The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band wowed its Bay Area fans — perhaps for the last time ever in concert — on opening day of the 2025 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in San Francisco.

Yes, the Long Beach country act has announced its intention to retire from touring — after some 60 years of life on the road — whenever its current farewell trek comes to an end. If these musicians hold true to their stated intentions then that means that this beloved free festival in Golden Gate Park very likely hosted the last ever Nitty Gritty Dirt Band show in the Bay Area.

This (probable) NGDB finale was one of the big highlights of Day 1 (Friday) of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year and ranks as the biggest music event in the Bay Area. Other highly antici

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