Have I said lately how great The Ogden is?

Located in the North Capitol Hill area of Denver, Colorado, The Ogden Theatre is one of Denver's oldest venue's. On the National Register of Historic Places, it was opened in 1917 by John Thompson- a grocer/druggist, he was also owner of the

Photo via Denver Public Library

Bluebird (formerly Thompson) Theater, which is just a bit further east on Colfax.

A long-standing history of entertaining Denverite's in some fashion,  it originally hosted vaudeville shows- most notably Harry Houdini- and was converted to a movie theater in 1937. Closed in the late 1980's after a spectacular run of Rocky Horror Picture Shows, it was acquired by Doug Kauffman of Nobody in Particular Presents in 1992. The Ogden reopened in 1993 and is now a favored venue to see Big Bands in a relatively intimate setting. Renovations in 2006 added a balcony and it now holds about 1500 people.

Located in what some might consider one of the seedier sections of Highway 40 aka Colfax Avenue, as a venue it can't be beat. There is honestly not a bad spot in the house. Balcony or rail, the sound is phenomenal, the lighting is top notch and your proximity to the performers never seems too far.

Absolutely one of my favorite local spots to catch touring acts. Site of the infamous 2009/2010 Dead Weather shows. We consider ourselves lucky to have seen so many great bands there over the years that we have lived in Denver. This year alone we've seen The Kills, Run the Jewels and most recently Sturgill Simpson.

The Kills at The Ogden, Baby In Vain opener

OMG do you realize HOW LONG I have waited for this to happen???? They haven't been through in an age so when they announced in the spring, I bought my tickets right away and you can bet your bottom dollar we were front and relatively center for this one. It was so wonderful and inspiring to finally have a chance to observe Jamie in action.

Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart of The Kills

What a brilliant, brilliant man. And combined with Alison? Who is obviously & undoubtedly Numero Uno Rock Goddess of the World? Well, suffice to say that between those two The Ogden was On.Fire.

Alison Mosshart as entertained by Jamie Hince, The Kills

In October, Run the Jewels came to town for a two-night stint at The Ogden. We got tickets for the second night, this was a meet & greet at the Colorado Mills Mall the afternoon before the show.

Running the Jewels of the game

So funny, I honestly can't remember the last time I was at an actual mall. But there were Killer Mike and El P, probably stoned as hell and doing work for the people. A really odd assortment of folks in line at the primarily skate/snow boarder store Zumiez, they attract a diverse crowd. The show that night was spectacular. We opted for a front row balcony spot for this one, with stools to sit on (I know, I know, how old is that?) But 3 openers? My back just can't do it no more. Again, people watching was hilarious. The traditional hipsterly bearded crowd turned out, but when the lights went down, we were all Jewel Runners. The amount of mj smoke that filled the venue literally brought a tear to Killer Mike's

Killer Mike feelin' the love

eye and their appreciation for the the fervored crowd's reception was rewarded with an equally stellar show. Can't thank RTJ enough for coming to our town!

After missing his 2-night engagement at the Bluebird last year, nabbing tickets to attend Sturgill Simpson's second night at the Ogden just earlier this month was one of those 'pinch me I can't believe this is happening' moments.

Sturgill Simpson and Company, rocking The Ogden

And honestly, it was everything I could have hoped for- front row spot, short opening set (a comedian no less!) an almost TWO HOUR show. The only thing that could have made it better is if my brother had been able to get out here for it. Backed by his uber-talented band including Laur Joamet on guitar,

Laur Joamet

Miles Miller keeping time

Kevin Black on bass, Miles Miller on drums, and Jeff Crow on keyboards they did not disappoint.

Sturgill kicked everything off with 'Sitting Here Without You' and followed that up with 'Just Let Go'. Well by that point my mind was blown he'd just played two of my favorites and we were only getting started! Such a fun, Fun, FUN time. He brought the cowboys out of the wood work, there was a packed house and everyone seemed to be up for a good time. There was a minor audience altercation that went down but that I won't really refer to it here except to say Sturgill fielded it well and then stormed up the stage some more. To all of my friends not 'in' to country music right now, I would highly advise you check out Sturgill Simpson. He's got a lot to say, and a mighty fine way of saying it.

Winter's gearing up and as I write this we've got several inches of snow on the ground. Sturgill's show concluded the last of our planned events at this fine venue for this year...

The Ogden as it stands today

but we've got Puscifer coming to town next week and Tool tour dates have started to be announced for early next year so all is not yet lost!