no better way to bookend our silver anniversary than celebrating 25 years of Steve Earle at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. We are so fortunate to have legacy artists like Emmylou and Steve who have embraced our annual gathering since the beginning. We wanted to recognize their efforts with concerts benefiting charities that are important to them,” says Hardly Strictly Bluegrass executive producer Sheri Sternberg. “This year's proceeds go to the non-profit Sweetwater Spectrum, a community that provides adults with autism or similar intellectual/developmental disabilities, innovative, community-based, long- term housing. Our final flourish is that Buddy Miller will be with us as musical director once again, bringing his unique, special sauce to this tribute,"
Tickets for "An Evening Honoring Steve Earle" go on sale to the public on June 12, ticketmaster.com.
The regular free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival runs Oct. 2-4 in Golden Gate Park. For more information, visit hardlystrictlybluegrass.com.
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.