The veteran country and bluegrass singer Jeanie Poling, who spent more than four decades performing with husband Chuck Poling, was a longtime fixture of San Francisco’s bluegrass community.

Jeanie Poling, a veteran country and bluegrass singer whose musical partnership with her husband stretched across more than four decades, has died at 67.

Poling died on August 26. Her husband, Chuck Poling, said she died from pneumonia after a three-and-a-half-year battle with cancer. Separate reporting cited by PennLive said she had been fighting two rare forms of cancer for roughly three years.

What stands out in the story of her final years is that illness did not immediately take her away from the places where she had spent so much of her life performing. She continued playing farmers’ markets and street fairs while undergoing her cancer battle, remaining connected to live music almost until the end.

For audiences around San Francisco, Poling was more than a familiar singer. She and Chuck had become part of the fabric of the local bluegrass scene.

More than 40 years of music together

Jeanie and Chuck Poling performed together for more than four decades, building a partnership that extended well beyond the stage. The pair also hosted the Bluegrass Country Jam at the Plough and Stars for about 20 years, a run that ended when the COVID-19 pandemic shut the event down.

Their performances leaned into traditional bluegrass and country music. Chuck played mandolin, while Jeanie played guitar and sang. She had come to San Francisco from Long Island, while Chuck was a San Francisco native.

Her voice was central to their sound.

Chuck described Jeanie as a remarkable singer with a powerful voice, saying she could command a room and make people stop to listen.

That ability helped make the couple recognizable figures within San Francisco’s bluegrass community, where their relationship with audiences was built over years of regular performances rather than a single breakthrough moment.

She continued performing during cancer treatment

Poling’s cancer diagnosis did not immediately end her life on stage.

During roughly three years of treatment for two rare cancers, she continued appearing at farmers’ markets and street fairs. That detail offers a particularly vivid picture of how closely performance remained tied to her everyday life, even as her health declined.

PennLive also reported tributes from friends who recalled spending time with Poling during periods when chemotherapy left her feeling low. One friend, Cheryl Altman, remembered taking her on clothing-shopping trips in San Francisco’s Haight neighborhood to lift her spirits.

Chuck Poling remembers 44 years of love

In a deeply personal Facebook tribute following her death, Chuck wrote about the loss of his wife, musical partner and the person with whom he had shared much of his adult life.

He said Jeanie had “made all my dreams come true” and reflected on 44 years of love, remembering her not only as a singer but also as a mother, professional, partner and his biggest supporter.

Chuck also thanked people who had reached out to the family. He said their children, Isabel and Reuben, were supporting him while grieving their mother themselves, and that the family intended to spend time together privately.

His account provided the clearest detail about her death, stating that Poling died from pneumonia on August 26 following her three-and-a-half-year cancer battle.

A lasting place in San Francisco bluegrass

Poling’s career was rooted in community-scale music making: clubs, jams, farmers’ markets, street fairs and the kind of recurring performances that allow musicians to become familiar faces to generations of listeners.

Her long-running Bluegrass Country Jam, decades of performances with Chuck and her decision to keep playing while undergoing treatment all form part of that legacy.

She was 67.

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