There are few music festivals with the legacy of the High Sierra Music Festival (HSMF). After more than thirty years, HSMF has truly become far more than the sum of its parts. Sure, there's a ton of world-class music on several stages, parades, activities for kids, crafts and vendors, killer food, and all that. And of course, there's the camping scene, a hippie town that springs up almost overnight on the Plumas County Fairgrounds for the four-day festival around the Fourth of July each year.
What makes HSMF unique is the legacy of community. After more than three decades, some attendees – and performers too – can literally say they grew up at the fest. Lifelong friendships have been kindled here. People have met the love of their lives. It's a safe bet that some babies can trace their origins to the Shady Grove campground.
That's not meant to discount the quality of music. This year's festival featured headliners that exemplify the broad spectrum of performers HSMF veterans have come to expect: Ziggy Marley, Greensky Bluegrass, Primus, a Talking Heads tribute featuring Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew, the Allman Betts Band, Larkin Poe, and Marty Stuart. Further down the bill, there's the California Honeydrops, Cuba's Cimafunk, ALO, the Floozies… over forty acts spanning bluegrass and Americana, funk, folk, jam, country, soul, blues, trip-tronic, and all sorts of peripheral and amalgamated genres.
High Sierra Co-Producer David Margulies summed it up: “High Sierra appeals to music lovers of all types. That cannot be more apparent than by the lineup this year. It’s endless how broad the reach of the lineup is.”
Margulies also boasted that High Sierra is “an experience that is unparalleled. Our audience can count on discovering some of their new favorite bands year in and year out.” And indeed, many of the acts on this year's bill who are not yet headliners are sure to be tomorrow’s superstars. Past performers on some of the smaller stages at High Sierra who have climbed to national touring headliner status include the Lumineers, the Revivalists, JRAD, Grace Potter, Margo Price, Samantha Fish, and Lukas Nelson.
The Plumas County Fairgrounds, home of HSMF for over two decades now, become a virtual village for nearly a week each year. HS even has its own radio station, Grizzly Radio! The village is subdivided by campgrounds, including Shady Grove, Family Camp, Hillside, and RV Town. Some people "commute" from more distant camping and RV lots within a quarter mile or so from the festival entrances. A lucky few find AirBnBs or motel rooms in Quincy. (2024 was the first year I stayed offsite, and while I missed some of the late-night and early-morning hubbub, I also got to see two mountain lions on my drive to a rented cabin in the woods one night!)
Some of the group camps within the subdivisions within the village are legendary for hosting their own parties and performances. Camp Happiness, on the border between Shady Grove and Family Camp, has a 4/20 party every year. Past performers have included ALO and Vince Herman (Leftover Salmon). This year's rumpus introduced many attendees to The Lucky Strokes, including HS alumni Eddie Roberts (New Mastersounds) on guitar. Far on the other side of the fairgrounds, Bitchin' Kitchen had, as usual, a stream of live music in its campsite, including Steve Poltz and Anna Moss.
Some bands play HSMF for the first time in "guerilla" sets throughout the campgrounds too. And some of those bands grow up and find their way to one of the "real" stages.
So yeah, it's undeniable that HSMF has music at its core, and that the music is the primary reason people come year after year. This is my twentieth (I think) trip to the usually-quiet mountain burgh of Quincy, CA, for this festival, and I'd be disingenuous to say I don't come for the music. On the other hand, I wouldn't keep coming if it wasn't also a pilgrimage to reconnect with a community forged with love and kindness, sharing and caring.
One of my favorite examples of the spirit of HSMF: one year on Sunday morning (the last of the four days of the festival), a scraggly-lookin' dude was biking around the RV campground in the Big Meadow offering clean socks to anyone who needed them. He had a twelve-pack of white athletic socks he was giving out, and he was crooning, "Who needs freshies?" I mean, who doesn't need freshies?!
The 2024 HSMF was tinged with melancholy. First, the fest organizers posted a message a few months ago to ticket buyers asking for help with more ticket sales. The communique hinted that ticket sales were below expectations – and that prospects for future fests were at risk if sales didn't go up. "If you cherish High Sierra, please consider joining us this year to ensure its survival and evolution." (The 2023 festival was, by all reports, under-attended and likely not profitable.) And then, shortly after that message was distributed to the HSMF community, Roy Carter died. Carter was one of the festival's founders and co-producers. His loss was widely felt. His name was invoked numerous times this weekend, both on and off stage.
As a result, the fest was abuzz this year with conjecture: Will the 33rd HSMF be the last? Could this beautiful thing really come to an end?
Only time will tell.
The future is always a mystery. Omens abound; several people reported there was no "See you next year!" in the final announcement from host Tim Lynch on the Grandstand Stage. Rumors, innuendo, the usual bullshit in a moment of uncertainty. The fact is, we just don't know.
But with the 2024 HSMF now in the history books, I am happy to report that some seriously cool shit went down. I'll chronicle a few highlights below, but this article does not pretend to be a comprehensive music review. (If you read on though, you will eventually get to hear about some of my favorite moments.) Instead, for the most part, I am going to let other members of the High Sierra community tell you what they love about the enduring gifts of this magical, ephemeral space. I offer these remembrances and testimonials in the hope that they don't comprise a eulogy, but rather a snapshot in time amidst a continuing legacy.
Most of the quotes below are from festival attendees, but there are also some performers (including quotes from their stage sets as well as brief interviews), vendors and staffers, and a couple of the event co-producers.
THE MUSIC
"My first High Sierra was 13 years ago. I came for ALO and was blown away by the diversity of music: funk, bluegrass, jam bands, singer/songwriters. I had never been exposed to so much music in one place before. It was delicious and I was hooked!" - Wendy
"My first year was 2008 and I was on my way to the Grandstand to see the band I planned to see when I walked by the Meadow, heard something that stopped me dead in my tracks, and stayed for a band I'd never heard of, Blue Turtle Seduction. And that is what I love about High Sierra, the bands I've never heard of that grab me and don't let go." - Jim
"A moment that will never forget was when Robert Plant busted into 'Going to California' – thousands of people completely silent, engulfed in the magic. I still get chills thinking about it." - Ryan Kerrigan (artist/vendor)
"The camp parties are always amazing, since you never know who is going to show up and play. Some of my favorite sets have taken place in the van, on top of the bus, or in Shady Grove." - Corinne
"From Surprise Me Mr. Davis to Brett Dennen to Boot Juice, sometimes the artists you find playing in the campground turn out to be new favorites." - Joanne
"The magic of High Sierra is often in the 'bottom half' of the lineup. I always find my new favorite band – someone I’ve never heard before amongst all the side stages." - David
"High Sierra has consistently showcased great 'non-commercial' artists on their way up while also presenting the legends to an appreciative creative audience." - Sandy
"It’s High Sierra. They expect a little extra." - Les Claypool (Primus)
THE COMMUNITY
"We come out here to gather, to let our troubles disappear." - Dan "Lebo" Lebowitz (performer, ALO)
"I love High Sierra for the community! It feels like everyone, from the musicians to the people dancing next to you, is your hype person, spreading energy and excitement." - Maya
"The thing I love most about HSMF is the reunion aspect. There are dozens (hundreds?) of people that I see once a year at HSMF, and that means the world to me. I count on it!" - Ryan Kerrigan (artist/vendor)
"I came for the music, but I stayed for the staff." - David
"What I love about the High Sierra music festival [includes] the shiny, happy, wide-open people making eye contact and smiling [and] the well-oiled festival production that creates a stellar experience." - Gina
"[HSMF is a place where] everybody is partying hard and getting fucked up, but they're 'professionals' keeping it together." - Sandy
"For me [HSMF is] where the music and the partying are in a nice symbiotic relationship. The music is really first, and people are having a ball partying. At some festivals, that can get a little off." - Scott Pemberton (performer)
"I love that I am not the only 'old person' attending and having a great time. The crowd is always so nice to all genres of music. You can tell the musicians really enjoy the freedom and collaboration they get at the festival." - Richard
"High Sierra is the kindest festival. Every year I hear a similar refrain of, 'I thought I lost my (backpack, phone, cooler, mind), but when I went back, it was just where I left it!'" - Michelle
THE PLACE
"This right here, HSMF is the alternate reality … there’s something about this festival; everybody’s so cool here." - Chris Chandler (spoken word performer)
"High Sierra helped me connect to the mountains in a way I never had growing up here. One night when I was 22, some friends and I were laying out in a field looking at the stars and talking about the elevation of Quincy. In that moment I became so much more aware of this valley I grew up in, the tree line, the visibility of stars, and the good folks all around me. This festival connects people to their land and their people." - Victoria
"One of my favorite parts of the fest is what I call 'the magic hours' from about 1 am to 5 am on Thursday morning [the first day of the festival]. Everything around the fairgrounds is completely still, but there are still pockets of intense activity getting the magic perfect for the next day." - Michelle
"I love that the caterers and vendors share their leftover food with our small mountain community. I love that this four-day event brings supporters to our local small businesses." - Julz
MUSICAL INTERLUDE #1
As promised, I'll mention just a few musical highlights. Then we'll get back to the testimonials.
Cimafunk is an Afro-Cuban rhythmic powerhouse who channels James Brown. His entire band gives "party" like it's going out of style and there's no time to waste. During both his late-night set in the Vaudeville Tent and his evening show on the Grandstand Stage, Cimafunk invited the audience to come up to dance. A few dozen people took up the offer each time, and their mirth was contagious.
The Playshops are always among the highlights at High Sierra. Fest co-producer Dave Margulies handpicks a variety of artists each year to play together in unusual combinations in the (blessedly) air-conditioned High Sierra Music Hall. Two of this year's Playshops exemplify the magic of these moments.
One was titled "Classic Album Hour – Mescalito Performs The Doors' L.A. Woman." This tribute to The Doors kicked off with a shirtless, leather-panted Paul Hoffman (Greensky Bluegrass) going deep into a Jim Morrison persona for a version of "Ghost Song" from American Prayer, the musical Doors' album of music set to their deceased singer's recorded poetry.
Another Playshop was "Mississippi to Mali." For this one, Bo Carper (New Monsoon) and Walter Strauss were joined on acoustic guitars by Lebo (ALO) and special guest Bombino, a singer-songwriter and phenomenal guitarist from Niger. None of the first three had ever played with Bombino before. The quartet traded African rhythms and leads for a musical conversation that transcended the language barrier. Toward the end of the set, Lebo's bandmate Ezra Lipp and another musician joined on percussion. This musician was just some young dude who had wowed everyone in the campground the night before, and he found himself invited on stage as a reward for his rhythmic awesomeness. So High Sierra!
Primus made a triumphant return to High Sierra. The trio kicked down 90 minutes of their unique brand of alt/jam/fusion/hell-it's-just-Primus music. Larry LaLonde (guitar) and Les Claypool (bass) gave a master class in their distinctive, high-energy pogo-punk rock. And of course, there was an appearance by Claypool's alter ego Mr. Krinkle.
If there was one band that walked away with more new fans than any other, it was probably Larkin Poe. Sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell started their set in high gear and never slowed down. Their delta blues stage show combines the ferocity of Samantha Fish (that's probably a cliché comparison by now, I admit) and the always-posing presence of Lucius.
And one final note about the main stage lineup this year: Sunday night, the last night of the 2024 festival, was loaded with diverse, multicultural rhythms. The final three acts were Bombino (from Niger), Cimafunk (from Cuba), and Ziggy Marley (from Jamaica). It might be coincidental that this was the lineup in the wake of the unfortunate last-minute cancellation of the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival a few weeks earlier, but it might also signal a worthy endeavor to broaden the fanbase of HSMF for future generations.
THE MEMORIES
"One of my favorite HS memories was 2015 during a very hot String Cheese Incident set at the main stage. Not only the music but it was a really hot day as well. About halfway through the set, it started to rain lightly. The rain shined off the lights and cooled the crowd to smiles all around. Perfect moment. It never rains at High Sierra, and that was the perfect time to break that streak." - Lenny
"In 1997 at the Bear Valley Fest I met my ex-husband, he's one of the best. At Quincy in 2000 he proposed to me I said yes and we spent 11 years together, very happily." - Gina
"I was having a bit of a down day at HSMF. My girlfriend was breaking up with me in real time over the course of the fest. Then, during the Bela Fleck and the Flecktones set, Victor Wooten threw a stuffed hippo into the crowd – right into my hands. [My girlfriend] is gone, although we are friendly from afar. But I still have that stuffed hippo 18 years later." - Dave
"Working with Grizzly Radio being an interviewer has been a highlight making experience for me. Interviewing Steve Poltz is probably one of the more wondrous experiences I’ve had in the world of conversation." - Doug Greenfield (Grizzly Radio announcer for over ten years)
"Back in 2000, my partner and I set up our tent, but left everything else outside at the campsite because music was starting at the Shady Grove stage. Halfway through the set, it started pouring rain. We ran back to our camp to put things away and found that our camp neighbors, who we didn't know, had put all our stuff in our tent – so nothing got wet or destroyed." - Tom
"It’s shaped me as a person. I feel like I’ve marked my life with High Sierras... A big part of my life, my growth in friendships, as a person, is marked by High Sierras." - Ezra Lipp (performer, ALO)
"I've got a lifetime of stories to tell." - Beth
MUSICAL INTERLUDE #2: BEST COVER SONGS
Everyone will have their own list. The Playshops are chock full of covers, so I left out most of those and chose the ones that performers threw into their own stage sets. I mentioned the Paul Hoffman cover of the Jim Morrison poem "Ghost Song" above, and these are some others that stood out:
"Fireworks" (Katy Perry) by Melt (on the 4th of July)
"In Bloom" (Nirvana) by Anna Moss & The Nightshades
"Cassidy" > "That's It for The Other One, Pt. 1" > "Cassidy" (Grateful Dead) by Greensky Bluegrass with Holly Bowling
"The Star-Spangled Banner" (sorta the Prince version) – guitar solo by Jackie Venson
"So Far Away" (Dire Straits) closed the "Mississippi to Mali" Playshop
"Give Up the Funk" (Parliament) by Cimafunk
Okay, and now one last round of quotes from people who love HSMF.
FAMILY, LOVE, AND HAPPINESS
"There is no shortage of joy here." - Alisan
"I have raised my daughter on this festival, and it holds a dear place in my heart." - Corinne
"HSMF is a wonderful bonding experience for families. Not only is it great to spend time with your kids, but an added benefit is that my kids ended up being friends with adults and kids younger than them as well as meeting friends they have had for life." - Fran
"After Jerry died and the Grateful Dead stopped touring, I missed my happy place to dance the the dance of life with all the amazing people that were part of that scene. I found my groove at High Sierra Music Festival! Every year I laugh, I cry, I dance, I sweat. Every year is different yet each time I return to myself in a new form. HSMF LIFER!" - Janna
"I met my wife at sunrise kickball!" - Mike (Jenni's husband)
"In 2017, met at kickball on an inflatable couch at second base. Engaged HSMF 2019 at Indian Falls. HSMF 2022 for our honeymoon. High Sierra brings together some of our favorite people and fills our cup every year." - Jenni (Mike's wife)
"It's my church, it's where I get to unite with others in joy. I love being deep in the crowds and looking at all the smiling faces. And especially the new musicians who see how easy the crowds are to impact with joy just by their actions and talents." - Danielle
"HSMF 2024 was a love fest. It began with the integrity of the producers and their intentions, special gratitude to Roy Carter for his vision. (We missed you, Roy.) It’s in the graciousness of the organizers, in the multitudes of beautiful communities like Grizzly Radio, in the hospitality at the Troubadour stage, in the warmth, hard work, great food and music at Camp Bitchin’ Kitchen and Camp Happiness, and in all the free offerings for well-being, like Yoga, the Family Zone, and Embodied Groove. The unbelievable four days of music is love and healing that flows into all of us, working its magic." - Maggie
"High Sierra is about diverse music and art and really dedicated people that love to hear music. We need this! So High Sierra – right on that it keeps marching on!" - Scott Amendola (performer)
"People bring their best and are at their best at High Sierra. And it brings out the best in people." - David Margulies (HSMF co-producer)
"Better than the music, the atmosphere, and the community is the joy that is created at this festival. I am so proud of the legacy of High Sierra Music Festival, and what it has meant to so many people for so many years." - Rebecca Sparks (HSMF co-producer)
CODA 2024
I wasn't at the main Grandstand Stage at the end of Sunday night's performance by Ziggy Marley, so I can't testify one way or the other about whether stage emcee Tim Lynch did not say "See you next year!" like he does every year. I know Tim, haven't had a chance to ask him about this yet – but I suspect, like many of us, he just doesn't know what the future holds for HSMF.
For now, we can only take home our memories, live in our moments, and hope for a bright future. Like Beth said above, I've got a lifetime of stories to tell. And that will never go away.
