On Saturday, May 30th, over 70 artists and thousands of fans came together for Quarantine Comes Alive, a virtual music festival that raised over $150,000 for an array of charities via the comprehensive PLUS1 COVID-19 Relief Fund.
The 15-hour live-stream marathon featured new contributions by an array of amazing artists from around the world, including popular jamgrass outfit Greensky Bluegrass, which delivered a fantastic 10-minute performance as the event charged into the evening hours.
“We’re all at home and grateful you are too, that’s why we’re here to play for ya,” mandolinist/singer Paul Hoffman said to the camera to welcome viewers into his and his bandmates’ homes. After counting the band in, Hoffman and the rest of Greensky opened their three-song virtual performance with “Burn Them”, a track off 2014’s If Sorrows Swim. The 10-minute set rolled on with energizing renditions of “A Letter To Seymour” and “Fixin’ To Ruin”, and the latter of which featured an excellent exchange of solos to match some amusing dance moves from bassist Mike Devol.
While a “virtual festival” is inherently less likely to produce the sorts of surprise sit-ins fans chase at IRL events, Greensky Bluegrass managed to pull one off during their Quarantine Comes Alive performance. Don’t blink during Anders Beck‘s solo on “Burn Them”—if you do, you’ll miss a quick appearance by Derek Trucks on tambourine.
If you enjoyed the performance, Greensky Bluegrass asks that you make a donation to HeadCount. Revisit Greensky Bluegrass’s Quarantine Comes Alive performance in full below:
Greensky Bluegrass – “Burn Them”, “A Letter to Seymour”, “Fixin’ To Ruin” – Quarantine Comes Alive
Presented by Live For Live Music in partnership with PLUS1 and Nugs.TV, Quarantine Comes Alive was conceived as a way to celebrate and support musicians, provide fans with unique musical experiences from the comfort of their couches, and raise money for comprehensive COVID-19 relief during this time of uncertainty. All funds raised from the donation-based event will be split evenly between the artists on the bill and the PLUS1 COVID-19 Relief Fund, which works directly with leading non-profit organizations like Sweet Relief, MusiCares, Center for Disaster Philanthropy, World Central Kitchen, Partners In Health, Trans Lifeline, and Backline to provide aid where it’s needed most. For more information, head here.
Don’t miss the follow-up to Quarantine Comes Alive this Sunday, June 28th: Justice Comes Alive: A Virtual Festival For Equality.
Justice Comes Alive will feature performances by 50+ artists including Antibalas, Big Sam’s Funky Nation, BANDEMIC (John Scofield, John Medeski, Billy Martin, & Jesse Murphy), Phil Lesh and the Terrapin Family Band, Stanley Jordan, Christone “KINGFISH” Ingram, Dumpstaphunk, Galactic, Lettuce, Nahko, The Soul Rebels, Tank and the Bangas, TAUK, Turkuaz, and Umphrey’s McGee as well as conversations with musicians like Oteil Burbridge, Christian McBride, Karl Denson, Ivan Neville, and more about how we can heed the call of the moment to address and eliminate racial inequality on both a personal and a societal level.
For more information or to secure your streaming link, head to www.JusticeComesAlive.com. For updates, follow Justice Comes Alive on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and RSVP to the Facebook Event page.
