On Tuesday, April 15th, Sturgill Simpson came to the Mission Ballroom for the second night in Denver along his “Who the Fuck is Johnny Blue Skies?” tour. The tour is supporting his eponymous alter ego which debuted last year with the release of his latest album, Passage du Desir. The show — a long time coming for many in that massive crowd — was a three-straight-hour epic, the kind that you keep with you and bring out years later to tell friends, family, strangers, whoever about with a reverential tone, the kind used when speaking of the stuff of legend. It had such warmth and depth that it felt like staring deep into a campfire on a cool night while friends tell stories and pass a bottle around. It was unifying in the same way that those bonfire nights always are, the crowd bonded together forever by the memory of standing in that room as Sturgill Simpson and his “band that jams” burned the place down over three hours that passed like embers in the wind.
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With doors opening at 6:30, an unusual hour and a half before the show’s start, many fans began lining up about an hour before doors, the line beginning in front of the ticketing area and wrapping around the building. It was an early glimpse into just how many people were at the show, many of whom, this writer included, had been waiting for the better part of a decade to finally see Sturgill.
It bears mentioning that Sturgill’s last scheduled Colorado show was an early COVID casualty, which served to solidify the reality that COVID would ultimately present. Colorado fans have been waiting for him to come back ever since so this show felt earned, full-circle, cathartic in a rather unique way. In addition to Sturgill just being Sturgill and his fan base being so loyal, this explains why tickets were so hard to get and why thousands of people were willing to leave their homes for a rowdy show on a Tuesday night.
Once the doors opened and fans found their friends and sardined their way into their spots, the vibes that emanated throughout the night began to reveal themselves. Everyone was so excited and happy to be there. Fast friends were made as old friendships solidified in anticipation. Looking over that great sea of people, all smiling and laughing and decked out in cowboy attire, was the kind of sight that keeps faith in humanity alive.
Sturgill and his band — Sturg on guitar and vocals; Laur Joamets on lead guitar; Miles Miller on drums; Kevin Black on bass; and Robbie Crowell on keys — hit the stage right at 8. Before they started playing, Sturg took a minute to address something to the crowd, a moment that has actually gone quite viral over the last week. He wanted to make clear to “all the jam band kids” in the audience that he and his band are “not a jam band.” He went on to say, “I am a songwriter with a band that jams. Just ’cause some of y’all are used to chasing the same songs 15 or 18 times doesn’t mean we’re going to do that tonight.” He made sure to promise that there would be no repeats from the night before (unless they felt like it) and told the crowd not to “be a buncha little bitches” if they didn’t hear certain songs they were hoping for. This had everyone cheering and laughing in equal measure, all eager to get the show rolling.
He also mentioned how much better he felt than the night before, which was referred to as the “flu game” show due to a chest cold he’d caught but still played through. He said he’d been given steroids to combat it, was feeling in the zone and that shone through all night, even if his voice on certain songs was still a little shaky. This, however, just added to how raw and laconic the show felt, no one taking anything too seriously and just playing some damn good music.
Finally, after hours and years of waiting, the show kicked off with the beloved “Brace for Impact (Live a Little)” off 2016’s genre-bending A Sailor’s Guide to Earth. The song featured a tease of The Grateful Dead’s “China Cat Sunflower,” and it was a little ironic that they’d cover the founders of jam music right off the bat, given Sturgill’s opening statements. It felt very tongue-in-cheek, an “if you know, you know” reference to just how much attention Sturg has been garnering from the jam community lately, and the crowd ate it up.
This led right into “Jaunita” off the 2021 concept album, The Ballad of Dood and Juanita, which led straight into “Railroad of Sin” and then into “The Storm,” both off Sturgill’s debut album, High Top Mountain, released in 2013. They didn’t stop a second between each song, drawing each out, stretching or, dare I say, “jamming” them all into one another seamlessly. It was indicative of how the night would largely play out: these blocks of four or five songs jammed into each other until it was time to move on. It seemed incredibly loose as well. Sometimes it seemed as if there was a plan, but other times when the plan was abandoned in favor of whatever the band was hearing at the time. Multiple times throughout the night, Sturg would ask, “All right, boys, what do you want to play next?” indicating they were making it up as they went along.
The first block was followed by an extended “Ronin,” which, given that it’s the opening song from 2019’s Sound and Fury, one of this writer’s all-time favorite albums, and is rarely played by itself, was a big moment. Sure enough, its tinny, psychedelic guitar shredding gave way to the percussive opening of “Remember to Breathe,” which had this writer and one of his best friends high-fiving and screaming “Yes!” because it was finally happening and the band ripped the song apart.
“Some Days” came next and was followed by Sturgill’s fan favorite cover of Moore and Napier’s “Long White Line.” This really sent the crowd into a frenzy but it soon gave way to “Sitting Here Without You” and then into “Time After All,” a real chill, joint-on-a-porch-friendly tune that ended the latest block of songs.
Next came one of Sound and Fury’s biggest hits, “Mercury in Retrograde,” which was played almost identically to the album. However, it was followed by “Sing Along,” which at first was unrecognizable due to how differently it was played. The energy was still very much there but they transformed it into much more of a country-western tune than the rollicking psych-rock version found on the album. It speaks to Sturg’s inventiveness, his willingness to seek constant reinvention lest he find himself stagnant.
Next came “Mint Tea,” the first of what would be three Johnny Blue Skies tunes played that night. For those who don’t know, this show was technically a Johnny Blue Skies show, Sturg’s new alter ego who he debuted with the recent release of Passage Du Desir. “Mint Tea” is a favorite from the new album and the crowd went wild.
Next came a couple of covers, William Bell’s “You Don’t Miss Your Water” into Neil Diamond’s “Red, Red Wine.” The latter served as an easy-going jam vehicle that ended up turning into something else entirely. Sturg said something along the lines of “Okay, here you go,” as the jam evolved into the opening chords of “You Can Have the Crowd,” a rarely played fan favorite. The crowd became deafening, each raunchy word of the song screamed so loudly in unison the walls of the Mission shook.
The band let this hang in the air for a minute, the energy something primordial, base, feral. They cooled things down with “Just Let Go” into the night’s second Jonny Blue Skies song, “If the Sun Never Rises Again,” which itself evolved into the classic Little Feat party song, “Spanish Moon,” a celebration of debauchery if there ever was one. Here, the strain on Sturg’s voice began to show as it seemed he had trouble hitting some of the wilder notes in the song, which typically would be well within his range.
Seemingly in response, they slowed things down for a bit with “Voices” which led into one of the best songs written in the last 20 years, “Welcome to Earth (Pollywog).” Its first half had so many tears threaten to fall before its second, high-energy, dancey half had the place moving as much as space would allow.
They then brought the fire back with a searing “Best Clockmaker on Mars.” They jammed it out and threw a “Bulls on Parade” by Rage Against the Machine tease in there and the whole crowd was hanging onto their cowboy hats as they headbanged.
Next came a faithful rendition of Procul Harum’s beloved “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” which led into the beautiful “It Ain’t All Flowers.” This gave way to the final Johnny Blue Skies song of the night, “One for the Road,” which felt like a farewell to the crowd and an appreciation for the two nights Sturgill and his non-jam band band that jams spent in Denver.
But the night wasn’t over yet. They still had about 15 minutes left and filled every second, first with a cover of “Purple Rain,” one of the greatest songs ever written in any time period. It was a huge rendition that gave every band member a chance to shine.
Once it ended, the final chords hung in the air until the band grabbed them and turned them into potentially this writer’s favorite Sturgill Simpson song, “Call to Arms.” They jammed until it became Joe Walsh’s “Rocky Mountain Way,” which Sturgill attempted to sing on but either couldn’t or immediately forgot the words because it went back to being an instrumental right after the iconic first lyric. It evolved back into “Call to Arms,” and after Sturgill thanked everyone for coming out, the show came to an end. The crowd carried it out into the Denver night to share around whatever campfires their lives present them with.
All photography courtesy of Adrienne Thomas.
