To celebrate ten years of top-shelf local and national musical talents, regional craft beers and ciders, unique and familiar foods, a vast array of independent vendors, and a remarkably family-friendly atmosphere, the Charm City Bluegrass Festival has decided to return to its roots.
What began in 2013 as a relatively humble affair just north of downtown Baltimore, MD at Union Craft Brewing with 1300 or so attendees has developed into one of the area’s premier multi-day live music events. After moving to the larger confines of nearby Druid Hill Park in 2014, which continued to play host annually through 2022, the Charm City Bluegrass Festival headed back to Union’s upgraded facility, just up the road from its 2013 stomping grounds. Now outfitted with all the trappings of a major music festival, including a capacity crowd of nearly 3000, over two-dozen food, beer, and vendor trucks, three separate performance stages, and an eclectic artist lineup that seemingly covers every corner of the musical spectrum, the future of the Charm City Bluegrass Festival appears brighter than ever in its new environment.
Join us as Glide takes a look at a half-dozen standout moments from this past weekend (5/5-6) at the Charm City Bluegrass Festival:
Grateful Dub (Tribute to the Pizza Tapes): No live music festival is seemingly complete these days without at least one act paying homage to The Grateful Dead, and this year’s iteration of the Charm City Bluegrass Festival was no exception. Grateful Dub, a New Hampshire-based sextet comprised of the members of the renowned reggae-rock outfit Roots of Creation, delivered a memorable tribute to the seminal Jerry Garcia, David Grisman, and Tony Rice album The Pizza Tapes, which the trio recorded in 1993 and was ultimately released in 2000.
Making their Charm City debut on Friday evening, the group eschewed their usual all-electric setup in order to cater to the sizable bluegrass-oriented crowd that had gathered around the indoor stage, with guitarists Brett Wilson and Kyle Bell donning a pair of acoustic guitars. Wilson’s trademark high-energy crowd-hyping stage presence helped guide the ensemble through a riveting set that opened with a funky combo of the Dead’s “Shakedown Street” and “Casey Jones” before delving into the Pizza Tapes material, including reggae-infused takes on classics such as “Shady Grove” (with artist-at-large Allie Kral on fiddle), “House of the Rising Sun” and, most notably, Miles Davis’ “So What”, which allowed the group to showcase their formidable instrumental chops.
Twisted Pine: Among the most welcome surprises of the weekend came courtesy of the Boston-area quintet, Twisted Pine. Featuring a rather non-traditional bluegrass lineup that employs a flutist, Ann Phung, as one the lead instruments, the group tore through an inspired set featuring several songs off their latest LP, Right Now as well as a pair of well-received covers. From the opening strains of the jazzy original “Papaya” to the sultry set-closing vibes of Bill Withers’ “Use Me” (with artist-at-large Chris Luquette on guitar), the band delivered a captivating performance buoyed by a series of goosebump-inducing vocal performances from Kathleen Parks as well as a refreshingly unique sound that plays like a musical amalgamation of Lake Street Drive, Jethro Tull, Bill Monroe and John Coltrane.
Magic Beans: After a pair of red-hot performances at Charm City, it’s easy to understand why the Colorado-based jam band Magic Beans has enjoyed such a dramatic surge in popularity over the past year or so. As the only artist from the entire weekend to be invited to play both days of the festival, the quartet of musical firebrands dispatched a pair of sets that was teeming with their unique brand of psychedelia-infused funk. Helmed by the jaw-dropping work of keyboardist Casey Russell, the group performed well over two hours worth of mostly original material from a trio of studio efforts, Casino Cabaret (2018), Off Leash (2019), and Slice of Life (2021), in addition to some welcome covers, including a funky bluegrass-inspired take on Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” with Allie Kral on vocals.
Caleb Stine: One of Charm City’s most endearing qualities is its penchant for showcasing local talent on a national-caliber stage. Perhaps the weekend’s best example of this hometown pride came via singer-songwriter Caleb Stine’s inspiring set during his early-afternoon Saturday time slot on the indoor stage. Armed with a commanding voice, captivating story-book lyrics, and compelling on-stage demeanor that evokes echoes of great American troubadours such as Lyle Lovett and Townes Van Zandt, Stine silenced the stunned crowd with his timeless originals, including “Have Guitar Will Travel” and “My Service Isn’t Needed Anymore”, as well as a moving multi-song tribute to recently deceased Gordon Lightfoot.
Cris Jacobs Band (Tribute to John Prine): Arguably the most anticipated set of the weekend, Baltimore-based rocker Cris Jacobs did not disappoint with an emotional tribute to John Prine. Joined by his uber-talented Cris Jacobs Band musical cohorts, the Charm City veteran led the group through an extended guest-filled set of some of Prine’s most cherished numbers that featured inspired takes on “Paradise” (with Patrick McAvinue on fiddle), “Angel From Montgomery” (with Laura Wortman on vocals), and “Grandpa Was a Carpenter” (with Chris Luquette on guitar and Allie Kral on fiddle), among others. Though, the clear highlight moments of the set, and perhaps the entire weekend, came during Jacobs’ tear-jerking solo rendition of “Hello In There” as well as a heartwarming performance of “In Spite of Ourselves”, which saw the guitarist trading vocals with his wife, Kat Jacobs.
The Infamous Stringdusters: Making their Charm City debut, the Infamous Stringdusters capped Saturday night’s main-stage schedule with an engaging headlining set that consisted of a healthy mix of the group’s progressive-bluegrass infused originals along with several choice covers. Shortly after kicking things off with the jamgrass-inspired pairing of “Night on the River” and “Well Well”, the quintet elicited some of the weekend’s loudest ovations with a blistering version of the Grateful Dead’s “Shakedown Street”.The impressive musicianship continued for the remainder of the set, particularly on a handful of covers that ran the musical gamut from traditional bluegrass – Bill Monroe’s “Toy Heart” and Flatt & Scruggs’ “Down the Road” – to anything but – Tom Petty’s “Running Down A Dream” (with Cris Jacobs on guitar and vocals) and The Cure’s “Just Like Heaven”.
Photos by Marc Shapiro, Matt Ruppert, and Liz Pappas
