San Francisco lost one of its beloved folk musicians, Bruce Sherman. Bruce was a multi-instrumentalist, playing button accordion,concertina, mandolin, fiddle, and musical saw. He was a longtime volunteer and Festival of the Sea performer at Hyde Street Pier, and a regular at old-timey sessions at cafes and bookstores around the city. He sang sea chanteys, and was for several years a member oif the sea music band Skip Hendewrson and the Starboard Watch. He sang English and French folk songs, and any other type of song that struck his fancy.

Bruce was a gentle soul, with a low-key approach to his music that charmed everyone who came into contact with him. On weekends, he would sing and play aboard the ship Balclutha, regaling international visitors with his music and his knowlege of San Francisco, the city he loved and was raised in. A memorial service was held for him in September at the Noe Valley Ministry in San Francisco, attended by those who knew him from his various musical worlds, his brothers and 90-year old mom, and friends who knew him since his youth. The San Francisco Chronicle, the city's major daily, ran a very well written article about him by longtime San Franciscan and reporter Carl Nolte, stressing how much Bruce was part of the fabric of the city.

Bruce took his own life on September 9.

-Chanteyranger