The Huck Finn Jubilee Bluegrass Music Festival or simply The Huck Finn Jubilee is an annual two-day bluegrass music event held in

Ontario, California Ontario is a city in southwestern San Bernardino County in the U.S. state of California, east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino, the county seat. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire metropolitan area, ...

. It is held during the fall at the Cucamonga-Guasti Regional Park and features RV and tent camping, traditional "Americana" activities, and live bluegrass music. The festival also features activities, such as fishing, camping, kids zone, food and beverages, live art, music workshops local vendors, and arts and crafts. The event is also the West Coast’s biggest bluegrass festival, with acts such as

The String Cheese Incident The String Cheese Incident (SCI) is an American jam band from Crested Butte and Telluride, Colorado, formed in 1993. The band is composed of Michael Kang (acoustic/electric mandolin, electric guitar, and violin), Michael Travis (drums and percus ...

Ralph Stanley Ralph Edmund Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016) was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. Stanley began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of ...

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...

& the Steep Canyon Rangers, and

Rhonda Vincent Rhonda Lea Vincent (born July 13, 1962) is an American bluegrass singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Vincent's music career began when she was a child in her family's band The Sally Mountain Show, and it has spanned more than four de ...

. On September 30, 2016 the Greater Ontario Convention & Visitors Bureau announced that 2016 would be the last festival sponsored by it at the Cucamonga-Guasti Regional Park. However, in 2017, a family purchased the event from the city and revived it in 2018. It is now (as of this submission) in its 42nd year of operation and will be live September 27 and 28, 2019. More can be learned about the festival on the website: www.huckfinn.com

History

The history of the Jubilee began in

Norco, California Norco is a city in Riverside County, California, in the United States. Norco is known as Horsetown, USA and prides itself on being a "horse community," with horse trails, hitching posts, and corrals, and city ordinances requiring construction to ...

in the early 70's. Tuckers, David "Russ" and Maureen Russell, Steve and Sandy Perault and Christianson each had a hand in making it a success before it ever moved to and including Victorville. The Huck Finn Jubilee Bluegrass Music Festival was founded by Don Tucker and his family in 1976 and was eventually held at the Mojave Narrows Regional Park in

Victorville, California Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810. History In 1858, Aaron G. Lane came to what is now known as Victorville and founded a waystation called "Lane's Cr ...

, on

Father's Day Father's Day is a holiday of honoring fatherhood and paternal bonds, as well as the influence of fathers in society. In Catholic countries of Europe, it has been celebrated on 19 March as Saint Joseph's Day since the Middle Ages. In the Unite ...

weekend. The festival, which at first featured mostly local talent as the bluegrass entertainment, achieved success in its first few years, with attendance as high as 7,000. In 1989, Bobby Osborne of bluegrass duo

The Osborne Brothers The Osborne Brothers, Sonny (October 29, 1937 – October 24, 2021) and Bobby (born December 7, 1931), were an influential and popular bluegrass act during the 1960s and 1970s and until Sonny retired in 2005. They are probably best known for ...

called Tucker to ask if he would book them for Friday night, as they were "stuck on the West Coast". In the following years after their performance at the Huck Finn Jubilee Bluegrass Music Festival, Tucker began booking national talent such as

The Country Gentlemen The Country Gentlemen was a progressive bluegrass band that originated during the 1950s in the area of Washington, D.C., United States, and recorded and toured with various members until the death in 2004 of Charlie Waller, one of the group's f ...

The Seldom Scene The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom ...

, Jimmy Martin,

J.D. Crowe James Dee Crowe (August 27, 1937December 24, 2021) was an American banjo player and bluegrass band leader. He first became known during his four-year stint with Jimmy Martin in the 1950s. Crowe led the bluegrass group New South from 1971 until ...

Larry Sparks Larry Sparks (born September 25, 1947) is an American Bluegrass singer and guitarist. He was the winner of the 2004 and 2005 International Bluegrass Music Association Male Vocalist of the Year Award. 2005, won IBMA for Album of the Year and Re ...

Tony Rice David Anthony Rice (June 8, 1951 – December 25, 2020), known professionally as Tony Rice, was an American guitarist and bluegrass musician. He was an influential acoustic guitar player in bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, newgrass and a ...

, Earl Scruggs,

Ricky Skaggs Rickie Lee Skaggs (born July 18, 1954), known professionally as Ricky Skaggs, is an American neotraditional country and bluegrass singer, musician, producer, and composer. He primarily plays mandolin; however, he also plays fiddle, guitar, ...

Lonesome River Band The Lonesome River Band is an American contemporary bluegrass band. The band has released 15 recording projects since its formation in 1982. Lonesome River Band is led by Sammy Shelor who is a member of the Virginia Country Music Hall of Fame ...

, among others. In 2001, the Huck Finn Jubilee was named the bluegrass event of the year by the

International Bluegrass Music Association The International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, is a trade association to promote bluegrass music. Formed in 1985, IBMA established its first headquarters in Owensboro, Kentucky. In 1988 they announced plans to create the International ...

. After Don Tucker died in 2012, the festival moved to Cucamonga-Guasti Regional Park in Ontario, California, for the following year. In May 2014, Michael Krouse and the Greater Ontario Convention & Visitors Bureau acquired the festival to ensure its continuation. In November 2014, Huck Finn Jubilee officials announced that starting in 2015, the festival will be held annually during the second weekend in June to facilitate event planning and avoid potential conflict with the

Telluride Bluegrass Festival Telluride Bluegrass Festival is an annual music festival in Telluride, Colorado hosted by Planet Bluegrass. Although traditionally the festival focuses on bluegrass music, it often features music from a variety of related genres. History The tow ...

, which is held the third weekend in June. In Spring of 2017, The festival moved to the fall for cooler weather and to avoid conflict with the plethora of festivals happening throughout the summer in Los Angeles. 2020 Festival was held on 10/25/2020 and was entirely pre-recorded and virtual. Tickets started at $10. Check out huckfinn.com for more details. You can also follow the festival on social media: Twitter = @Huckfinnjubilee Facebook =Huck Finn Jubilee Instagram = @huckfinnjubilee

Acts

Notable performers at the event include acts such as

Sam Bush Charles Samuel Bush (born April 13, 1952) is an American mandolinist who is considered an originator of progressive bluegrass music. In 2020, he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame as a member of New Grass Reviva ...

, Del McCoury Band, David Byrne, Johnny Cash, Cherryholmes, Elvis Costello, David Byrne, John Fogerty,

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and ...

, New Monsoon,

Sharon Gilchrist Sharon Gilchrist is an American musician, singer, composer, mandolin instructor and the sister of Troy Gilchrist, also a bluegrass musician. Biography Youth Raised in Southlake, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, Sharon Gilchrist started playing the m ...

Railroad Earth Railroad Earth is a bluegrass-influenced Americana band formed in Stillwater, New Jersey in 2001. The band's music combines elements of progressive bluegrass, folk, rock, country, jazz, Celtic and other Americana influences. Recognized as " ...

New Grass Revival New Grass Revival was an American progressive bluegrass band founded in 1971, and composed of Sam Bush, Courtney Johnson, Ebo Walker, Curtis Burch, Butch Robins, John Cowan, Béla Fleck and Pat Flynn. They were active between 1971 and 1989, r ...

, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss and Union Station,

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...

, Robert Plant,

John Prine John Edward Prine (; October 10, 1946 – April 7, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter of country-folk music. He was active as a composer, recording artist, live performer, and occasional actor from the early 1970s until his death. He ...

Yonder Mountain String Band The Yonder Mountain String Band is an American progressive bluegrass group from Nederland, Colorado. Composed of Dave Johnston, Ben Kaufmann, Adam Aijala, and Nick Piccininni, the band has released five studio albums and several live recordings ...

Mumford & Sons Mumford & Sons is a British folk rock band formed in London in 2007. The band currently consists of Marcus Mumford (lead vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, drums), Ted Dwane (vocals, bass guitar, double bass), and Ben Lovett (vocals, k ...

Peter Rowan Peter Rowan (born July 4, 1942) is an American bluegrass musician and composer. Rowan plays guitar and mandolin, yodels and sings. Biography Rowan was born in Wayland, Massachusetts to a musical family. From an early age, he had an interest ...

Leftover Salmon Leftover Salmon is an American jam band from Boulder, Colorado, formed in 1989. The band's music is a blend of bluegrass, rock, country, and Cajun/Zydeco. Over their thirty years as a band Salmon have released seven studio albums and three li ...

Béla Fleck Béla Anton Leoš Fleck (born July 10, 1958) is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, bringing the instrument from its bluegrass roots to jazz, classi ...

Chris Thile Christopher Scott Thile (; born February 20, 1981) is an American mandolinist, singer, songwriter, composer, and radio personality, best known for his work in the progressive acoustic trio Nickel Creek and the acoustic folk and progressive blue ...

Noam Pikelny Noam Pikelny (born February 27, 1981, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American banjoist. He is a member of the group Punch Brothers and was previously in Leftover Salmon as well as the John Cowan Band. Pikelny is a nine-time Grammy Award nominee, win ...

, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band, Tim O'Brien,

Counting Crows Counting Crows is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, David Immerglück, bass guitarist M ...

Nickel Creek Nickel Creek (formerly known as the Nickel Creek Band) is an American bluegrass band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), and siblings Sara Watkins (fiddle) and Sean Watkins (guitar). Formed in 1989 in Southern California, they released six al ...

, Lyle Lovett,

and the Steep Canyon Rangers among others.

Gallery

File:Roy Clark @ 2007 Huck Finn Festival.jpg, Roy Clark at the 2007 Huck Finn Festival File:Rodney and Doug Dillard (The Dillards) @ 2007 Huck Finn Festival.jpg, Rodney and Doug Dillard (

The Dillards The Dillards are an American bluegrass and country rock band from Salem, Missouri. The band is best known for introducing bluegrass music into the popular mainstream with their appearance as " The Darlings" on '' The Andy Griffith Show''. B ...

) at the 2007 Huck Finn Festival File:Cherryholmes @ 2007 Huck Finn Festival 2.jpg, Cherryholmes at the 2007 Huck Finn Festival File:Cherryholmes @ 2007 Huck Finn Festival 1.jpg, Cherryholmes at the 2007 Huck Finn Festival File:Huck Finn Jubilee and Bluegrass Festival 2009.jpg, Huck Finn Jubilee and Bluegrass Festival in 2009

References

External links

* {{Bluegrass music Folk festivals in the United States Bluegrass festivals Music festivals in California Tourist attractions in Ontario, California Music festivals established in 1974

History

Acts

See also

Gallery

References

External links