At both the time of its release and during its 2007 induction as a new state song, critics charged the “high” in the song referred to drug use. The song, however, was not always universally loved. “He founded the Windstar Foundation in 1976 in Snowmass as an education and demonstration center dedicated to a sustainable future.” Singer John Denver, left, and Dick Lamm greet prospective voters in downtown Denver’s Civic Center park on Oct. “Denver used his popularity to promote his favorite cause: the environment,” Colorado Music Hall of Fame officials wrote upon his induction. Denver’s pioneering eco-activism is now often synonymous with Colorado. It’s also become shorthand for Colorado culture to many people outside of our state, its name borne on craft beers, art exhibitions, theater productions and other public culture. His final show there was in the summer of 1989.Įven when he was alive, “Rocky Mountain High” had come to symbolize Colorado’s musical identity for many in the state, and was approved by legislators as the state’s second official song in 2007 (the first is “Where the Columbines Grow” by Dr. That kicked off a run of 16 concerts that would position Denver as the first-ever artist to play four consecutive nights at the venue. “On the road and hanging by a song / But the string’s already broken and he doesn’t really care / It keeps changing fast and it don’t last for long.”ĭenver had just debuted at Red Rocks Amphitheatre on June 21, 1972, about four months before “Rocky Mountain High” began climbing the charts, according to the Castle Pines Connection. “When he first came to the mountains his life was far away,” he wrote in the gentle, melodically intoxicating song. He had moved to Colorado three years prior, according to Red Rocks and the Colorado Music Hall of Fame (the latter of which inducted Denver in 2011), and his time living in the fast-changing mountain town of Aspen - now synonymous with glitz and unaffordability - inspired him to see Colorado through itinerant eyes. 30, 1972, “Rocky Mountain High” became a chart-topping hit in 1973 and a staple of Denver’s live sets. “And not just any lyrics, but world-famous lyrics that span genres and generations.” “Here in Colorado, we’ve always known that our majestic mountains, our bright blue skies, our starlit nights and our forest and streams were the stuff of legends - but John Denver made them the stuff of song lyrics, too,” Polis said in a statement.

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