Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
Banjo Stage
San Francisco, Ca
October 6, 2017 

Recorded by Daspyknows 

Recorded from dead center GA Field about 5 feet behind "b" stage 
Schoeps MK4/RBox Tascam DR-2D 24 Bit 48K 

Processed using Soundforge 11, resample, to 16bit 44.1K 
TLH to convert to Flac 

Master 2017.78 

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Going into this festival plans were made to make the recordings easy and successful.  
I met Ted and handed off tarps and tiles so he could do the late night shift.  I woke
up about 4:30 AM and was out the door shortly after 5AM.  I parked about 6:15 in a
nearby Ted had put tarps and blankets down at the two stages I wanted in the perfect 
spot,   I covered the third stage and we were all set for the day.  I had a relaxing
morning with the sun rising in the park.  About an hour before the music I went to 
an out of the way spot in the trees to set up the gear.  These days one does not set 
up in plain site when people are told if they see something, say something.  Wires,
black boxes and a volt meter might draw attention.  When setting up I was only
getting one channel.  Fortunately I had brought my backup rig for a friend to use.
I let him know and he was fine using his own gear.  Tragedy narrowly averted but 
another after show task, figuring out what was wrong.  I got back to Banjo Stage and 
the festival started with Laurie Lewis and the Right Hands whom I had seen before.  
A fun way to start. 

"Laurie Lewis & The Right Hands
Laurie Lewis is a songwriter, fiddler, vocalist, teacher, producer and Grammy winner 
from Berkeley, California. The Sacramento News called her “as fine a singer as anyone 
on the acoustic music circuit,anywhere in the world."

After the set completed I packed up and made my way to the Rooster Stage.  My chair 
was waiting for my arrival. I was looking forward to the Conor Oberst curated stage.  
The first artist was Jesse Harris.  A few people had told me he was good.  I enjoyed 
the set, but did not walk away thinking I need to see him again.

"Jesse Harris
Originally from New York City, Jesse Harris is a Grammy Award winning songwriter, 
singer, guitarist and producer of artists from all over the world. He began making 
records in the mid ‘90s with Once Blue, his first group and first experience writing 
for another singer. Since then he has worked with dozens of artists and released 14 
albums under his own name. His latest, Music For Chameleons came out this year, 
in support of which he has toured in Brazil, France, Japan, and the US. Appearing 
as part of Conor Brings Friends for Friday.
"
The next band Big Thief I knew nothing about and had heard little from others.  
They are from Brooklyn and I liked their sound.  A few of their songs I really 
enjoyed.  They are definitely worth a listen.

"Big Thief
Every once in a while, a band comes along that leaves expectations, cynicism, 
and emotional distance ruined in a heap on the floor. Brooklyn’s Big Thief is 
that band. To hear songwriter Adrianne Len- ker’s lilting narratives and twisted, 
fuzzy guitars is to love them. Len- ker’s lyrical storytelling is equally grounded 
and autobiographical as it is surreal and cabalistic. Appearing as part of Conor 
Brings Friends for Friday"

The fourth band up was the Felice Brothers.  I like these guys a lot and have seen 
them a few times.  They were the backup band for Conor Oberst's last tour.  All but 
the bass player were his backing band later in the day.  This set was a lot of fun 
as always with some new and some older material.

"The Felice Brothers
The Felice Brothers’ release Life in the Dark, on Yep Roc Records, is classic 
American music. At once plainspoken and deeply literate, the band’s album features 
nine songs that capture the hopes and fears, the yearning and resignation, of a 
rootless, restless nation at a time of change. Life in the Dark also coincided 
with The Felice Brothers’ 10th anniversary as a band. Appearing as part of Conor 
Brings Friends for Friday."

The fifth band of the day was First Aid Kit.  I had heard of them but little 
familarity.  I knew quite a few people who liked them and the tarb filled up with 
friends and friends of friends.  From the first song I really liked this band. 
The crowd sure seemed to agree.  They broke out a new song and spoke about an 
upcoming release.  I knew this was a band I was going to see again.  Turns out 
they are starting their tour in 2018 at the Foix Theater in Oakland and I already 
have my tickets.

"First Aid Kit
This Swedish duo of sisters Johanna and Klara Soderberg play a sleek, pretty 
version of Americana that can only be achieved by outsiders who learn the music 
from the outside-in. Their harmonies are fresh and not always what one might expect 
from the Americana genre. Appearing as part of Conor Brings Friends for Friday"

Finally, it was time for the Conor Oberst set.  As always he didn't disappoint.  
He was backed by part of the Felice Brothers and had Johanna and Klara from First 
Aid Kit join him onstage.  The highlight of the set was the finale when he invited 
everyone on stage and mentioned how grateful he was that people came out to the 
festival given the events in Las Vegas and the passing of Tom Petty before going 
into a passionate version of of Tom Petty's Walls.  This was really the perfect 
way to end Day 1 of the festival.

"Conor Oberst
Conor Oberst joined his first band at the age of 13 and has been releasing music 
since 1993. Over the next two plus decades, he’s released cassette-only recordings, 
split 7-inches, and a dozen albums of uncommon insight, detail, and political 
awareness with his band Bright Eyes, under his own name, as a member of 
Desaparecidos, as leader of the The Mystic Valley Band, and with the Monsters of 
Folk supergroup. His newest release “Salutations” available now. Appearing as 
part of Conor Brings Friends for Friday.

 

Just the basic taper requests here and please no vitriol: 
Don't be an ass by selling this or using it in a video that is sold 
Don't modify the info file 
Don't remaster and/or post on other sites that are not 100% free 
If shared keep info file intact but create a second file with any changes 
Don't convert to lossy formats except for personal use 
Do support the artists