Sail into summer: The Live Oak Music Festival is just around the corner 

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Never been to Live Oak Music Fest? Maybe this should be your year. Even if you've missed the first 34 years, joining the Live Oak family is as easy as slipping on your favorite pair of jeans.

"Live Oak has something special about it that's all about community," KCBX Director of Programming and Content Marisa Waddell explained. "When you go, you just feel like you're part of a community right away. People treat each other well. We have something called 'the Live Oak way,' which is all about treating one another with kindness. It's everything you needed to know when you were in kindergarten, you know? Share, be kind to one another.

"You feel that embodied in the people who are attending, the staff, the volunteers—they're all about the Live Oak way."

The long-running fundraiser for National Public Radio affiliate KCBX 90.1FM began in 1989 at Biddle Park near Arroyo Grande, moved for decades to Camp San Marcos near Lake Cachuma (it was there so long they changed the San Marcos name to Camp Live Oak), and in 2019 returned to SLO County and its new home at El Chorro Regional Park across from Cuesta College on Highway. 1.

For many music fans and families, it's the gateway to summer fun, running this year from Friday, June 14, through Sunday, June 16. If you don't want to camp, you can buy a day ticket and, as Waddell encouraged, "Dip your toe in. Try it for a day and you'll see for yourself."

It's advice shared by KCBX General Manager Frank Lanzone: "We had a slew of people last year who came in for the day and said, 'We're getting camping tickets next year.' And camping tickets [sales] are ahead this year from what they were last year."

That's right, tickets and camping passes are moving, so now's the time to commit. What you'll get is a family-friendly atmosphere with tons of activities for kids, teens, young adults, and music fans of all ages. Maybe you attended the festival when it was in Santa Barbara County but haven't tried the new location. The good news is, after a rough initial year in 2019, they worked the bugs the out.

"I miss the old location," Lanzone admitted. "My kids grew up there. I grew up there. But this location has turned into home. A lot of people, after the first festival [at El Chorro Regional Park] said, 'This ain't Live Oak,' but after the next festival, people said, 'It's back. You can feel it this year.' And you really could.

"I'm not sure I could tell you what happened, what the difference was, but I think we had to grow up a year. It's turned into a great spot for us."

The tree-dappled landscape is beautiful, and unlike the often hot and dusty Live Oak Camp, El Chorro is grassy and roomy, with lots of places to pitch your tent. Excellent food vendors make getting sustenance a breeze. A volunteer security force makes sure everyone's safe, and it offers the sort of free-range childhood experience your kids will never forget.

In a world of niche music fests—bluegrass, country, rock, EDM, blues—another thing that makes Live Oak so unique is its expansive variety of genres. Its musical eclecticism is its strength, and the three-day lineup is a collaboration between Waddell, KCBX Music Director and DJ Neal Losey, and Todd Newman of Good Medicine Presents, who books the acts.

"Todd's just a wonderful partner," Waddell said. "He has great relationships with artists and agencies. We are ever grateful to Good Medicine for helping us book the festival."

Newman works very hard at making sure the variety of performers flows seamlessly from one to another throughout each day.

"A lot of [the variety] reflects back on KCBX," Newman explained. "Relative to other radio stations, they have very diverse programming, and that has to do with KCBX wanting to provide diversity to the community, but it also has to do with the public radio station dynamics of independent DJs being able to bring a different flavor to different shows.

"We try to reflect that within Live Oak and its expansive palette," he continued. "It's a lot of fun but also challenging. At the same time, I think other music festivals—maybe by design—get trapped into a very narrow bank of the river. Live Oak has a lot of autonomy to branch out into other things. I think [our audience] expects to be exposed to something new. They're open-minded and interested in seeing different genres."

Lanzone agrees: "It's about trying to expand our audience. We've always described the festival as representing the kinds of music you hear on KCBX, but I think it's now beyond that. We've just tried to keep it an eclectic festival. People are expecting us to bring them really good performances from people they've never heard of before."

Of course, some performers are invited back due to popular demand. KCBX always conducts a post-festival survey to make sure what they're doing is working.

"Las Cafeteras performed last year and are performing again this year," Waddell noted. "They were the festival favorite last year. We had lots of people saying, 'Oh, bring them back,' so we're bringing them back."

Which performer is Waddell most excited about?

"Good lord, Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway!" she gushed. "She's one of my all-time favorite musicians, and it's a big deal that we were able to get her. She's in high demand for good reason. She's one of the best bluegrass/Americana guitarists in the world, an excellent singer, and an expert songwriter, too. Plus, her band is made up of virtuosos on their own instruments. They are tight and jaw-droppingly talented. Anyone who comes on Friday night will leave smiling and be blown away by what they just saw."

If you just want to come for a day, the best bang for your buck is Saturday, where for $70 you can see 13 different acts, but each day boasts a worthy lineup.

There's also a Zen Den with guided yoga and meditation as well as a tea lounge.

Waddell added that the festival is perfect for budding or seasoned musicians because of all the opportunities for jamming as well as workshops with the likes of Phil Salazar, Inga and Britta Swearingen, and longtime emcee Joe Craven and his talented daughter Hattie. There's also a new late night dance party from midnight to 1 a.m. on Saturday.

"It's so funny," Waddell laughed. "I get excited every year and I think, 'Oh my gosh, this is the best year ever!' Every year I think that."

"I think people should try it," Lanzone said. "I think they'll enjoy it. It's a fun weekend, especially if you've got kids. We've tried to keep the spotlight on [the idea that] this is for families."

Maybe it's your time to join the Live Oak fam. Come for a day, come every day and go home to sleep in your own bed, or camp for the weekend—any way you slice it, it'll be a blast.

"I'm always kind of amazed that Live Oak doesn't sell out immediately," Newman said. "KCBX has been very gracious in making Live Oak accessible. I know they're very sensitive to pricing and making it easy for people to participate in camping. I know for my family, Live Oak feels like the most consequential communal event that happens in San Luis Obispo County. We've always appreciated how it's affected our family.

"Our kids have grown up with Live Oak, and being able to embrace that community has made our kids more empathic and compassionate and even better communicators because of the experiences at Live Oak. It really is very powerful."

The lineup

On Friday, June 14, see string band Long Forgotten, Afro funk and soul-jazz act The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble, psychedelic doom boogie band TK and the Holy Know-Nothings, brass band mashers Brass Mash, Latin soul star Trish Toledo, and Grammy-winning bluegrass and Americana ensemble Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway.

On Saturday, June 15, experience indie folk jazz artist Jessi Carr, bluesy roots singer-songwriter Azere Wilson, reggae heroes Resination, roots country-rock-soul singer Madeline Hawthorne, funky New Orleans brass band The Soul Rebels, Afro-Brazilian drumline Samba Loca, outlaw country blues and rockabilly star Jesse Dayton, saxophone- and drum-driven cave music trio Moon Hooch, Irish rockers The Young Dubliners, Latin soul and psychedelia trio Los Tranquilos, Afro-Mexican Americana futurists Las Cafeteras, ska legends The English Beat, and late night dance party king Vince Cimo's Hot Fire.

On Sunday, June 16, check out folk harmonies by Murphy Wylde, singer-songwriter Dave Tate, California soulgrass by Miss Leo & the Handsome Fellers, rocking folky-bluesy gospelgrass by Eagle Rock Gospel Singers, roots and soul Americana by Melissa Carper, roots rock and Americana act The Coffis Brothers, jamgrass by Hot Buttered Rum, country blues punk by Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band, dub-hop reggae and soul by Boostive, and humorous storytelling and serious folk by John Craigie with The Coffis Brothers. Δ

Contact Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey at [email protected].