John Denver. It wasn't a secret. My parents went to see him when I was 5. I wanted to go with them, but ended up with the baby sitter. I am still a huge fan! I ❤ This Old Guitar.
Oh it was the subject of today. John Denver. I wish I’d gone to see him in concert with my parents, instead of being so determined to only attend “cool” groups like Queen, Supertramp, Night Ranger and Foreigner.
My wife dragged me to his concert back in the late 70s. As a rock musician, I reluctantly went my my arrogant "rock" nose in the air. Man, did I get humbled. It was just him and his guitar...blew me away. His voice filled the arena. A true talent, not fully appreciated at the time.
And it is even more annoying when you learn how stupid that all was. I just stumbled over the story a few months ago. He just wanted to make a short hop with his new plane, and did not bother to fill up before it. And it that specific plane (that he barely knew, was one of his first flights with it) for some reason they had relocated the fuel tank selector switch, more or less behind the pilot seat, where he with his size could not reach it. And so, when he ran out of fuel, he had lost. Can also be he lost control trying to contort himself in the pilot seat to get at the switch. As almost always, it is multiple items interacting, when just ONE would not have been, all would have worked out.
I saw John in 5 concerts in the 1970s. I was amazed at how wonderful John sang. The percussionists were simply amazing. Calypso had so many percussion instruments.
@@feedingravensI don’t understand why fuel has a switch to change tanks. In the Cessna 172 I flew that switch could be switched from left, right wings of both. I always left the switch to draw from both tanks. In John’s case it was so bizarre to have that switch in a place it couldn’t be reached. Who did that? The cockpit of John’s plane was so small I couldn’t see him being able to move much at all. What a tragic waste.
John Denver... Karen Carpenter- two voices that were as close to perfection as we could ask for in the 20th century. John will always be a part of the soundtrack of my youth and I feel lucky to have that
I thought Denver was corny as a kid, but my view of him changed over the years. Now I think he's a national treasure. His voice was exquisite and his songs unrivaled in their beauty and poignancy.
Think a blip in post,repost. I was pretty lucky to be about as corny as as a country boy gets being about as close to in the milk barn as my generation gets corn alfalfa strawberry fields, etcetera. Square dancing, fiddle music.Yodeling calling in the cows barn parties, etcetera, blue jeans and cowboy boots before they were popular and looked down upon by city people for it. Oooo your from cowtown they used to say. Just part of Los Angeles now. Think I may qualify?
My wife and I had the pleasure of meeting John at the Experimental Aircraft Association airshow in Oshkosh,WI. We were sitting under the wing of an airplane, waiting for the show to start. This little guy in shorts, sandals, Hawaiian shirt, and wire rim glasses walked up and asked if he could share the shade with us. Even though I had previously been to two of his concerts and owned several albums, I didn't recognize him. We talked for perhaps 15-20 minutes about our plane, his plane, Texas (my home), and that he had gone to Texas Tech for a year or two. Eventually, it was time for the show to start and the announcer came on the PA system and said that they were going to have a special guest announcer. "Has anybody seen John Denver? We need him to come to the announcer's stand and get this show on the road." John got up and excused himself. "Sorry, guys, I've gotta go. They're looking for me." We were in shock. John was a huge supporter of the EAA and did a lot of fundraising for them. I remember where I was the day he was killed. I was devastated. I knew a guy that was in college with John. The way he learned to sing was by going to a restroom at a nearby park because he liked the way the sound reverberated. It allowed him to hear himself better. I like Rocky Mountain High, but my all-time favorite song is The Eagle And The Hawk. I cry every time I hear it. I plan to have a verse from it on my tombstone. "...and all those who see me, and all who believe in me, share in the freedom I feel when I fly." So go lay back in an easy chair, turn down the lights, crank up the volume, and give a listen. The picture that song paints is incredible!
I am an Indian I sing take me home at every family get together and people who are listening for the first time , who don't know English start joining by the 2nd chorus , the song is just a miracle for humanity!
I'm a rocker from the 60s. I went to Woodstock. The first time I heard Rockie Mountain High, I knew it wasn't about drugs. I still get chills when I hear it today. It is as close to perfect as a song can get.
Anyone that has ever spent more than a few hours in the Rocky Mountains or any place in the Mountains in the U.S. West... Would know it's not a drug song. The mountains are captivating out here. You get high just by hiking up them and taking in the views.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 Yeah only takes the first verse to unravel that mystery. And the lone soft shadows in the starlight suggests to me John had actually experienced that.
Denver owned the 70’s. He was everywhere. Television, concert tours, even movies. If you haven’t seen “Oh, God” with Denver in a lead role playing opposite George Burns, it’s great. A natural and gifted performer that left a real legacy.
I think Annie's Songs is one of the most beautiful songs ever written. I would not have admitted that at the time when I was listening to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath
John Denver was wonderful. His music proved that the 70's was the most diverse decade for music ever. There was every type of music in the 70's...including John Denver. We probably won't ever see that again. Cheers from Ottawa, Canada. 🍁
Gioknows - The 60's were by far more diverse even on A.M. radio IF you grew up in an area where radio playlists reflected more than the usual white teenie bop Top 40. By the 1970's, the music industry consolidated quite a bit driving smaller labels who offered the diversity off the radio (and hence the market). I can remember both b/c I had an older sister living at home.
@@theartofflipping I don't know what market you lived in, but in Chicagoland there was everything you could want, between AM and FM stations, during the 70's.
@@lennychorn147 I was cutting the commenter some slack in case they didn't live in a market where the variety was available. Of course a huge market like Chicago etc. had variety IF someone sought it out. Nevertheless, I stick to my conclusion. Even giving the benefit of the doubt to say 1971-1973, there's the onslaught of disco and "corporate rock". The consolidation in the music industry then radio took a huge toll. HUGE. I'm old enuff to have heard the difference.
I've been a John Denver "fan" since my childhood (70s), and "Rocky Mountain High" to me is an absolute masterpiece. I still miss his voice and his activism. Thanks to PoR for this wonderful tribute.
Yeah kind of funny huh? He gets to practice his personal activism on the job when the rest of us don't. Highly disappointed when we went to a concert and he started bitching about the valdese instead of entertaining us, which is what he was paid to do. Lost a lot of respect for him that day
That oil spill in Alaska caused a great deal of damage environmentally. Exxon said they cleaned it up. John visited 3 months after, said if you dug down 6 inches it was like tar. He was pretty pissed off with Exxon, even calling them lying bastards on TV and yes mentioned the oil spill in concert. I applaud him for speaking up about the atrociousness of the spill and deceit about the clean up.
I can't listen to anything from John Denver without getting a bit choked up. My dad told me a story, when I was around 7 years old, that when his navy ship came into port in Virginia, all of the crew on the ship would be singing "Take me home, Country Roads". From that day on I could not hear the song without seeing that image in my mind. From that day forward I was a John Denver fan. Fast forward 25 years, I cried, sobbing like a baby, the first time I flew over the Rockies, thinking about "Rocky Mountain High" and all of the times I sang that with my little sister as a kid. John Denver is part of the tapestry of who I am.
John's music touched my bones. The lyrics were thoughts I didn't know I had. His songs got me through some of the blackest nights of my life. I lost a oiece of me the day he died, like he was my other self. I still miss him very much. I admired the fact that he stayed true to himself in spite of his detractors.
John Denver crosses lines all over the place. He transcends every stereotype and category they try to shove him in. I loved Rocky MOuntain High from the first strum and played the album over and over again, but I have one story about him that is personal to me. I am a singer/songwriter too, and also have done busking in Canada's capital, Ottawa's market district for over 25 years. I was walking along with my guitar case dangling from my hand one early morning. It was barely 8:30 a.m. Businesses were just getting started. There were still critters scampering here and there to get scraps because it wasn't busy yet in the market. i saw this pile of teens/early adulthood folks asleep together in a huddle off by themselves. They were street kids... or at least not in their homes or in shelters. They all wore Goth clothes and makeup... lots of punk piercings too, which... I loved punk when I was a teenager, so I wasn't nervous of them or anything and I walked by, and one of them noticed and called out to me and so, I struck up a conversation. Nobody is afraid to talk to a busker... well, maybe the odd snobby person who thinks I'm begging, but buskers have to buy a licence there. I'm a vendor. Anyway, they asked me to play then a song... at 8:39 am, and I didn't feel like it, but they were looking at me... these kids... hopeful eyes... nobody is around, so I won't get in trouble. So, I pull out my guitar, thinking they are into punk and Nirvana or whatever and they're going to ask an acoustic guitarist for something raunchy before 9 a.m. They asked for... John Denver. There I was at 8:30 a.m. with a gaggle of rough looking, sleepy, wayward kids and they were all singing Country Roads, take me home, to the place I belong and some of them were crying. It was a moment I couldn't forget in a million years. That man's music has touched people from every corner and every walk of life. I can attest to that firsthand.
Say whatever you want about him, but there is just something magical, something so emotional and powerful in that unique voice of his. That has impacted everyone.
Beautiful. Thank you for sharing that. I bet that none of those kids ever forgot that moment of kindness from you, either. I hope it got them through the tough times and that they're in better places in their lives now.
I was not a country music person, but John's voice drew you in. That pure voice, melody and lyrics got me singing along right away!! Man, we were so spoiled to live through the height of the singer/songwriter/musician era!
I never considered John Denver to be country, you got lots of pop and rock airplay. It was a different time acoustic artist were happily accepted as part of the rock and roll family
Never considered it country music! They didn't play him on country music stations, he was played on Pop and easy rock stations. I absolutely hate 99% of country music, and never would have put his music in that category. If a song isn't good enough for the other stations different from country music to be played, then I don't want to hear it.
John Denver is someone I only sort of "got" when I was younger. Then I matured a bit and now his music really speaks to me. "He was born in the summer of his 27th year" is an incredible line. His songs tell so many great stories and his voice is just wonderful. He's a treasure!
John Denver was my first musical love. From some point in elementary school to some point in middle school, he was the ONLY singer I really followed. His music and lyrics literally shaped my life, and no other performer has ever filled his shoes. I was blessed to see him in concert once. In that huge stadium, we were all friends around the campfire together. I'll miss him forever.
Same here, Rita. I'm 62 now and JD was the only voice that spoke to me during junior high. Then I found Harry Chapin and Gordon Lightfoot. All great artists
Been a huge fan of John Denver since I was a kid. I have no shame, I wear my John Denver hat alongside my Led Zeppelin tshirt. Oct. 12, 1997 broke my heart to this day.
John was blessed with a voice that soared and cut through everything else. His tunes are modern classics. He wasn't afraid of the stage either-hosting the Grammys is a high stakes gig. Loved him in the movie Oh God in 1977, too! Another song of his that really resonates is the beautiful duet he did with Olivia Newton-John, "Fly Away". Thanks, Adam!
Thank God I’m A Country Boy and Annie’s Song are great too. I have his greatest hits. I don’t skip any of the songs. Thirsty Boots, Aspen Glow, Shanghai Breezes, he was incredible.
Being a kid in the 70s was incredible. For those of us who grew up on road trips with our parents listening to "adult contemporary" stations, being openminded about genre was nearly inescapable. Even having fallen in love with punk/new wave in the 80s, I still treasure all good music. As continually proven on this channel, for those who will hear, Music speaks and doesn't discriminate.
I always thought of him more as my parents’ music, but I loved much of it myself. I still shed a tear listening to Country Roads. I was also an Air Force brat, but a generation younger. Unfortunately my closest connection to him is that I saw him die. I was in grad school in Pacific Grove at the time. A few of us were outside out on the point that afternoon and saw the plane go in. It was far enough away that we weren’t sure at first what we had just seen, but it soon became apparent. What a tragedy. I’ll never forget the stunned feeling of loss when we heard who it was.
I love it when John Denver is recognized and given his due. My mother listened to him so he's been a part of my life forever and I'm a loud and proud fan. No guilt just pleasure. What I admire most is the simplicity of the sentiment and the way it touches the spirit. Very philosophical . RIP John
Being from Colorado, this song resonates in me whenever I hear it. I grew up in Denver, and when I got old enough my escape was the Rocky Mountains, fishing, hiking and just being up there was solitude from a 24/7 life in Denver. I now reside in Wyoming, but still have to go to Colorado a lot, as my family is still there. John Denver hit the truth, and some people still to this day do not understand you can be high on life, not alcohol and drugs.
My parents adored John Denver, and so I was raised in a house where that was mostly what I heard. His ethos and vision for the world influenced me as I grew up. I love his voice and his lyrics. His songs are glorious. I think more people need to give him and his music a fair chance because they will be surprised. Thanks for another great episode
I absolutely love this Country Roads. I can't listen to it without crying. My mom sung it to me when I was 4, and also went to West Virginia University, where the song was played at every football game and every party. At any party, at WVU, if this song is played the whole party stops and everyone sings the song.
Internalizing John Denver’s lyrics “it turns me on to think of growing old” and embracing the entire experience of living at a very young age have stood me in good stead over the decades. I’ve never been freaked out or panicked over a birthday.
Thank you for doing this piece on John Denver! He was such a talented songwriter and performer that often doesn't get the recognition today that he deserves. I've loved his music since the 70s. He had so many great songs. I can also relate to his falling in love with Colorado after going there. I moved there as a child and grew up there and, despite having to eventually move away, to this day there is no place I'd rather be. I remember visiting Aspen, where he lived, multiple times in the 70's, as an elementary school kid. As my parents and I walked around I looked everywhere with great hope and anticipation of catching a glimpse of my hero walking around town. Unfortunately, I never did see him until attending his concerts later in life. Every JD concert I attended, I became like a kid again, bursting with excitement. I've visited the JD memorial in Aspen multiple times and each time I find it so moving. I love performing some of his music with my guitar for my friends to share the joy of his songs with them. RIP, John.
"Friends around a campfire" is one of the most authentic, believable lines in all of lyrics. You're right, brother - it would be a true feat to ever experience a song so pure as this one. I miss John dearly. Thank you so much for these videos and further cementing John's legacy and the legacies of so many amazing artists.
If you never made it to a John Denver concert, you missed hearing an exquisitely beautiful voice. No recording could do his voice justice. I was lucky when I went to one of his concerts in the 1980’s, in Jacksonville, Florida. I had no idea of the magnificent voice I was about to hear. His voice brought tears to my eyes….it was so beautiful! I will never forget it! I’ve been to a lot of concerts so, In my opinion, I know what I’m talking about. One that was a lot of fun was Elton John at Madison Square Garden, in 1976. That was a real treat! I had to leave the concert after four hours, so I could catch the last train to Hopatcong (that’s in Jersey). 😊👍 Thank you.
I saw John Denver in concert at the University of Tennessee in the 1970s. I watched him dance and play the fiddle to Thank God I'm a Country Boy and you can imagine the impact that had on the audience. I still listen to his music to this day and it is on my playlists when I go walking at a park on Lake Washington. There were people who much malign him, but he brought joy to millions.
As a proud, born and raised hillbilly from West "By God!" Virginia I can assure you that John Denver is an icon and a national treasure. His songs are earworms that stick with you long after you hear them. Take me home, country roads isn't just the anthem for wild & wonderful WV, it's a way of life all around the world. RIP
funny thing is that the country road , rt. 117 in Maryland never goes to west Virginia. it is still y a country road, though it does go through a major town.
I grew up a country boy surrounded by pines and redwoods in a mountainous area of California, and I felt a strong connection with the themes in John Denver's music. His Greatest Hits was the first 8-track tape that I specifically requested as part of a group venture with my brothers into one of those Columbia Music House memberships. My brothers harassed me for being a "John Denver freak," but I still love his music to this day and, when he died, it really hurt. I recall those days when "Rocky Mountain High" was hitting the radio stations, and those memories of being a kid are indelible. Thank you for doing a video on this song. It played no small part in a cultural revolution in which, after turbulent times, there was a yearning for a "simple kind of life never did me no harm."
I was introduced to John Denver in the early 80's by summer camp counselors, and private middle school teachers. I heard it played on vinyl records many times as a kid. I'm so very glad to see John Denver finally getting the attention he deserves here. Thank you.
John Denver is one of the few "country" singers I truly enjoy. I was invited to a John Denver concert in 1980 at the Oakland Coliseum, and it was just him and his guitar in the center of the venue. He had the audience eating out of his hand and put on a great show. In addition to the glorious feeling I got from "Rocky Mountain High", "Annie's Song" filled me with such love that I actually cried.
I'm not sure I'd call him a country singer so much as a folkie - but I can think of a bunch of his songs that were pretty twangy! Country Roads, Grandma's Feather Bed, Thank God I'm a Country Boy, Back Home Again would all definitely qualify as country songs.
I loved all of John Denver’s music. My father an John’s new each other. They had attended flight safety together on two or three occasions. I’m am also a pilot and my dad and I had flown to Aspen, Jan/Feb 68, to ski. We were sitting in our airplane when John and his father walked over to say hi. As a result of that I got to ski with him early the next morning. He was really as nice in person as he was on TV, in the movies, or in concert.
I remember my mom telling me I couldn’t listen to this song because it was about drugs. I made her listen to it with me as I sang along. She changed her mind. Thank you for a wonderful video!
Thanks for covering John! Grew up on 8 track cassettes of him, traveling to camping trips and the whole family singing along. Truly miss him to this day.
I was a closet john denver fan. Being a heavy metal fan as a kid i would not have been caught dead listening to country in public. Thats all dad listened too especially when we were in the car. As an adult i have learned to appreciate all genres. That is why I love this channel😍
John Denver is a freaking Legend. Wonderful song writer and guitarist. Rocky Mountain High..Country Roads.. EPIC. He takes you there and you can feel the love he had for the outdoors.
John’s Wildlife Concert is still one of my favorites of any artist, any time. His gorgeous performance of “For You” - just him and his piano (which I’m still surprised at how many don’t know he played) - is one of the best live performance love songs I’ve ever heard. I miss him so much but I’m so grateful to have his music that will live forever.
I was fortunate to see him live. It was a long concert. At one point he explained per union rules the backup band had to take a break. Ge then proceeded to sing a Cappella while they were gone. His voice was just as pure and flawless as on his studio albums
The song that gives me immediate goosebumps and multiple chills is "The Eagle and The Hawk." From the building crescendo at the very beginning that then becomes John's incomparable voice at full pitch...it makes me cry with joy and appreciation for the music, his voice, and the images his words bring to mind. If you close your eyes, you can almost feel that you too can soar "o'er rocky cathedrals that reach to the sky." So powerful. So pure. So beautiful. I miss him, his music, his clarity of vision. He and his music were gifts to my life.
I am a rocker - love heavy metal - but there are certain folk-pop singers who have music that touches my soul. John Denver was one of them. I love this song, and many others. His song GRANDMA'S FEATHER BED takes me right back to the times when as a child we spent Christmas and summers with my grandparents on their farm. There was only one John Denver.
I remember the first time I heard Rocky Mountain High... My mind was blown... The song changed my life. I was a teenager living on Long Island in NY. I knew from a very young age I would move away from NY, & wind up somewhere like Colorado. RMH, sealed that desire for me. It took decades for me to accomplish making Colorado (Durango) my home, but I finally made it here 10 years ago. I still love to listen to John Denver, especially when I am outside on my deck, or while driving through the mountains here in Colorado. Life just doesn't get any better than this. There is no other experience on earth that has touched me quite like the pure beauty of Colorado & the Rocky Mountains...
Absolutely one of my all time favorite Singer/Songwriters. Timeless tunes by an amazing artist. One of the first music I heard as a kid. His music will never die. He is not country music, he is John Denver music. Period.
The guitar arrangement is so masterful. Simple chords turned into an amazing accompaniment for a near perfect voice. I can't say enough about John Denver as we will never hear someone like this again.
We didn't have headphones so I'd lay on the floor and put the speakers of my big sister's little record player on either side of my head and turn it up and bask in Poems Prayers & Promises and Rocky Mountain High. I grew up in western Maine, with a lake out front and bald faced mountains up back. North Appalachians. John's songs felt like he knew us better than all the whiskey/train/cheat'n country songs. John fit us. The giddy uplifting of nature & forests.
I guess he was just getting started when i saw him a free concert in Maryland, not even a formal announcement - more word of mouth that day - at the college I attended in 1970. He had a lot of energy and a big beaming smile. He looked so young. Forge ahead a couple decades and he is one of my son’s favorite singers, ever. R.I.P. I was shocked and saddened when i heard of his death. 😢❤
I always felt a deep connection with JD (saw him twice in concert). I could not listen to his music for a full year after his death. His music can just open my heart like no other. I'm so happy you also love his music. And deeply grateful that he shared so much of himself with us though his music.
I was born in 1976 and I’m pretty sure John Denver was my very first favorite singer. His music is so connected to happy memories of playing outside and feeling the sun and the breeze. He also reminds me of watching Grizzly Adams on Saturday afternoons with my dad. Thanks Professor ❤
I was born in late 1972 and had a huge toddler crush on him - maybe I saw him on a TV special? My dad bought me his albums and would play them for me when I was still too little to work the turntable. I gleefully sang "Take Me Home, Country Roads" on every road trip to visit my great-grandparents in WV. My family took me to see him in the summer of '76 when I was three, and I still have vague memories of it - I was the happiest little girl in the world that night. As a teenager I disavowed him (GenX could not abide such unfettered enthusiasm and lack of irony!), but now I really enjoy listening to him again. I still play the "Rocky Mountain Christmas" album every year.
Lately missing the 70's and that world we lived in then makes me so sad, guess it's just growing old but it feels like more than just nostalgia. This time, more than ever, thanks for the memories Adam!!!!
I'm a sixty-something guitar player and JD fan. He took pride in the fact that nobody has ever recorded a cover of Rocky Mountain High - because not only is it JD's signature tune, but it's actually pretty hard to play. It took me years to get even close.
I love hearing how music strengthened your bond with your dad. My parents were almost 40 when I was born. Talk about a generation gap! So we seldom could TOLERATE each other's music. But John Denver's music was one thing we absolutely enjoyed together.
I still have my original John Denver Greatest Hits Album from the 70’s. While I was mainly a rock fan we were also blessed with Denver, Carol King, James Taylor & Carly Simon. We had such a great variety of talented singer songwriters. It was a great time to live through for sure. Love all the information you bring to your videos!
John died in 1997 on that fateful day in his small canard winged Long EZ flying over the ocean off the coast of California. Years earlier he wrote his song called "how can I leave you again". Was it a coincidence , or did he write about his unfortunate passing? "Still I ride on the wings of the high wind, blowing steady and strong behind me.., as a cloud surrenders, my fate is for certain, I'm a sailor who runs to the sea.."
John Denver was the reason I wanted to visit Colorado as a kid in the mid 70's. We listened to his music for the whole drive out to Colorado, and back home a few weeks later. Hisusic was not only great, but his words so descriptive that you could be there, where he was talking about, if you allowed yourself to be. Still have one of the many greatest hits CDs on rotation in the car.
He was not a country music star, he was played on pop and rock stations. Listen to country from that era, sounds nothing like his music. Maybe he crossed over later but in the 70s he wasn't country
He wasn't entirely country. Nashville actually disliked him in spite of him playing the Grand Ole Opry. Thought he was a folk-pop hippie, an outsider with ZILCH traditional country image or music style. At the 1975 CMA Award show, country legend Charlie Rich took his cig lighter and burned the presenter envelope which announced John the winner for Country Entertainer of the Year. He also won Best Country Song for "Back Home Again."
@@AldousHuxleysCat I NEVER heard a single album rock station play his regular songs, except for maybe "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" and his material from the Christmas album he did with the Muppets. Not much anything else he recorded was played on album rock radio. I did hear quite a few of his songs played on country stations, though.
Such an amazing artist! It is SO difficult NOT to sing along with every one of his songs! Been at the peak of Pikes Peak and listened to Rocky Mountain High. What an experience!
Thank you for making this wonderful tribute for one of the great musicians of our time. You said it best at the beginning: when an entire arena can spontaneously break into a song that is 50 years old and make everyone happy, that is profoundly meaningful.
I saw John Denver in a hotel lobby in Cleveland in the late 70’s. As I stood and looked with awe I heard him talking with the desk clerk. He thanked her for all her courtesies and then asked her to thank numerous other employees for their various services. It is a testament to his class that he felt it necessary to thank all of these people.
One of my favorite's by John Denver was his homage to Jacques Cousteau, Calypso. That song just gives me goosebumps because most of the time when I hear it, I can see that ship. And I was very lucky that I lived in a place along the Mississippi River where the Calypso was docked for a few days during it's tour and run down the river one summer. I don't remember the year it happened either. My search with one of the local papers hasn't found anything yet.
Rocky Mountain high has always been one of my go to songs when I needed something to make me feel good. As a matter of fact, I had to stop in the middle of your presentation and play it while I was driving home from work. Never fear I went back and finished listening to your story about this perfect song. Thank you so much for honoring John Denver, and what I consider his signature song.
I remember as a 13yo in Australia, ‘72 hearing the song in our family car, and just falling in love with it, especially the iconic riff and the acoustic guitar tapestry it weaved. And of course the vocals and lyrics were mesmerising. I’d started playing acoustic guitar 2 years earlier, and Rocky Mt High transformed my life and playing.
I always had a soft spot for John Denver. Living in the south and hearing Country Roads on some little portable transistor radio while walking down a dirt road going fishing or just exploring and all of us kids would burst out singing to it. Brings back the feels on this content Professor, thank you for this.
Never was at all a Denver fan, but his Christmas album with the Muppets, titled A Christmas Together, is still pretty dear to my heart. One of the first records I owned. I either lost or trashed it for whatever reason. Thank God for Wounded Bird Records and Sony Legacy Recordings for reissuing that album on CD, and NOT leaving off the 2 or 3 songs that Delta Music did when it first reissued the album in 1994, which is why Wounded and Legacy reissued it properly without omitting a single song, and BOTH reissues restored the art from the inside of the gatefold and the lyrics on the sleeve, which the Delta reissue excluded.
He was definitely a songwriter first, but John had a soaring voice. He could hit the highest of highs, and then launch into an even higher register. Criminally underrated singer.
I will never be embarrassed by my love of John Denver's music. His voice is as familiar to me as a family member. I was born in the late 70s and was raised on his music. Only got to see him live once right before he passed away, but his music will always be a favorite.
I've ALWAYS loved this song... from the first time I ever heard it... and it never gets old for me! I totally love John Denver and his music - he was truly a very gifted one-of-a-kind treasure!!!
This is your best content ever, and that is no small feat... some of my most vivid childhood memories were seeing how moved my mother was by John Denver’s music, her love of his music and the wholesome image of a man moved by nature brought her rare joy during difficult years as a single mother struggling to raise three kids. His line during the special about the history of flight with his dad where he said he admires people who set out to achieve something and then go do it gave me goosebumps because I told my dear sweet mother on the day she passed that I have always admired her striving for us kids to be a great mother, and achieving that goal brilliantly. That day we had filled the hospital room with John Denver music for her last few hours. I believe John was one of the first persons to meet her in heaven.
John Denver was my first concert back in 1974. I still remember his gorgeous voice soaring through the concert hall. I also remember the day he died. I was in an airport heading back to where I grew up and thinking about how John was a part of my childhood. He will always be a part of everyone's life through the beautiful music he created.
I have to say, as a die hard metal fan, "Rocky Mountain High" hits me right in the feels. His song aptly describes where I grew up, too: the Rocky Mountains of Montana. As the Professor said, this is a song, and again proves a truly great song, transcends genres.
I loved John Denver's music. He was such an authentic person, and his joy of the mountains burst forth as a rocky mountain high! My family camped every summer, and Denver's love of nature resonated with me. It was a touchstone in a world that was not quite as innocent as before. Watergate had soured me, but John Denver gave me respite.
What a wonderful tribute. I, too, love "Rocky Mountain High" and John's music. He was a singular artist, adored by all generations. My grandparents, born just before the First World War, had many of his albums. Top video, and very moving.
Wow. Thank you for this! I grew up loving the music of John Denver and Dan Fogelberg. In fact, Rocky Mountain High was the first LP I bought with my own money. The honesty, the melodies - he gave us his everything. Since then, I've wanted to live in Colorado. I've never made it there to live, but my daughter and her husband moved there a couple years ago. At least now, I get to visit this amazing state.
I bought this album as a kid and literally wore it out. Later I would learn that one of my favorite song tracks on that album was written by none other than John Prine. Two great lyricists on one album!
Professor, I grew up in the 1970's and have always been a major fan of John Denver's music. I believe this is the first episode that you've done on him. A very pleasant surprise. I have John Denver's Greatest Hits album which contains such 70's pop classics "Rocky Mountain High", "Take Me Home, Country Roads", Annie' Song", "Sunshine On My Shoulder" and "Thank God I'm A Country Boy". One of the great country pop crossover artists.
I was a hard rock addict in the 70s, but i always loved John Denver. In the late 70s, i was working at SLC Airport. John came in for his concert. I fueled his Jet and after the concert, I helped him unload his limo he had a cool pair of cowboy boots with jewels on them, and I said dude nice boots he smiled at me and said do you how you get a pair of boots like these. I said no, and he said Practice practice practice. Cracked me up. I met him 2 other times, very nice guy.
This song stirs so much emotion, if you love nature, and all of its magnificent beauty, you almost have to love this song. It describes eloquently not only the rocky mountains, and how incredibly beautiful they are, but also the feeling one gets from taking in all of its splendor! A beautifully written song from a man who seemed to get it! Very well done!
I love John Denver and I will never be embarrassed to admit it. He was, is and will be forever an icon. My favourite song is Rocky Mountain High. This is a wonderful story, thanks Prof.
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Poll: What is song or artist your secretly loved growing up that you can now admit you adore?
Achy Breaky Heart
John Denver. It wasn't a secret. My parents went to see him when I was 5.
I wanted to go with them, but ended up with the baby sitter.
I am still a huge fan!
I ❤ This Old Guitar.
John Denver, Oak Ridge Boys, Warrant
Oh it was the subject of today. John Denver. I wish I’d gone to see him in concert with my parents, instead of being so determined to only attend “cool” groups like Queen, Supertramp, Night Ranger and Foreigner.
Yes. I was into punk so admitting I loved Yes was soooo uncool.
My wife dragged me to his concert back in the late 70s. As a rock musician, I reluctantly went my my arrogant "rock" nose in the air. Man, did I get humbled. It was just him and his guitar...blew me away. His voice filled the arena. A true talent, not fully appreciated at the time.
And it is even more annoying when you learn how stupid that all was. I just stumbled over the story a few months ago. He just wanted to make a short hop with his new plane, and did not bother to fill up before it. And it that specific plane (that he barely knew, was one of his first flights with it) for some reason they had relocated the fuel tank selector switch, more or less behind the pilot seat, where he with his size could not reach it. And so, when he ran out of fuel, he had lost. Can also be he lost control trying to contort himself in the pilot seat to get at the switch.
As almost always, it is multiple items interacting, when just ONE would not have been, all would have worked out.
I got to see him as well in the 70s
I saw John in 5 concerts in the 1970s. I was amazed at how wonderful John sang. The percussionists were simply amazing. Calypso had so many percussion instruments.
@@feedingravensI don’t understand why fuel has a switch to change tanks. In the Cessna 172 I flew that switch could be switched from left, right wings of both. I always left the switch to draw from both tanks. In John’s case it was so bizarre to have that switch in a place it couldn’t be reached. Who did that? The cockpit of John’s plane was so small I couldn’t see him being able to move much at all. What a tragic waste.
John Denver... Karen Carpenter- two voices that were as close to perfection as we could ask for in the 20th century. John will always be a part of the soundtrack of my youth and I feel lucky to have that
you may have to add Patsy Cline to that list also.😉
@@farmerdeb2863 I can not disagree with that!
Ditto!!
Well spoken.
@@farmerdeb2863 She has cred.
I thought Denver was corny as a kid, but my view of him changed over the years. Now I think he's a national treasure. His voice was exquisite and his songs unrivaled in their beauty and poignancy.
He grew on all of us.
I thought he was corny when I was a kid. I still loved his music then and now.
It is so good he is mentioned again, as he seems almost forgotten in the present day and age. Love his music.
Think a blip in post,repost. I was pretty lucky to be about as corny as as a country boy gets being about as close to in the milk barn as my generation gets corn alfalfa strawberry fields, etcetera. Square dancing, fiddle music.Yodeling calling in the cows barn parties, etcetera, blue jeans and cowboy boots before they were popular and looked down upon by city people for it. Oooo your from cowtown they used to say. Just part of Los Angeles now. Think I may qualify?
@Daniel Craft I'm in Calgary, Canada. Ironically one of our nicknames is Cowtown.
My wife and I had the pleasure of meeting John at the Experimental Aircraft Association airshow in Oshkosh,WI. We were sitting under the wing of an airplane, waiting for the show to start. This little guy in shorts, sandals, Hawaiian shirt, and wire rim glasses walked up and asked if he could share the shade with us. Even though I had previously been to two of his concerts and owned several albums, I didn't recognize him. We talked for perhaps 15-20 minutes about our plane, his plane, Texas (my home), and that he had gone to Texas Tech for a year or two.
Eventually, it was time for the show to start and the announcer came on the PA system and said that they were going to have a special guest announcer. "Has anybody seen John Denver? We need him to come to the announcer's stand and get this show on the road." John got up and excused himself. "Sorry, guys, I've gotta go. They're looking for me." We were in shock.
John was a huge supporter of the EAA and did a lot of fundraising for them.
I remember where I was the day he was killed. I was devastated.
I knew a guy that was in college with John. The way he learned to sing was by going to a restroom at a nearby park because he liked the way the sound reverberated. It allowed him to hear himself better.
I like Rocky Mountain High, but my all-time favorite song is The Eagle And The Hawk. I cry every time I hear it. I plan to have a verse from it on my tombstone.
"...and all those who see me,
and all who believe in me,
share in the freedom I feel when I fly."
So go lay back in an easy chair, turn down the lights, crank up the volume, and give a listen. The picture that song paints is incredible!
I never had the joy of meeting him, but I have loved his music all my life. My personal favorite is his cover of NGDB's "Dance Little Jean".
I am endlessly happy that I lived in the time of John Denver.
I am an Indian I sing take me home at every family get together and people who are listening for the first time , who don't know English start joining by the 2nd chorus , the song is just a miracle for humanity!
Beautiful!
Lovely story!
Agree !!!
Indian Pride! So glad to hear that.
Excellent
I'm a rocker from the 60s. I went to Woodstock. The first time I heard Rockie Mountain High, I knew it wasn't about drugs. I still get chills when I hear it today. It is as close to perfect as a song can get.
It’s about NATURE. A perfectly healthy thing.
When I hike in a beautiful mountain valley, "Rocky Mountain High" is an earworm for me and one I never want to be rid of.
Thank you for your wonderful comment. “Chills” tells the story.
Anyone that has ever spent more than a few hours in the Rocky Mountains or any place in the Mountains in the U.S. West... Would know it's not a drug song. The mountains are captivating out here. You get high just by hiking up them and taking in the views.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 Yeah only takes the first verse to unravel that mystery. And the lone soft shadows in the starlight suggests to me John had actually experienced that.
Denver owned the 70’s. He was everywhere. Television, concert tours, even movies. If you haven’t seen “Oh, God” with Denver in a lead role playing opposite George Burns, it’s great.
A natural and gifted performer that left a real legacy.
I saw one scene from that movie.
There seemed to be a discernable "John Denver era" In the early 1970s, but only in America, of course.
HAHAHAHA! That movie was great!
Lest we forget the Muppet Show....
He deserves to be honoured. His music was pure.
A great voice - he could hold a note forevvvvver and songwriting unsurpassed
I think Annie's Songs is one of the most beautiful songs ever written. I would not have admitted that at the time when I was listening to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath
John Denver was wonderful. His music proved that the 70's was the most diverse decade for music ever. There was every type of music in the 70's...including John Denver. We probably won't ever see that again. Cheers from Ottawa, Canada. 🍁
There was something for everyone.
Gioknows - The 60's were by far more diverse even on A.M. radio IF you grew up in an area where radio playlists reflected more than the usual white teenie bop Top 40. By the 1970's, the music industry consolidated quite a bit driving smaller labels who offered the diversity off the radio (and hence the market). I can remember both b/c I had an older sister living at home.
@@theartofflipping I don't know what market you lived in, but in Chicagoland there was everything you could want, between AM and FM stations, during the 70's.
@@lennychorn147 I was cutting the commenter some slack in case they didn't live in a market where the variety was available. Of course a huge market like Chicago etc. had variety IF someone sought it out. Nevertheless, I stick to my conclusion. Even giving the benefit of the doubt to say 1971-1973, there's the onslaught of disco and "corporate rock". The consolidation in the music industry then radio took a huge toll. HUGE. I'm old enuff to have heard the difference.
@@theartofflipping As am I(fortunately).
As someone who came of age in the 1970s, I feel so blessed to have been surrounded by such uplifting, positive music. It just made everything better.
You are a lucky lady, Ms. Darlene. Nothing like a decade full of variety.
I was 10 in 1970, best decade for music ever. I wouldn't trade my life for anything. America was at its best.
Lovely comment.
@Woodrow Call not bad here in Canada either.
Amen. 1958 born here. A teenager in the 70’s. What a time it was…….
I've been a John Denver "fan" since my childhood (70s), and "Rocky Mountain High" to me is an absolute masterpiece. I still miss his voice and his activism. Thanks to PoR for this wonderful tribute.
Yeah kind of funny huh? He gets to practice his personal activism on the job when the rest of us don't. Highly disappointed when we went to a concert and he started bitching about the valdese instead of entertaining us, which is what he was paid to do. Lost a lot of respect for him that day
Let us not forget Annie's song.
That oil spill in Alaska caused a great deal of damage environmentally. Exxon said they cleaned it up. John visited 3 months after, said if you dug down 6 inches it was like tar. He was pretty pissed off with Exxon, even calling them lying bastards on TV and yes mentioned the oil spill in concert. I applaud him for speaking up about the atrociousness of the spill and deceit about the clean up.
I can't listen to anything from John Denver without getting a bit choked up. My dad told me a story, when I was around 7 years old, that when his navy ship came into port in Virginia, all of the crew on the ship would be singing "Take me home, Country Roads". From that day on I could not hear the song without seeing that image in my mind. From that day forward I was a John Denver fan. Fast forward 25 years, I cried, sobbing like a baby, the first time I flew over the Rockies, thinking about "Rocky Mountain High" and all of the times I sang that with my little sister as a kid. John Denver is part of the tapestry of who I am.
Rocky Mountain High is one of Colorado's state songs. (2007)
John's music touched my bones. The lyrics were thoughts I didn't know I had. His songs got me through some of the blackest nights of my life. I lost a oiece of me the day he died, like he was my other self. I still miss him very much. I admired the fact that he stayed true to himself in spite of his detractors.
John Denver crosses lines all over the place. He transcends every stereotype and category they try to shove him in. I loved Rocky MOuntain High from the first strum and played the album over and over again, but I have one story about him that is personal to me. I am a singer/songwriter too, and also have done busking in Canada's capital, Ottawa's market district for over 25 years. I was walking along with my guitar case dangling from my hand one early morning. It was barely 8:30 a.m. Businesses were just getting started. There were still critters scampering here and there to get scraps because it wasn't busy yet in the market.
i saw this pile of teens/early adulthood folks asleep together in a huddle off by themselves. They were street kids... or at least not in their homes or in shelters. They all wore Goth clothes and makeup... lots of punk piercings too, which... I loved punk when I was a teenager, so I wasn't nervous of them or anything and I walked by, and one of them noticed and called out to me and so, I struck up a conversation. Nobody is afraid to talk to a busker... well, maybe the odd snobby person who thinks I'm begging, but buskers have to buy a licence there. I'm a vendor.
Anyway, they asked me to play then a song... at 8:39 am, and I didn't feel like it, but they were looking at me... these kids... hopeful eyes... nobody is around, so I won't get in trouble. So, I pull out my guitar, thinking they are into punk and Nirvana or whatever and they're going to ask an acoustic guitarist for something raunchy before 9 a.m. They asked for... John Denver. There I was at 8:30 a.m. with a gaggle of rough looking, sleepy, wayward kids and they were all singing Country Roads, take me home, to the place I belong and some of them were crying. It was a moment I couldn't forget in a million years. That man's music has touched people from every corner and every walk of life. I can attest to that firsthand.
Wonderful!
Fantastic story and memory for you, sincere thanks for posting!
Say whatever you want about him, but there is just something magical, something so emotional and powerful in that unique voice of his. That has impacted everyone.
Great story! Thank you for sharing.
Beautiful. Thank you for sharing that. I bet that none of those kids ever forgot that moment of kindness from you, either. I hope it got them through the tough times and that they're in better places in their lives now.
I was not a country music person, but John's voice drew you in. That pure voice, melody and lyrics got me singing along right away!!
Man, we were so spoiled to live through the height of the singer/songwriter/musician era!
Spoiled is right! He was such a pure voice. Thanks my friend.
Yes, we sure were! Beautiful music in the 70s.
I never considered John Denver to be country, you got lots of pop and rock airplay. It was a different time acoustic artist were happily accepted as part of the rock and roll family
He had a lot of singalong classics that would just uplift your spirit.
Never considered it country music! They didn't play him on country music stations, he was played on Pop and easy rock stations. I absolutely hate 99% of country music, and never would have put his music in that category. If a song isn't good enough for the other stations different from country music to be played, then I don't want to hear it.
John Denver is someone I only sort of "got" when I was younger. Then I matured a bit and now his music really speaks to me. "He was born in the summer of his 27th year" is an incredible line. His songs tell so many great stories and his voice is just wonderful. He's a treasure!
So many great lines from him.
John Denver was my first musical love. From some point in elementary school to some point in middle school, he was the ONLY singer I really followed. His music and lyrics literally shaped my life, and no other performer has ever filled his shoes. I was blessed to see him in concert once. In that huge stadium, we were all friends around the campfire together. I'll miss him forever.
Same here, Rita. I'm 62 now and JD was the only voice that spoke to me during junior high. Then I found Harry Chapin and Gordon Lightfoot. All great artists
Been a huge fan of John Denver since I was a kid. I have no shame, I wear my John Denver hat alongside my Led Zeppelin tshirt. Oct. 12, 1997 broke my heart to this day.
'Twas my 41st birthday in fact.
Another great John Denver song was 'Fly Away' and was vocally backed by Olivia Newton-John. Their voices together were incredible.
I love that song too!
It was a great song. R.I.P. to both.
Might be my overall favorite Denver song, and I wasn't a fan. Such a beautiful soft-pop ballad.
I also loved his song School's Out.
Calypso was the one that would floor me when I was a kid. I just wanted to go anywhere that boat was going.
John was blessed with a voice that soared and cut through everything else. His tunes are modern classics. He wasn't afraid of the stage either-hosting the Grammys is a high stakes gig. Loved him in the movie Oh God in 1977, too! Another song of his that really resonates is the beautiful duet he did with Olivia Newton-John, "Fly Away". Thanks, Adam!
It certainly SOARED!
Another one is High Calypso.
I totally forgot about that one, I'll have to dial it up and check it out again.
Two 70s legends. R.I.P. John and Olivia.
Thank God I’m A Country Boy and Annie’s Song are great too. I have his greatest hits. I don’t skip any of the songs. Thirsty Boots, Aspen Glow, Shanghai Breezes, he was incredible.
Few voices take me back to my childhood like John's does. So many great songs and such a pure voice. He could give you chills singing live.
Being a kid in the 70s was incredible. For those of us who grew up on road trips with our parents listening to "adult contemporary" stations, being openminded about genre was nearly inescapable. Even having fallen in love with punk/new wave in the 80s, I still treasure all good music. As continually proven on this channel, for those who will hear, Music speaks and doesn't discriminate.
Well said
@@rjbullen8932 💯
My parents even though adult contemporary was too "rock".
I always thought of him more as my parents’ music, but I loved much of it myself. I still shed a tear listening to Country Roads. I was also an Air Force brat, but a generation younger. Unfortunately my closest connection to him is that I saw him die. I was in grad school in Pacific Grove at the time. A few of us were outside out on the point that afternoon and saw the plane go in. It was far enough away that we weren’t sure at first what we had just seen, but it soon became apparent. What a tragedy. I’ll never forget the stunned feeling of loss when we heard who it was.
Good lord...that's terrible! I'm really sorry that this is your closest connection, how awful for you all.
Thank you for sharing your story!
I love it when John Denver is recognized and given his due. My mother listened to him so he's been a part of my life forever and I'm a loud and proud fan. No guilt just pleasure. What I admire most is the simplicity of the sentiment and the way it touches the spirit. Very philosophical . RIP John
His voice is MAGIC.
Being from Colorado, this song resonates in me whenever I hear it. I grew up in Denver, and when I got old enough my escape was the Rocky Mountains, fishing, hiking and just being up there was solitude from a 24/7 life in Denver. I now reside in Wyoming, but still have to go to Colorado a lot, as my family is still there. John Denver hit the truth, and some people still to this day do not understand you can be high on life, not alcohol and drugs.
All of the Brides of the 70s demanded John Denver Tunes, all of them
My parents adored John Denver, and so I was raised in a house where that was mostly what I heard. His ethos and vision for the world influenced me as I grew up. I love his voice and his lyrics. His songs are glorious. I think more people need to give him and his music a fair chance because they will be surprised. Thanks for another great episode
I absolutely love this Country Roads. I can't listen to it without crying. My mom sung it to me when I was 4, and also went to West Virginia University, where the song was played at every football game and every party. At any party, at WVU, if this song is played the whole party stops and everyone sings the song.
Internalizing John Denver’s lyrics “it turns me on to think of growing old” and embracing the entire experience of living at a very young age have stood me in good stead over the decades. I’ve never been freaked out or panicked over a birthday.
John Denver's music will easily stand the test of time, easy listening and magical.
I agree 100%
Always.
Thank you for doing this piece on John Denver! He was such a talented songwriter and performer that often doesn't get the recognition today that he deserves. I've loved his music since the 70s. He had so many great songs. I can also relate to his falling in love with Colorado after going there. I moved there as a child and grew up there and, despite having to eventually move away, to this day there is no place I'd rather be. I remember visiting Aspen, where he lived, multiple times in the 70's, as an elementary school kid. As my parents and I walked around I looked everywhere with great hope and anticipation of catching a glimpse of my hero walking around town. Unfortunately, I never did see him until attending his concerts later in life. Every JD concert I attended, I became like a kid again, bursting with excitement. I've visited the JD memorial in Aspen multiple times and each time I find it so moving. I love performing some of his music with my guitar for my friends to share the joy of his songs with them. RIP, John.
Sorry to say, I have never been to Colorado. I am planning to go there later this year for a college visit, I will be a senior by then.
According to many, Colorado has been ruined by the “transplants” and the politics they brought along. It cannot be considered affordable anymore.
@@davestewart2067 I still have a lot of friends there that I keep in touch with and there is a lot of truth to that. 😞
"Friends around a campfire" is one of the most authentic, believable lines in all of lyrics. You're right, brother - it would be a true feat to ever experience a song so pure as this one. I miss John dearly. Thank you so much for these videos and further cementing John's legacy and the legacies of so many amazing artists.
His music certainly brought us to our own campfires.
If you never made it to a John Denver concert, you missed hearing an exquisitely beautiful voice. No recording could do his voice justice. I was lucky when I went to one of his concerts in the 1980’s, in Jacksonville, Florida. I had no idea of the magnificent voice I was about to hear. His voice brought tears to my eyes….it was so beautiful! I will never forget it! I’ve been to a lot of concerts so, In my opinion, I know what I’m talking about.
One that was a lot of fun was Elton John at Madison Square Garden, in 1976. That was a real treat! I had to leave the concert after four hours, so I could catch the last train to Hopatcong (that’s in Jersey). 😊👍 Thank you.
I saw John Denver in concert at the University of Tennessee in the 1970s. I watched him dance and play the fiddle to Thank God I'm a Country Boy and you can imagine the impact that had on the audience. I still listen to his music to this day and it is on my playlists when I go walking at a park on Lake Washington. There were people who much malign him, but he brought joy to millions.
As a proud, born and raised hillbilly from West "By God!" Virginia I can assure you that John Denver is an icon and a national treasure. His songs are earworms that stick with you long after you hear them. Take me home, country roads isn't just the anthem for wild & wonderful WV, it's a way of life all around the world. RIP
National treasure is right!
It's up there with the National Anthem.
Singing 'Country Roads' in stadium of the Mountaineer Field along with 60,000 or so others is quite the experience! I always get goose bumps.
Hillbillies for Trump ! MAGA !
funny thing is that the country road , rt. 117 in Maryland never goes to west Virginia. it is still y a country road, though it does go through a major town.
I grew up a country boy surrounded by pines and redwoods in a mountainous area of California, and I felt a strong connection with the themes in John Denver's music. His Greatest Hits was the first 8-track tape that I specifically requested as part of a group venture with my brothers into one of those Columbia Music House memberships. My brothers harassed me for being a "John Denver freak," but I still love his music to this day and, when he died, it really hurt. I recall those days when "Rocky Mountain High" was hitting the radio stations, and those memories of being a kid are indelible. Thank you for doing a video on this song. It played no small part in a cultural revolution in which, after turbulent times, there was a yearning for a "simple kind of life never did me no harm."
John Denver gets a lot of shit, sad to say. This song is a treasure.
Great memories there of how we got our music in the 70s. And nice nod to “Country Boy”’
I was introduced to John Denver in the early 80's by summer camp counselors, and private middle school teachers. I heard it played on vinyl records many times as a kid. I'm so very glad to see John Denver finally getting the attention he deserves here. Thank you.
He wrote a lot of camping staples.
John Denver is one of the few "country" singers I truly enjoy. I was invited to a John Denver concert in 1980 at the Oakland Coliseum, and it was just him and his guitar in the center of the venue. He had the audience eating out of his hand and put on a great show. In addition to the glorious feeling I got from "Rocky Mountain High", "Annie's Song" filled me with such love that I actually cried.
I'm not sure I'd call him a country singer so much as a folkie - but I can think of a bunch of his songs that were pretty twangy! Country Roads, Grandma's Feather Bed, Thank God I'm a Country Boy, Back Home Again would all definitely qualify as country songs.
I think her referred to himself as a Western singer (the Western part of Country & Western)
I loved all of John Denver’s music. My father an John’s new each other. They had attended flight safety together on two or three occasions. I’m am also a pilot and my dad and I had flown to Aspen, Jan/Feb 68, to ski. We were sitting in our airplane when John and his father walked over to say hi. As a result of that I got to ski with him early the next morning. He was really as nice in person as he was on TV, in the movies, or in concert.
I remember my mom telling me I couldn’t listen to this song because it was about drugs. I made her listen to it with me as I sang along. She changed her mind. Thank you for a wonderful video!
I take it as being on top of the world.
Thanks for covering John! Grew up on 8 track cassettes of him, traveling to camping trips and the whole family singing along. Truly miss him to this day.
Nothing like a campfire singalong to Rocky Mountain High!
I was a closet john denver fan. Being a heavy metal fan as a kid i would not have been caught dead listening to country in public. Thats all dad listened too especially when we were in the car. As an adult i have learned to appreciate all genres. That is why I love this channel😍
Thanks Dona!
That’s what I like in my music diet. Diversity, variety.
Peace
'Grandma's Feather Bed' was my favorite song as a 70's toddler.
He sang that one when he went on Sesame Street! Not sure how old I was, born in '75.
John Denver is a freaking Legend. Wonderful song writer and guitarist. Rocky Mountain High..Country Roads.. EPIC. He takes you there and you can feel the love he had for the outdoors.
John’s Wildlife Concert is still one of my favorites of any artist, any time. His gorgeous performance of “For You” - just him and his piano (which I’m still surprised at how many don’t know he played) - is one of the best live performance love songs I’ve ever heard. I miss him so much but I’m so grateful to have his music that will live forever.
Agree the definitive love song. John one of my top ten performers of all time. Cheers.
Love the song For You. Can’t believe it doesn’t get the recognition it deserves.
❤
My favorite of his songs.
Totally agree. I love “For You” even though I don’t care for the person it was written for. The whole Wildlife concert is excellent.
I was fortunate to see him live. It was a long concert. At one point he explained per union rules the backup band had to take a break. Ge then proceeded to sing a Cappella while they were gone. His voice was just as pure and flawless as on his studio albums
The song that gives me immediate goosebumps and multiple chills is "The Eagle and The Hawk." From the building crescendo at the very beginning that then becomes John's incomparable voice at full pitch...it makes me cry with joy and appreciation for the music, his voice, and the images his words bring to mind. If you close your eyes, you can almost feel that you too can soar "o'er rocky cathedrals that reach to the sky." So powerful. So pure. So beautiful. I miss him, his music, his clarity of vision. He and his music were gifts to my life.
I am a rocker - love heavy metal - but there are certain folk-pop singers who have music that touches my soul. John Denver was one of them. I love this song, and many others. His song GRANDMA'S FEATHER BED takes me right back to the times when as a child we spent Christmas and summers with my grandparents on their farm. There was only one John Denver.
I remember the first time I heard Rocky Mountain High... My mind was blown... The song changed my life. I was a teenager living on Long Island in NY. I knew from a very young age I would move away from NY, & wind up somewhere like Colorado. RMH, sealed that desire for me. It took decades for me to accomplish making Colorado (Durango) my home, but I finally made it here 10 years ago. I still love to listen to John Denver, especially when I am outside on my deck, or while driving through the mountains here in Colorado. Life just doesn't get any better than this. There is no other experience on earth that has touched me quite like the pure beauty of Colorado & the Rocky Mountains...
Absolutely one of my all time favorite Singer/Songwriters. Timeless tunes by an amazing artist. One of the first music I heard as a kid. His music will never die. He is not country music, he is John Denver music. Period.
That's right.
The one and only.
The guitar arrangement is so masterful. Simple chords turned into an amazing accompaniment for a near perfect voice. I can't say enough about John Denver as we will never hear someone like this again.
We lost him too soon. His music brings me back every time.
We didn't have headphones so I'd lay on the floor and put the speakers of my big sister's little record player on either side of my head and turn it up and bask in Poems Prayers & Promises and Rocky Mountain High. I grew up in western Maine, with a lake out front and bald faced mountains up back. North Appalachians. John's songs felt like he knew us better than all the whiskey/train/cheat'n country songs. John fit us. The giddy uplifting of nature & forests.
I love this song, John Denver was an absolutely inspiring artist.
I guess he was just getting started when i saw him a free concert in Maryland, not even a formal announcement - more word of mouth that day - at the college I attended in 1970. He had a lot of energy and a big beaming smile. He looked so young. Forge ahead a couple decades and he is one of my son’s favorite singers, ever. R.I.P. I was shocked and saddened when i heard of his death. 😢❤
I always felt a deep connection with JD (saw him twice in concert). I could not listen to his music for a full year after his death. His music can just open my heart like no other. I'm so happy you also love his music. And deeply grateful that he shared so much of himself with us though his music.
That was a really tough death right there.
I was born in 1976 and I’m pretty sure John Denver was my very first favorite singer. His music is so connected to happy memories of playing outside and feeling the sun and the breeze. He also reminds me of watching Grizzly Adams on Saturday afternoons with my dad. Thanks Professor ❤
How it all used to be. Pure bliss.
I was born in late 1972 and had a huge toddler crush on him - maybe I saw him on a TV special? My dad bought me his albums and would play them for me when I was still too little to work the turntable. I gleefully sang "Take Me Home, Country Roads" on every road trip to visit my great-grandparents in WV. My family took me to see him in the summer of '76 when I was three, and I still have vague memories of it - I was the happiest little girl in the world that night. As a teenager I disavowed him (GenX could not abide such unfettered enthusiasm and lack of irony!), but now I really enjoy listening to him again. I still play the "Rocky Mountain Christmas" album every year.
@@weebunny I’m pretty sure i discovered him on the Muppet Show.
Lately missing the 70's and that world we lived in then makes me so sad, guess it's just growing old but it feels like more than just nostalgia. This time, more than ever, thanks for the memories Adam!!!!
It sounded like such a wonderful time to grow up.
It WAS a magical time no doubt 🌈
I'm a sixty-something guitar player and JD fan. He took pride in the fact that nobody has ever recorded a cover of Rocky Mountain High - because not only is it JD's signature tune, but it's actually pretty hard to play. It took me years to get even close.
The notes he hits in The Eagle and the Hawk are breathtaking. At least when I try to sing them, I have no breath.
I think John is somewhere smiling right now. You did justice to his memory.
I love hearing how music strengthened your bond with your dad. My parents were almost 40 when I was born. Talk about a generation gap! So we seldom could TOLERATE each other's music. But John Denver's music was one thing we absolutely enjoyed together.
My mom had me at 36.
My Mom 30 my Dad 27
I still have my original John Denver Greatest Hits Album from the 70’s. While I was mainly a rock fan we were also blessed with Denver, Carol King, James Taylor & Carly Simon. We had such a great variety of talented singer songwriters. It was a great time to live through for sure.
Love all the information you bring to your videos!
John died in 1997 on that fateful day in his small canard winged Long EZ flying over the ocean off the coast of California. Years earlier he wrote his song called "how can I leave you again". Was it a coincidence , or did he write about his unfortunate passing? "Still I ride on the wings of the high wind, blowing steady and strong behind me.., as a cloud surrenders, my fate is for certain, I'm a sailor who runs to the sea.."
John Denver was the reason I wanted to visit Colorado as a kid in the mid 70's. We listened to his music for the whole drive out to Colorado, and back home a few weeks later. Hisusic was not only great, but his words so descriptive that you could be there, where he was talking about, if you allowed yourself to be. Still have one of the many greatest hits CDs on rotation in the car.
John Denver is certainly iconic. Absolutely one of the country stars that really brought the genre to a popular setting. Cheers as always!
He changed the game.
He was not a country music star, he was played on pop and rock stations. Listen to country from that era, sounds nothing like his music. Maybe he crossed over later but in the 70s he wasn't country
@@AldousHuxleysCat
John Denver called it Western music.
Definitely not country.🥰✌️
He wasn't entirely country. Nashville actually disliked him in spite of him playing the Grand Ole Opry. Thought he was a folk-pop hippie, an outsider with ZILCH traditional country image or music style. At the 1975 CMA Award show, country legend Charlie Rich took his cig lighter and burned the presenter envelope which announced John the winner for Country Entertainer of the Year. He also won Best Country Song for "Back Home Again."
@@AldousHuxleysCat I NEVER heard a single album rock station play his regular songs, except for maybe "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" and his material from the Christmas album he did with the Muppets. Not much anything else he recorded was played on album rock radio. I did hear quite a few of his songs played on country stations, though.
Such an amazing artist! It is SO difficult NOT to sing along with every one of his songs! Been at the peak of Pikes Peak and listened to Rocky Mountain High. What an experience!
That’s so cool!
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 it really was
Thank you for making this wonderful tribute for one of the great musicians of our time. You said it best at the beginning: when an entire arena can spontaneously break into a song that is 50 years old and make everyone happy, that is profoundly meaningful.
That's right!
That’s how you know you’re a legend.
I saw John Denver in a hotel lobby in Cleveland in the late 70’s. As I stood and looked with awe I heard him talking with the desk clerk. He thanked her for all her courtesies and then asked her to thank numerous other employees for their various services. It is a testament to his class that he felt it necessary to thank all of these people.
One of my favorite's by John Denver was his homage to Jacques Cousteau, Calypso. That song just gives me goosebumps because most of the time when I hear it, I can see that ship. And I was very lucky that I lived in a place along the Mississippi River where the Calypso was docked for a few days during it's tour and run down the river one summer. I don't remember the year it happened either. My search with one of the local papers hasn't found anything yet.
Rocky Mountain high has always been one of my go to songs when I needed something to make me feel good. As a matter of fact, I had to stop in the middle of your presentation and play it while I was driving home from work. Never fear I went back and finished listening to your story about this perfect song. Thank you so much for honoring John Denver, and what I consider his signature song.
I remember as a 13yo in Australia, ‘72 hearing the song in our family car, and just falling in love with it, especially the iconic riff and the acoustic guitar tapestry it weaved. And of course the vocals and lyrics were mesmerising. I’d started playing acoustic guitar 2 years earlier, and Rocky Mt High transformed my life and playing.
It all makes for a perfect song.
I don't hear enough accolades about his voice.
Love or hate his style, you can't deny his voice is off the charts beautiful.
I miss John. The most beautiful poet
Ditto
I always had a soft spot for John Denver. Living in the south and hearing Country Roads on some little portable transistor radio while walking down a dirt road going fishing or just exploring and all of us kids would burst out singing to it. Brings back the feels on this content Professor, thank you for this.
This one hits so close to home and you told his story with such kindness and grace, it made me cry. Thank you.
Never was at all a Denver fan, but his Christmas album with the Muppets, titled A Christmas Together, is still pretty dear to my heart. One of the first records I owned. I either lost or trashed it for whatever reason. Thank God for Wounded Bird Records and Sony Legacy Recordings for reissuing that album on CD, and NOT leaving off the 2 or 3 songs that Delta Music did when it first reissued the album in 1994, which is why Wounded and Legacy reissued it properly without omitting a single song, and BOTH reissues restored the art from the inside of the gatefold and the lyrics on the sleeve, which the Delta reissue excluded.
The Delta and Wounded CD reissues are totally out of print. Not sure about the Sony Legacy edition.
He was definitely a songwriter first, but John had a soaring voice. He could hit the highest of highs, and then launch into an even higher register. Criminally underrated singer.
I will never be embarrassed by my love of John Denver's music. His voice is as familiar to me as a family member. I was born in the late 70s and was raised on his music. Only got to see him live once right before he passed away, but his music will always be a favorite.
I've ALWAYS loved this song... from the first time I ever heard it... and it never gets old for me! I totally love John Denver and his music - he was truly a very gifted one-of-a-kind treasure!!!
It’s a classic.
The 1970s into the 1980s was a special time to live. I don't think that music will ever be replicated!
He has always been my favorite male vocalist. Pure, inspiring, transcending, and calming.
This is your best content ever, and that is no small feat... some of my most vivid childhood memories were seeing how moved my mother was by John Denver’s music, her love of his music and the wholesome image of a man moved by nature brought her rare joy during difficult years as a single mother struggling to raise three kids. His line during the special about the history of flight with his dad where he said he admires people who set out to achieve something and then go do it gave me goosebumps because I told my dear sweet mother on the day she passed that I have always admired her striving for us kids to be a great mother, and achieving that goal brilliantly. That day we had filled the hospital room with John Denver music for her last few hours. I believe John was one of the first persons to meet her in heaven.
Yes, Denver was one of my guilty pleasures back in the day. He really believed what he was singing. That was my takeaway.
He sung with passion.
John Denver was my first concert back in 1974. I still remember his gorgeous voice soaring through the concert hall. I also remember the day he died. I was in an airport heading back to where I grew up and thinking about how John was a part of my childhood. He will always be a part of everyone's life through the beautiful music he created.
It was scary.
I have to say, as a die hard metal fan, "Rocky Mountain High" hits me right in the feels. His song aptly describes where I grew up, too: the Rocky Mountains of Montana. As the Professor said, this is a song, and again proves a truly great song, transcends genres.
We all loved John Denver back in the day. He had such great 'sing along' songs... Country Roads was my favorite and I still love it.
I loved John Denver's music. He was such an authentic person, and his joy of the mountains burst forth as a rocky mountain high! My family camped every summer, and Denver's love of nature resonated with me. It was a touchstone in a world that was not quite as innocent as before. Watergate had soured me, but John Denver gave me respite.
I’d rather trust John Denver over anti-environmentalist Nixon, that’s for sure.
What a wonderful tribute. I, too, love "Rocky Mountain High" and John's music. He was a singular artist, adored by all generations. My grandparents, born just before the First World War, had many of his albums. Top video, and very moving.
Wow. Thank you for this! I grew up loving the music of John Denver and Dan Fogelberg. In fact, Rocky Mountain High was the first LP I bought with my own money. The honesty, the melodies - he gave us his everything.
Since then, I've wanted to live in Colorado. I've never made it there to live, but my daughter and her husband moved there a couple years ago. At least now, I get to visit this amazing state.
Dan Fogelberg was basically the late 70s/early 80s John Denver, they are so similar.
I love the appearance of John with Cass Elliot singing I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane. It is beautiful.
I bought this album as a kid and literally wore it out. Later I would learn that one of my favorite song tracks on that album was written by none other than John Prine. Two great lyricists on one album!
"Paradise" is my second favorite song on the album!
Professor, I grew up in the 1970's and have always been a major fan of John Denver's music. I believe this is the first episode that you've done on him. A very pleasant surprise. I have John Denver's Greatest Hits album which contains such 70's pop classics "Rocky Mountain High", "Take Me Home, Country Roads", Annie' Song", "Sunshine On My Shoulder" and "Thank God I'm A Country Boy". One of the great country pop crossover artists.
So many classics.
Nobody secretly loved John Denver, they openly loved him. And why not? His music touched all our souls. May he rest in peace.
I was never ashamed to tell anyone about John Denver. Say his name out loud.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980, out loud and proud! 👊🏼
Thank you, Adam. So great to hear your tribute to John Denver, so well researched. John had a voice with incredible range and clarity.
I was a hard rock addict in the 70s, but i always loved John Denver. In the late 70s, i was working at SLC Airport. John came in for his concert. I fueled his Jet and after the concert, I helped him unload his limo he had a cool pair of cowboy boots with jewels on them, and I said dude nice boots he smiled at me and said do you how you get a pair of boots like these. I said no, and he said Practice practice practice. Cracked me up. I met him 2 other times, very nice guy.
This song stirs so much emotion, if you love nature, and all of its magnificent beauty, you almost have to love this song. It describes eloquently not only the rocky mountains, and how incredibly beautiful they are, but also the feeling one gets from taking in all of its splendor! A beautifully written song from a man who seemed to get it! Very well done!
I love John Denver and I will never be embarrassed to admit it. He was, is and will be forever an icon.
My favourite song is Rocky Mountain High. This is a wonderful story, thanks Prof.
He was one in a million. So much more talented than most people realize.