Event

Cliff Wagner & The Old No. 7, The Earl Brothers, Ida Viper

San Francisco Bluegrass & Old-Time Festival Bluegrass Show

This fall, Cliff Wagner and the Old No. 7 were one of 12 bands chosen out of pool of 8,000 to appear on the television show The Next Great American Band. Despite the
shows insistence that a bluegrass band would not win the hearts of general public, the band made it through 6 weeks of competition in front of 10 million people every week.
The band recently completed their latest album, Hobos Lullaby which in 2008 debuted on the AMA Americana chart at #35 and debuted on the euro americana chart at #9 and continues to climb both charts. oldnumber7.net

The Earl Brothers, based in San Francisco, Calif., perform original hillbilly mountain music. The bands less is more approach to songwriting, singing and musicianship will make you stop whatever youre doing and take notice. The Earl Brothers are blazing their own trail, extending the genre, while staying within the gritty tradition that started in the 1940s and 50s. In the short time since the release of their third album, Moonshine (the eagerly anticipated follow-up to 2006s Troubles to Blame and 2004s Whiskey, Women & Death), The Earl Brothers have received an enthusiastic response. myspace.com/earlbrothers

Based in Portland, Oregon, Ida Viper draws on the roots of American music from bluegrass and swing to jazz tunes from the 1920s and 30s. Mark Petteys (banjo and guitar), Brian Oberlin (mandolin) and Russ Baker (standup bass) bring high-energy improvisational arrangements to their live performances. Mark was Northwest Regional Banjo Champion in 1984 and has recorded a number of albums, and Brian has performed with musical greats Rhonda Vincent, Larry Sparks and Vassar Clements and was a 2003 finalist at the national mandolin championship in Winfield, Kan. Peter Schwimmer (fiddle and banjo) has been a frequent contributor since the summer of 2006. idaviper.com.