Charley Crockett Live At Red Rocks – Morrison, Colorado

Written by Kyle

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We have been listening to Charley Crockett (and if you haven’t heard the man, you better check it out!) for a few years, his are some of the favorite records on rotation in our house. We saw him live the first time a few years ago at a small 500 person venue here in Colorado. I feel we were lucky to see him when he was still playing small venues; The last time we saw him was in a 5000 person venue, and generally speaking I’m not a fan of venues that size, you tend to lose the feel and energy of a packed small house.

When we heard he would be playing at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado this June, we jumped at the chance to buy tickets! We decided to plan a little trip and head out to the show, then swing through Rocky Mountain National Park on our way home. The plan was for this to be a motorcycle trip, but weather can be pretty unpredictable here this time of year, especially in the mountains.

The day we planned to leave the whole front range was getting hit with thunderstorms, so we decided to jump instead. That was a good decision, after a very eventful drive with torrential downpours and flash flood warnings, we arrived in Morrison and met up with a couple friends from out in our area. We all drove up to the venue together and began the hike up to our seats. If you’ve never been before, it literally is a hike just from the parking lot to the entrance, and then about 1 billion stairs to the seating areas. It’s an amazing venue though, the wide stepped seating nestled into the red rocks, and a beautiful view of the plains surrounding Colorado Springs and Denver.

We grabbed our seats and enjoyed the opening band Rattlesnake Milk, we have heard them plenty on Spotify, and they were fantastic live. The second band Chaparelle came on but immediately had to stop due to lightning! We waited patiently and watched the storm rolling through with lightning, thunder, and rain in the distance. We were definitely worried the show would be canceled, but after a small break, the second band came back on and finished their set.

Now came the moment we had been waiting for, Charlie Crockett and his band, the Blue Drifters hit the stage. His stage presence, set design, and lighting were better than ever. The lightning over the stage in the background added even more effect to the show. He played a mix of hits from his many albums, as well as a bunch of tracks from his newest release Lonesome Drifter, and a couple from his upcoming album. 

I only took a few pictures and videos because I was too busy enjoying the performance and venue. He’s absolutely one of our favorites artists to see live, and the venue made the performance that much more memorable. Thanks Red Rocks, and see you down the road Charley!