If only the sun-blasted bleachers at Red Rocks could talk.
They would tell stories of love and hate, of rage and concern, of hippie happiness and violence, of thunder and snow, of sex and drugs.
And, of course, rock ‘n’ roll.
These storied seats that have rocked on the May-to-October music train for decades are symbolic of the summer concert experience. And although every show is different, music is at its best in the summertime and under the stars, that cool chill of the wind whistling up your back as the music takes you away.
Breathe it in. The air and the music. And the experience. And the person next to you. The grass and the fiery pollen, and even the guy over there singing loudly. Breathe it all in, whether it’s the natural Red Rocks or the more antiseptic Coors Amphitheatre, life is blooming.
And suddenly it’s Sept. 7, 1984. Along with more than 70,000 others, I’m rocking out at the old Mile High Stadium. It was nippy, but I didn’t notice. Standing on an orange folding chair via my tip-toes, I swayed and rocked to Michael Jackson, and although this Victory Tour was a big deal to most everybody there, it was a really big deal to me.
I was 7, and this was my first concert.
Uncle Jerry had hooked my family up with tickets on the field, but I didn’t know what that meant. Seeing Michael and his brothers own “Billie Jean” and “Human Nature” wasn’t nearly as important as hearing them with their full band. All those instruments. God, the sound.
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I couldn’t have known it then, but I’ve since learned that live instrumentation sparks brighter when you’re outside. That stallion-kick was like a slap in the gut that first time, and after covering my ears for part of the first song – “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin”‘ if I remember correctly – I took it in slowly and allowed the vocals and the instrumentation to seep into the walls of my ear cavity before bouncing off the drum. Boom-bip.
It was an immediate love. For the music. Outdoors. And it hasn’t stopped.
Watching the reunited New York Dolls and Bloc Party tear apart the back-patio venue at Stubb’s BBQ in Austin last month was something I’ll never forget. And the spark was still there, just as loud and clear and vivid as it was more than 20 years ago. And after I’ve seen maybe 1,000 bands the past four or five years, the majority indoors, it’s remarkable how that rule stands as steadfast as David Johansen’s staccato vocals. In your face and undeniable.
Music fans know that summer magic. Don Strasburg, though he’s an upper-brass booking agent with Chuck Morris Presents/Bill Graham Presents, still loves rock-club rock ‘n’ roll. When he’s not closing U2 at the Pepsi Center – paying the band and the like – he’s at Boulder’s Fox Theatre, which he owns, rocking out to String Cheese Incident or Handsome Boy Modeling School.
When I called him to talk about the summer concert season, talk trailed off to the first show he ever saw outdoors: the Grateful Dead at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center on June 27, 1985. (Notice all the exact dates.)
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And suddenly he was 16 again.
“Friends and I gathered in my station wagon, ‘The Blue Bomber,’ and we drove from downstate New York to upstate New York,” said Strasburg.
“You can taste your being,” he said of listening to live music outside. “Especially when you’re young and it’s the first time, the energy from the music and your community of friends around you – the smell of the open air – it’s the camaraderie of being alive and just enjoying life.”
Within seconds, Strasburg was streaming “Stagger Lee” and the rest of the Dead’s 20-year-old show over his office speakers via the epic website Archive.org. All the ambient noises associated with taping were there, including the spark, crackly though it may be.
“God, that was such a great night,” he said.
And I’m sure it was.
Pop music writer Ricardo Baca can be reached at 303-820-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com .
Big venues’ 10 best acts begin with Elton, Nails
Elton John and Nine Inch Nails in Denver on the same night – that’s what summertime is all about.
Here are this summer’s 10 best big-venue offerings:
May 3 – Elton John, Pepsi Center: Whenever the king of pop versatility performs, it’s more than an exercise in nostalgia. Fulfilling and rewarding and consistently surprising, John’s catalog stands up well and strong in 2005. Fresh off an adventurous 2004, which saw the release of the epic DVD set “Dream Ticket” and the excellent record “Peachtree Road,” John seems to be playing with a renewed enthusiasm.
May 3-4 – Nine Inch Nails, Fillmore Auditorium: Trent Reznor’s industrial-leaning rock band headlines the Coachella Valley Music Festival on May 1, and then he’s coming to Colorado to release his new record, “With Teeth,” and kick off a two-night stand at the Fillmore on May 3. The sold-out shows, which mark Reznor’s first return to touring since his Fragility Tour, has the excellent Brechtian punk-rock duo The Dresden Dolls opening. For those who didn’t land tickets, rumor has it that Reznor will return later this summer with a larger arena tour.
May 10 – Nelly, Budweiser Events Center: Nelly has built an impressive career in hip-hop and crossover pop, especially because most people didn’t see him lasting beyond his bright, summer-of-2000 flash. “Country Grammar (Hot …)” was cleverly devised hip-hop cotton candy, but few thought he had any shelf life. Yet here he is five years later riding the success of two hot albums and one of the biggest crossover hits in the past decade, his Tim McGraw pop-country collaboration, “Over and Over.”
June 8 – Kenny Chesney & Gretchen Wilson, Pepsi Center: Chesney may be the headliner, but Wilson is the more notable name on this bill. Her “Redneck Woman” was the first solo female debut single to rock the No.1 spot on Billboard’s country charts in more than two years, and the high-octane rocket fuel that powered her success is equal parts catchy country and tight Wranglers. All hail the neo-Shania.
June 29 – Judas Priest, Coors Amphitheatre: A summer concert season wouldn’t be complete without at least a couple of dips into old-school hair-metal: This show looks to be the premier offering. The band’s RCA debut “Rocka Rocka” turned 30 last year, which is all the more epic when you consider the power of the brand-new “Angel of Retribution.” The reunited band is calling it “the second (and final) part of 1976’s pseudo-conceptual ‘Sad Wings of Destiny,”‘ and the lush continuation is a must-have for any fan.
July 14 – Eminem & 50 Cent, Pepsi Center: This will doubtless be the year’s biggest hip-hop tour. Featuring Lil Jon & the Eastside Boyz, G-Unit, D-12, Obie Trice and Stat Quo, the Anger Management Tour isn’t putting all its eggs in the Shady/Aftermath camp, although many wouldn’t consider that a bad thing. Bringing Lil Jon’s crunk into the mix is a smart move; his music will be the ideal pump-up for the more calculated rap of Em and 50.
July 17 – Vans Warped Tour featuring The Offspring and My Chemical Romance, Invesco Field at Mile High: The key to this year’s Warped Tour is My Chemical Romance, the budding pop-punk band that has surprisingly blown up in the past year. Combining full-on aggro-pop with their keen ear for punk melody, the band has eclipsed The Offspring and many other bands on the bill not only in popularity, but relevance.
Aug. 6 – Motley Crue, Red Rocks: Sure, they also play May 1 at the Budweiser Events Center, but would you rather see a show indoors in Loveland or outdoors in Morrison? Right. You can count on “Dr. Feelgood,” the 1989 song was their biggest and most notorious hit, representing alongside the good doctor’s friends Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee and their less notorious bandmates. Silvertide and The Exies open the show.
Aug. 25 – Chicago and Earth, Wind & Fire, Red Rocks: This nostalgia-fest sounds a bit inane on the surface, but the word on the street after the same pairing last summer was off the charts. Old-school fans and rookies alike were blown away at the hit-stuffed sets and the undeniable chemistry between the two bands’ music.
Sept. 30 – Oasis, Red Rocks: The release date for “Don’t Blame the Truth” is May 31, and it’s difficult to say anything new about Oasis until then. Three silent years have passed since the release of “Heathen Chemistry,” and it’s been much longer than that since we cared what the Gallagher brothers were fighting about. But it’s still impossible to deny the band’s impact on popular music, and the buzz around this new record is intense. Added bonus: Buzzband Kasabian opens with Jet.
Big talent in small places as choice acts book gigs
This year’s summer concert calendar is proof Denver and its Front Range neighbors have ascended to their rightful place as the region’s live-music hub.
And rarely is live music as sweet as when it is experienced inside a dark club, elbow-to-elbow with fellow fans, on a warm summer night.
Here are 10 small-venue shows that promise something special. This list of nightclub picks is far from complete, so start planning those busy summer schedules with these dates, then check club calendars for a complete take on the season.
April 24 – Gutbucket, Hi-Dive: These jazz innovators weave airy melodies, driving rhythms, restless horns and frenetic bass lines for an eclectic sound they call “punk-jazz.” With Aqueduct and Night Shark.
May 13 – Sound Tribe Sector Nine, Cervantes: One of the most amped-up live electronica acts around, these California dance music meanderers unleash an infrequent “live PA set” along the lines of last year’s infamous San Francisco Halloween party.
May 17 – The Ponys, Benders: This band’s witty Chicago punk rock has a decadent pop sentiment. They will flaunt material from their forthcoming second album, “Celebration Castle,” during a Denver gig with Gris Gris and the Hot IQs.
May 24 – Bloc Party, Gothic: This London buzz-band draws on Sonic Youth, Joy Division, Gang of Four and the Cure. Franz Ferdinand helped draw attention to the group’s bittersweet art-punk two years ago, and that momentum continues to build. Critics celebrated Bloc Party’s multiple appearance during last month’s South By Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas, and the band has quickly become a darling of the music magazines.
June 3-4 – Neko Case, Bluebird: Fans of this dark-eyed beauty champion her misty, refined voice as one of the best in pop music today. Taken in conjunction with Case’s eclectic alt-country-rock, the performer is almost certain to enchant live audiences.
June 7 – Bebel Gilberto and Peter Cincotti, Denver Botanic Gardens: Gilberto fuses her famous father’s airy bossa nova innovations with down-tempo nu-jazz and loungy electronica. Cincotti is a kid from Manhattan’s Upper East Side who takes a page from Harry Connick Jr.’s piano-jazz charm book. It should make for an idyllic start to the Gardens’ outdoor series.
June 13 – Digable Planets, Fox Theatre: This trio was one of the first groups to bring jazz-infused hip-hop to the mainstream, and fans have been waiting more than a decade for their “nickel bag of funk” to resurface. The Colorado date lands one day after the release of their new album, “Trip the Light Fantastic.”
June 23-24 – David “Fathead” Newman, Dazzle: Thanks to Denver’s “jazz oasis in the city,” KUVO 89.3, this saxophone great makes his stand in one of the city’s classiest jazz clubs. Newman started his career at the height of Beat-era jazz, playing with Charlie Parker’s mentor, Buster Smith. He is probably best known for his decade-long association with Ray Charles. He went on to gig with some of jazz and soul’s most relevant figures, including Aretha Franklin and Dr. John.
June 28-29 – Lucinda Williams, Boulder Theater/Botanic Gardens: Time magazine dubbed this Grammy winner “America’s Best Songwriter.” Her forthcoming release, “Lost Highway,” was recorded during a three-day run at San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium, and is Williams’ first live CD in her two-decade career.
July 26 – The Bravery, Bluebird: These graduates of the New York City nightclub scene recently disappointed local indie kids by canceling a Denver show to shoot a video. The passage of time since then should firm up their MTV/Rolling Stone-endorsed buzz.
Staff writer Elana Ashanti Jefferson can be reached at 303-820-1957 or ejefferson@denverpost.com .
The perfect outdoor music outing requires equally perfect planning
Take Colorado’s natural beauty, add a starry night and live music, and you get an unrivaled cultural equivalent of a Zen moment.
But catching outdoor music calls for extra planning. Knowing the rules and the terrain before heading out to a show can make the difference between a night of fun or a total flop.
The venues listed below are not meant to be a definitive list of summer hot spots – just a heads-up about negotiating some of the area’s busiest summer stages. Families with toddlers, or music-lovers who prefer low-key settings, should check with area parks and recreation centers for alternative outdoor music options.
Colorado Convention Center Lecture Hall, 700 14th St., 303-228-8000, .
The Colorado Convention Center provides parking in its garage. Concert rules tend to be determined by the featured artist, but the usual parameters apply: no backpacks, coolers, alcohol, bottles and cans, outside food and drinks, weapons, laser pointers, cameras and recording devices.
Universal Lending Pavilion/The Pepsi Center, 1000 Chopper Circle, 303-405-1100, .
This parking lot venue west of the Pepsi Center bars outside food and beverages, cameras and recording equipment. Parking surrounds the stage, but anyone who doesn’t mind walking a block can find cheaper options at the Auraria campus. Word to the wise at daytime shows: Bring sunscreen and drink plenty of water; the solar heat radiating off the asphalt can be oppressive.
Coors Amphitheatre, 6350 Greenwood Plaza Blvd., Englewood, 303-220-7000.
The days of bringing picnic baskets to this often awkward suburban venue are over. The spot boasts a great mountain view and abundant parking, but large bags and backpacks, coolers, alcohol, glass bottles, cans, outside refreshments, weapons and laser pointers are out.
Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, 303-295-4444, .
This natural wonder boasts, arguably, the state’s best acoustics. Even for sold-out shows, parking is abundant, but the hike is uphill from most lots. Those using the will-call table need to take Red Rocks Park Road No. 2. Camping, outside food and drinks, laser pointers, confetti, animals, skateboards, bullhorns, weapons, fireworks, cameras and coolers are not allowed.
Denver Botanic Gardens, 1005 York St., 720-865-3500.
Always arrive early, as the line to access this ethereal outdoor amphitheater tucked inside the Denver Botanic Gardens generally winds down the block. Parking also is precarious. Kids and picnics are welcome, but chairs with legs longer than 4 inches are out.
Mishawaka Amphitheatre, 970-482-4420, .
Nature-lovers swear by this camper-friendly stage northwest of Fort Collins, just off the Poudre River. Operators have been slow to announce this year’s outdoor-stage schedule, since the facility needs repair. Cross your fingers that all will be well by the anticipated Mother’s Day opening.
Staff writer Elana Ashanti Jefferson can be reached at 303-820-1957 or ejefferson@denverpost.com .
