Photo: Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats | By Scott Tobias and Patricia Calhoun, Westword | Back in 1995, the Colorado Rockies were just finishing up their first season at Coors Field when we got in the game with the Westword Music Showcase. On one September night, we filled a handful of venues in LoDo with dozens of local bands for the first-ever Westword Music Showcase (with tickets a whopping five bucks). Ever since Westword published its first issue in September 1977, we’d always offered comprehensive coverage of the music scene in the free weekly issues and had even sponsored shows, but this was the first major musical event we’d produced.
And it wouldn’t be the last. The Showcase went back to LoDo the next year, adding more venues and an outdoor stage. It returned the next year, and the next. But like the Showcase, that neighborhood was growing, and ultimately could no longer accommodate the event. So we moved it to the Golden Triangle, where it expanded, with more local bands in venues around the neighborhood and national acts on first one, then two stages. The Westword Music Showcase was the party of the year — but ultimately, it outgrew that rapidly developing neighborhood, too.
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In the meantime, Westword will present other events, including the inaugural Out to Brunch on June 10 and Tacolandia, our tribute to tacos returning to Civic Center Park on August 19. And we’ll continue our music coverage, which has only become more comprehensive, with daily stories on the local scene not just on http://www.westword.com, but on TikTok, Instagram and more.
The show must go on…but how and where? For inspiration, look below to see the hundreds of acts that have played the Westword Music Showcase since 1995. And to all the musicians, venues and sponsors who made those events possible, our heartfelt thanks.
[Was fun looking over all the names of the bands that performed! Some great memories there like Brethren Fast (hand holding heart).]
Read the whole story here and the lists of the musicians who performed:
https://www.westword.com/music/westword-music-showcase-break-2023-16917454
[Thanks to Alex Teitz for contributing this article! http://www.femmusic.com]
May 25, 2023| Colorado Music-Related Business| Barb Dye