DENVER, CO (June 30, 2025) — Colorado Music Hall of Fame (CMHOF), with support from a Tourism Management Grant from the Colorado Tourism Office (CTO), is proud to unveil a bold, first-of-its-kind Colorado Music Tourism Strategy—a statewide action plan designed to brand Colorado as a top-tier music destination, foster collaboration across the music and tourism industries, and grow Colorado’s music economy.
Developed over the course of 10 months with facilitation by destination consulting firm Mission2Market, the strategy engaged over 1,300 residents, visitors, and industry professionals, and was shaped by a 60-member task force representing every region of the state.
“Colorado’s music legacy is as vast and diverse as its landscape,” said Karen Radman, Executive Director of Colorado Music Hall of Fame. “This strategy reflects a shared vision for Colorado’s future—one that celebrates our past, supports our music communities today, and positions the state as a must-visit destination for music lovers worldwide. Developing this strategy was truly a collaborative effort, uniting the music and tourism industries across the state.”
Three Strategic Goals Drive the Initiative
Brand Colorado as a Music Destination The strategy calls for a new statewide Colorado Music Trail, digital hubs showcasing music venues and experiences, and a unified brand identity to promote Colorado’s vibrant music scene and rich heritage—from Red Rocks to Telluride, from Fort Morgan to Durango.
Foster a Cohesive, Collaborative Music Industry By connecting artists, venues, promoters and tourism professionals, the plan seeks to lower barriers for artists through tools like a statewide venue database, multi-city tour coordination and affordability-focused partnerships with local businesses and government.
Champion the Value of Colorado’s Music Economy The plan outlines steps to update the state’s economic impact data, advocate for industry-supportive funding and incentives, and equip civic leaders with resources to champion live music as a vital part of Colorado’s culture and economy.
What’s Next
As part of the next phase, The Hall has launched the “Discover: Colorado’s Music Scene” platform on its comprehensive music website atcmhof.org/colorado-music-scene. Visitors can access the full Colorado Music Tourism Strategy along with practical tools and resources designed to support musicians, communities, travelers and industry professionals in building and celebrating Colorado’s dynamic music scene. This page will eventually be home to the Colorado Music Roadmap, connecting fans to iconic venues, historic destinations and music festivals across the state.
All compiled on The Hall’s website, partners such as FoCoMA, Indie Music Alliance, and Chris K’s Colorado Playlist have already stepped up to share tools and databases. The CTO has added a live music link on Colorado.com, while Localify.org will help music fans discover local artists and events across the state.
Colorado Music Hall of Fame now invites partners, civic leaders and music lovers to join in advancing this shared vision.
“This isn’t just a strategy—it’s a movement,” said Radman. “Together, we can ensure Colorado’s music scene remains one of the most vibrant and welcoming in the nation.”
It was a great week for new releases from MILES WIDE, HELLO DOLLFACE, WONDERLIC, SHEL, ADRIENNEO, SAM LEE, and ELEPHANT REVIVAL …. there’s a great version of Enter Sandman, the Metallica classic, on the new SHEL album that I’ll share in next week’s show.
Sometimes I get lost. If you’ve followed me, you know I’m still in the deepest grief stages of losing my wife to cancer on Feb 2. Friends and professionals both have told me to be easy on myself … to not worry about getting lost right now. For that, I’m grateful. Here’s this week’s playlist and new music shares.
Don’t forget … KUNC is no longer airing the show — it has been moved to 105.5 The Colorado Sound. It airs at 10AM Sunday morning (hour 2 of show) and it airs at 10PM Sunday nights (both hours of show).
VIDEO PICK of the WEEK
Russ Hopkins is an old friend who is about to release a “career” record .. the best of what he’s produced in his career as artist, engineer and producer. This is one of those songs.
COLORADO PLAYLIST S10 EP06
HOUR 1
Gary Stites “Lonely for You” from Lonely for You (1960) Flash Cadillac & the Continental Kids “Good Times, Rock & Roll” from Best of Flash Cadillac and The Continental Kids (2010) (D) Miles Wide “California” from The Kindness of Strangers (2016) Reed Foehl “Wolves” from Once An Ocean (2009) Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats “Howling At Nothing” from Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats (2015) (N) Hello Dollface “Say” from Warrior of Light (2016) Joel Ansett “Kingdom Come” from The Nature of Us (2016) Andy Palmer “Good Son” from Hazard of the Die (2013) Grandpa’s Gun “Trucker Mouth” from Back Into Town (2015) Calder’s Revolvers “Leave Ya Be” from Sunday Morning (2014) (D) Wonderlic “Your News” from Wunderpus Photogenicus (2016) Mollie O’Brien & Rich Moore “keep It Clean” from Saints & Sinners (2010) Ark Life “Rock & Roll (Take It Easy)” from The Dream of You and Me (2014) Annie Booth “Queen bee” from WANDERLUST (2014)
HOUR 2
The Astronauts “money” from Everything Is A-OK (1964) (D) SHEL “You Could Be My Baby” from Just Crazy Enough (2016) The Epilouges “Hunting Season” from Cinematics (2012) Kyle Hollingsworth “Beautiful People” from Speed of Life (2014) (N) AdrienneO “Awake” from Elevation (2016) (D) Sam Lee “Doctor, Devil, Priest” from Doctor, Devil, Priest (2016) Otis Taylor “The Devil’s Gonna Lie” from Otis Taylor’s Contraband (2012) Gregory Alan Isakov “John Brown’s Body” from That Sea, The Gambler (2007) (D) Elephant Revival “Peace Tonight” from Petals (2016)
Big Head Todd & The Monsters “Please Don’t Tell Her” from Beautiful World (1997) Rapidgrass Quintet “Crooked Road” from Rapidgrass Quintet (2015) Jeff Jenkins Organization “Braking Bad” from The Arrival (2015)
Happy New Year. It was a hellova year in 2015, personally for sure, but also in our scene. It’s Monday morning. Besides Colorado music and radio, I’m also a homer when it comes to the Broncos who I had the pleasure of witnessing live as they won against San Diego and tied up the #1 seed going into the playoffs.
Please don’t ask me about the Avs or the Nuggets … I don’t watch either – just as I don’t listen to or promote certain styles of music, such as metal/punk or rap. So I’ll accept the criticism that the show is not inclusive of these styles, just as my preference for sports locally is solely Broncos and nothing else.
Over the years I’ve published a best of that detailed, more or less, what Colorado titles were aired at over a dozen stations statewide — including KAFM (Grand Junction), KBUT (Crested Butte), KRFC (Fort Collins), KSUT (Ignacio/Durango), KDUR (Durango), KRCC (Colorado Springs), KUNC (Greeley), KOTO (Telluride), KRZA (Alamosa), KVNF (Paonia), and a few others.
However, last April, I lost all of my spin data (no, I didn’t backup) so I suspended my tracking for the year. That plus the fact that’s it is incredibly time consuming to keep track of over 300 titles played at stations across the state. What we got in this year’s BEST OF 2015 represents what I saw played without counting spins, what I personally liked, and what fans liked.
The fan favorite list for 2015 is interesting. Some of the bands definitely got their fanbase riled up to vote for them – hence we have some titles in the list that really never got much in the way of radio support from me, or from stations around the state. Such is the nature of fan polls – it’s totally about getting your base out to vote for you.
FAN FAVORITE TOP 20
1. Michal Menert – Space Jazz
2. Longest Day Of The Year – Carapace
3. Michal Menert – Michal Menert & the Pretty Fantastics 1
4. Grim & Darling – Beauty Through Pain
5. Michael Kirkpatrick – Honey Rider
6. Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats – Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats
7. Megan Burtt – The Bargain
8. Matt Skellenger – New Radio
9. Nathaniel Rateliff – Closer
10. Grandpa’s Gun – Back Into Town
11. Richie Furay – Hand In Hand
12. Andy Hackbarth – Panorama Motel
12. The Yawpers – American Man
13. Mojomama – Mojomama
13. Natalie Walker – Strange Bird
14. Cary Morin – Tiny Town
14. Elephant Revival – Sands of Now
14. Yonder Mountain String Band – Black Sheep
15. Montropo – Follow Me
TOP NEWS & NOTES 2015
Some of the biggest NEWS & NOTES of 2015 involved some of the most loved and well known venues in the Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins area, and a few guys who are or have been involved with music in our scene over the years.
Former Swallow Hill booking manager David Weingarden and his partner Chris Peck, as Z2 Entertainment inked a deal last summer to book the historic Mishawaka Amphitheatre. Z2 also books the Fox Theater and the Boulder Theater. David was instrumental in booking the Botanic Gardens while with Swallow Hill, and Chris came from AC Entertainment in TN, where he was instrumental in booking Bonoroo among other events.
Swallow Hill Music appointed Paul M. Lhevine as Chief Executive Officer of the 36-year-old Colorado home for roots, folk and acoustic music. Paul came to Swallow Hill Music from the Aurora Public Schools Foundation (APSF), where he served as Executive Director while also performing duties as Director of External Affairs for the school district. Former Swallow Hill executive director Tom Sharf landed the gig as Music Programs Director for the Bohemian Foundation.
Among the biggest stories regionally, Scoo Leary sold the Aggie Theater in Fort Collins to Scott Morrill and his partners, who also own Cervantes in Denver. Scott and Scoo worked together at Hodi’s Half Note in Fort Collins from 2007-2009. Scott purchased Cervantes from Jay Bianchi, who also owns Quixotes in Denver. Jay opened Owsley’s Golden Road on “the Hill” in Boulder this past year.
NEW BEGINNINGS 2016
April marks the 10th anniversary of The Colorado Sound. 2016 marks the 100th birthday of the Mishawaka Amphitheatre. Expect a combined Anniversary / Birthday Party event this spring. Date TBA.
The Colorado Sound Live365 may be going away at the end of January. I got the news over the past week that
“Recently, the Copyright Royalty Board, the governing entity for establishing the sound recording royalty rates that are paid to copyright holders, published the new rates for 2016-20. The previous provisions for small webcasters to opt for a percentage of revenue model were not renewed. The absence of this license will make legally streaming copyrighted musical content prohibitively expensive for many small to mid-sized Internet broadcasters.
Live365 faced an additional blow, losing the support of its investors who have helped the company with its mission for over a decade.”
According to the email, they’ll keep going until the end of January while they look for and negotiate with potential investors. Fingers crossed that we’ll get to keep the platform, although I’m sure it will mean increased costs in the least.
The BIGGEST NEW BEGINNING is I’ll be looking for a new name for the show over the next 6 weeks. I can’t why exactly, except that I sold the name. The BIG news on that will be forthcoming soon, I’m sure.
A PERSONAL NOTE FROM MR & MRS GOAT
My girl!
Deadly disease, we’ve learned, is a family affair. The impending too-early life transition from earth to wherever may only directly affect the breath of one, but also the heart and ongoing lives of those closest to them, be they family or friends.
Mrs Goat has stage IV metastatic melanoma. It’s a nasty deadly disease that has extremely limited options for treatment, and now none of which she’s qualified for according to the doctors we’ve seen. The available treatments are now considered too toxic for Miss Pattie.
The curse is that it got into Miss Pattie’s brain and other organs. She had a massive brain seizure on December 23 at approx 8:40AM as she and I and our daughter were having coffee.
Pattie spent several days being cared for at Good Samaritan hospital in Lafayette. I cannot say enough good about the experience, as painful as it was. She is now in hospice care at home.
We don’t know what the next year holds for us. No one can say for sure whether Mrs Goat will be here in six weeks, six months, or a year .. no one has yet suggested more than a year. As such, we’re living the best days of our lives as a family – extended as it is throughout our music and radio community.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your love and support. We deeply appreciate the additional financial support you’ve been providing via our gofundme page, set up by a member of the family.
Goatz! will continue. Miss Pattie will be on stage as she’s able. We have shows set up for Feb 12 (Tasty Weasel, Longmont), March 3 (Oskar Blues, Lyons), and March 26 (Avogadro’s Number, Fort Collins with Kerry Pastine & the Crime Scene).
Folks have been asking what we need. Right now the most pressing need is more business. I have advertising space available on the show, and time for consulting and servicing Colorado music to media and municipal agencies statewide. Please email thecoloradosound@gmail.com for more information.
Have a safe, happy and loving 2016. We love you very much.
Mr & Mrs Goat aka Chris K & Miss Pattie aka Chris and Pattie Kresge
PLAYLIST S10 BEST OF 2015
HOUR 1
Michael Kirkpatrick “I’m Your Man” from Honey Rider (2015) Leftover Salmon “High Country” from High Country (2015) Grandpa’s Gun “Trucker Mouth” from Back Into Town (2015) The Longest Day Of The Year “Last Gray Day” from Carapace (2015) Montropo “Follow Me” from Follow Me (2015) Trout Steak Revival “Colorado River” from Brighter Every Day (2015) The Railsplitters “Tilt-a-whirl” from The Faster It Goes (2015) Finnders & Youngberg “She Wants to Eat the Moon” from Eat The Moon (2015) Otis Taylor “Red Meat” from Hey Joe Opus Red Meat (2015) Ian Cooke “Epilogue” from Antiquasauria Land Lines “Plans” from Natural World (2014) In The Whale “Mail” from Full Nelson (2015) Analog Son “Shady Nights” from Stomp and Shout (2015)
HOUR 2
Andy Hackbarth “Panorama Motel” from Panorama Motel (2015) Grim & Darling “Quicksand” from Beauty Through Pain (2015) Young Ancients “Going Back to Tulsa (Tulsa)” from Fishstory (2015) Cary Morin “Yellow Bird” from Tiny Town (2015) The Yawpers “Burdens” from American Man (2015) Richie Furay “Hand in Hand” from Hand In Hand (2015) Chris Daniels & the Kings “Funky to the Bone” from Funky To the Bone (2015) Michal Menert “Lightyears Apart” from Space Jazz (2015) Michal Menert “High Noon” from Michal Menert & the Pretty Fantastics 1 (2015) Megan Burtt “Fast as I Go” from The Bargain (2015) Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats “S.O.B” from Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats (2015) Matt Skellenger “The Curve” from New Radio (2014)
Happy New Year. It was a hellova year in 2015, personally for sure, but also in our scene. It’s Monday morning. Besides Colorado music and radio, I’m also a homer when it comes to the Broncos who I had the pleasure of witnessing live as they won against San Diego and tied up the #1 seed going into the playoffs.
April marks the 10th anniversary of The Colorado Sound. 2016 marks the 100th birthday of 
Chris K's Colorado Playlist 