Some notable names in bluegrass are coming to Medical Lake to pay tribute to one of the genre's trailblazers.
One of the headline acts for the 14th annual Blue Waters, Bluegrass Festival, Aug. 7-9 at Waterfront Park in Medical Lake, is the Hazel Dickens Tribute set.
Born in Montcalm, W.V., on June 1, 1935, Dickens was the eighth of 11 siblings. In the 1950s, she moved to Baltimore and worked in a factory before meeting Mike Seeger, one of the founding members of the New Lost City Rattlers. Dickens soon became active in bluegrass and collaborated with Alice Gerrard, Seeger's wife. The duo produced five albums and became one of the prominent acts in the bluegrass scene, which at the time was a male-dominated genre.
In 1976, Dickens began her solo career, recording four albums and being featured on many compilations. She contributed songs to the documentary "Harlan County, USA," as well as appearing in the film.
In 1994, she became the first woman to receive the Merit Award from the International Bluegrass Music Association and was presented with a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2001. Dickens influenced many artists, including Emmylou Harris and Alison Krauss.
Dickens was famous for her high, lonesome singing style, as well as her focus on writing and singing about West Virginia coal-mining towns and working-class women.
"She's got a great story that's not well known," Kevin Brown, Blue Waters music director said. "She established a strong presence for women (in bluegrass) and gave a voice to coal mining problems."
Dickens passed away in 2011 at 75, from complications of pneumonia.
One of the musicians performing in the tribute is Grammy-award winning artist Todd Phillips.
Phillips, who performs with David Grier and Matt Flinner on Saturday and Sunday during the festival, met Dickens and Gerrard during a reunion tour rehearsal. In 2001, he recorded a tribute album for Dickens with several major artists, including Harris, Joan Osborne, Iris DeMent and Elvis Costello. Although the tracks were recorded in 2005, the album has not been released. In an email, Phillips wrote that the album should be out next year.
"The set on Sunday will represent Hazel and many of the songs recorded for the project," Phillips said.
Laurie Lewis, who is performing at the festival with Kathy Kallick, is also performing in the set. She said she is excited to be paying tribute to Dickens and celebrating her legacy.
"She's one of my favorite writers and people," Lewis said. "It wasn't common for a woman to write her own music or sing in public during her time. Hazel always had such a fighting sense of social justice and a sharp wit."
Eli West and Tom Rozum are the other two musicians in the set. West will be performing Saturday night while Rozum will be on stage with Lewis and Kallick during their sets.
The tribute starts Sunday, Aug. 9 at 7 p.m. Last year's festival featured a similar tribute held for Bill Monroe. Brown said the Dickens tribute will not only feature songs, but also narrative telling her story.
Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.
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