Music and Memories at the Coliseum: 1970s

The Denver Coliseum opened its doors on January 10th, 1952, hosting segments of the National Western Stock Show. Beyond the many rodeo events over the years, the Coliseum featured an ice-skating rink at times, hosted large Boy Scout gatherings, many sporting events and much more.

March 25th, 1970 – Led Zeppelin

April 9th, 1970 – The James Gang – Canned Heat – Jimmie Spheeris

May 12th, 1970 – Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young Creedence Clearwater Revival

June 16th, 1971 – The Jackson Five

November 17th, 1970 – Elvis Presley

REVIEW:

by Thomas MacCluskey
Rocky Mountain News
November 18, 1970

The Coliseum was ceiling to ceiling with Elvis Presley fans — 11,500 strong. Screaming strong! Continuous flashbulb firing strong. After almost 15 years of national, even international, super popularity, the ever-young man wailed through a set of songs from classic rock and roll, through gospel, country and old and new pop.

Whatever they say (“they” being the pseudo-sophisticated critics who have forgotten the purpose of music), Elvis sings damned well. Technically, he has the ability to maneuver through all the songs he chooses with accurate enough intonation and as obviously swinging rhythmic drive.

In the expressivity department – where music really does its thing – Elvis has few peers. SURE, HE has all the dramatic gimmicks of show biz built in; but it should be remembered that he set the standard (among white performers, anyhow) back in January and February 1956 when he made five successive appearances on nationwide TV on the Jackie Gleason Stage Show.

Yes, he derived the gestures, sound and singing style from blacks such as Arthur Crudup, Bob Diddley and others, but he put it all together with his already developed country style and created a worldwide musical revolution which hasn’t stopped spinning yet.

The musical giant demonstrated to his Denver fans not only all of the talents that have sustained his popularity but also the on-stage natutalness and down home humility for which he’s always been known. He introduced each member of his band; his manager of 15 years, Col. Tom Parker; his conductor, Joe Guerico, and his father.

He thanked all of the personnel who are traveling with him from his Las Vegas show and he gave special praise to Denverite Joe Flores’ 15-men orchestra, which accompanied the entire performance with well rehearsed, hard-driving playing.

LET ME TELL you the pelvis still works. And the longish coal black hair and sideburns that cover the ears still fly when the head bounces and body gyrates. The arms dramatically conduct all the band’s rhythmic punches and the legs swing into their wide-spread stance often.

The pure white, skin-tight jumpsuit with the high collar and long fringe and the sparkling green sash and neck scarf don’t exactly epitomize “Heartbreak Hotel” or “Hound Dog,” but they certainly dazzle the eyes. And the Elvis face is as handsome as ever, gals.

The evenings’s festivities got under way with a seven minute blasting performance (due to ears unyet accustomed to a tremendously powerful sound system) by The Imperials, a polished white, pop-gospel quartet.

Immediately, thereafter, four black is beautiful young gals charged on stage in a scarlet-orange flash to turn on the audience further with 15 minutes of fine soul singing and visual swinging. The group, the Sweet Inspirations is aptly named.

Comedian Sammy Shore rounded out the fast-paced show with a wide variety of humor, which was received enthusiastically by the huge audience.

December 11, 1970 – Trapeze – The Moody Blues

February 27th, 1971 – Black Sabbath – Mountain

March 14th, 1971 – Faces – Savoy Brown – The Grease Band

April 19th, 1971 – Grand Funk Railroad – Bloodrock

May 18th, 1971 – Neil Diamond

May 28th, 1971 – Quicksilver Messenger Service – James Gang – Kyle

July 18th & 20th, 1971 – Chicago

August 9th, 1971 – The Memphis Horns Tour – Stephen Stills – The Memphis Horns

August 20th, 1971 – The Jackson 5

August 27th, 1971 – Procol Harum – Mountain

September 28th thru 30th, 1971 – Santana – Fanny

Black Sabbath – October 18th, 1971

November 12th, 1971 – The Guess Who – Gypsy

November 16th, 1971 – Ten Years After – The J. Geils Band

December 4th & 5th, 1971 – The Who

January 29th, 1972 – Traffic – Free – John Martyn

February 12th, 1972 – The Osmond Brothers

February 19th, 1972 – The Killer Tour – Alice Cooper – Cheech & Chong

March 13th, 1972 – Yes – The Allman Brothers

March 21st, 1972 – Mahavishnu Orchestra – Emerson, Lake and Palmer

May 22nd, 1972 – Creedence Clearwater Revival – Tony Joe White – Freddie King

June 16th, 1972 – The Rolling Stones – Stevie Wonder

June 21st, 1972 – Led Zeppelin

June 29th & 30th, 1972 – Jethro Tull

August 2nd, 1972 – YEs – Randy Meisner

August 3rd, 1972 – Yes – Edgar Winter – Eagles

August 23rd, 1972 – Rod Stewart & Faces – John Kay

September 9th, 1972 – Jimmy Castor

October 31st, 1972 – Uriah Heep – Savoy Brown

November 29th, 1972 – ZZ Top – Wild Turkey – Ten Years After

December 10th, 1972 – West, Bruce & Laing – The J. Geils Band

January 29th, 1973 – Traffic

February 3rd, 1973 – Santana

February 21st, 1973 – Jim Croce

February 22nd, 1973 – Steely Dan – Sha Na Na – Chuck Berry

March 13th, 1973 – Time Fades Away Tour – Neil Young and the Stray Gators – Linda Ronstadt

March 27th, 1973 – Boz Scaggs – Humble Pie – Foghat

April 7th, 1973 – Steely Dan – Bread

April 30th, 1973 – Elvis Presley

REVIEW:

Elvis Proves He’s Still The King
by Clark Seacrest
The Denver Post

In the freezing drizzle outside the Denver Coliseum Monday night, teenybop girls stood in the cold, offering to buy your tickets to Elvis Presley’s concert inside. Fat chance.

Inside, if you were fortunate enough to have seats up front, other fans were offering $5 if you’d let them squeeze in between you and your companion – three people in two chairs, don’t you know.

As it was already, the maximum allowable audience – something nearing 13.000 – jammed the coliseum despite miserable weather, to see the king of ’em all.

Elvis – fresh-looking, youthful, vibrant and with oodles of sex appeal for the ladies – gave the audience what they had come for. There were some 40 musicians on stage helping him out, but he left no doubt as to who was working the hardest.

[…] Elvis bedazzles his fans just as we knew he would (We know his suit was patriotic because it had sequinned red, white and blue eagles and shields and stuff on it).

As sweat rolled from the brow (mopped up by scarves which were lobbed to eager young ladies). Elvis did all the things we knew he would do – “Heartbreak Hotel,” “Love Me Tender,” “I Got A Woman,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.” “Johnny B. Goode,” “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” “I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You” and so on.

But what really turned on the audience – particularly the young ladies present – was when, with a sneer and suggestive tug at the scarf, Elvis did “I’m A Steam Roller, Baby (and I’m Going To Roll All Over You).” (squeal, ecstasy, Elvis! Elvis!) Or with a jerk of the knee and a thrust of the arm, he did “Fever.”

There were more scarves, more pouts, more curled lips, more jerks and grinds, more stabs of a fist into the air, more sweating. But now and then, if you looked real carefully, there was a flick of the mouth or a twinkle of the eye, and you could see that Elvis Presley knew he was pulling thousands of legs at the Denver Coliseum Monday night.