It’s a shame, really. On a mild January evening, Denver enjoyed an hour and forty minutes of outstanding blues rock performed by two renowned veterans of the genre, Alastair Greene and Chris Duarte. As co-headliners on tour, these Austin, TX-based guitarists set the Roxy Theatre in Five Points ablaze with their electrifying show this past Thursday.
You might be wondering, what’s so shameful about that? I’ll explain later. Right now, I’d rather focus on everything that was exceptional about the night—there was truly a lot to appreciate. Don’t worry, I’ll share the shameful part at the end of this piece.
I’ve been a fan of Alastair Greene’s music for about a decade and a half. I’ve covered him live three times over the last three years. Greene is a gifted guitarist/vocalist/songwriter who has a penchant for writing songs that are immensely singable. They’re ear candy that gets stuck in your head, looping over and over all the live long day. Beefy hooks that grab your attention. His studio recordings draw you in, but it’s his live shows that truly make you want to stay.
Duarte, on the other hand, is an artist I’ve been aware of, but only peripherally. Occasionally, I’d hear one of his songs and genuinely enjoy it, yet I never truly followed his work – something I now regret. Seeing him electrify the stage at the Roxy changed everything; I’m now obsessed with backtracking through his more than thirty year, sixteen album career.
Greene opened the show at 7:30 pm, accompanied by Anthony Pacheco on drums and Jessica Will on bass. He delivered a dynamic set of nine songs over forty minutes, with the only issue being it ended too soon.
Greene’s set naturally emphasized his more recent releases, with three songs from 2024’s Standing Out Loud and two from 2020’s The New World Blues. For the remainder of the set he pulled out some absolute gems, including a cover of Albert King’s “Don’t Throw Your Love On Me So Strong,” which was included on his 2002 solo debut LP A Little Wiser. (You can find the entire setlist, presented in order in the photo gallery below.)
Greene was in his usual fine form. The voice was crisp. The playing was masterful. (Shoutout to his slide guitar work on “Bayou Mile.”) One of the things I’ve always appreciated about Greene is his between song interactions with his audiences. Even dealing with the time constraints of a compacted set, he still found time for banter, drawing cheers when he noted that Denver had a “big football game coming up this weekend”.
In short, Greene did what he always does. Great songs, great playing, great singing, and a hell of a lot of personality. If you’re a fan of blues rock, and you’ve never had the chance to see Alastair Greene perform live, you owe it to yourself to seek him out the next time he’s in your neck of the woods.
Duarte took the stage at 8:30, backed by the same rhythm section of Anthony Pacheco on drums, and Jessica Will on bass. Despite researching his famously epic live shows beforehand, I was still blown away by the sheer intensity of his performance—it truly was, as described on his website, ferocious.
Back in the 1970’s I was fortunate to see the legendary Ted Nugent perform live on two separate occasions. Nugent was nicknamed the Motor City Madman, due to his insane on stage antics, and that he was from Detroit. The man was a like a human Tasmanian Devil (shoutout Looney Tunes). Watching Duarte play guitar, I was transported back to McNichols Sports Arena, watching The Nuge flying back and forth across the stage in nothing but a loincloth. Duarte wasn’t wearing a loincloth, as the photos here will show. But the frantic and near manic physicality of his playing is something I haven’t seen since the last time I attended a Terrible Ted concert. (Nugent had a LOT of nicknames.)
And oh, did I mention the music? You cannot listen to Duarte and not be reminded of the late, great Stevie Ray Vaughan. Duarte holds Vaughan in exceptionally high esteem, so such comparisons make him uncomfortable. I won’t dwell on it, but it’s unmistakingly there. Not on every song. Duarte’s music, whether his original material or the covers he slips in now and again, might be rooted in good old fashioned Texas blues rock, but is also influenced by jazz, soul, funk, and even some prog rock.
His ten song, one hour set mixed and matched all of those styles. It also crossed space and time, pulling three songs each from his 1994 debut album Texas Sugar/Strat Magik, and another three from his most recent release, 2023’s Ain’t Giving Up. The remaining four songs, including a blistering version of his cover of Bob Dylan’s “One More Cup Of Coffee” that fed directly into the fusiony instrumental “Minefield Of My Mind”, came from albums released between 1997 and 2014. (You can find the entire setlist, presented in order in the photo gallery below.)
Duarte’s performance was extraordinary. I know I’ve already talked about how animated he was, but I have to return to it. You’ve heard the term “whirling dervish”? Yep, that’s him. He’s both a photographer’s greatest delight, and worst nightmare. There were times when I had to just drop my cameras to my side, and watch in awe. That kind of action, and that kind of sound, all coming from the same person? Freaking unbelievable.
So there you have it. Two performances by two legends. Two related, yet very different musical styles. Eighteen songs. One hour and forty minutes. And a night those in attendance will not soon forget.
That is, all two dozen (or so) in attendance. Which brings us to the “shame” thing I mentioned in the first sentence of this piece.
For nearly five years, I have reported on live music along Colorado’s Front Range. This experience has provided me with both a strong appreciation for the extensive variety of live music available in the Denver area, and a tremendous amount of respect for those who consistently invest both time and resources coming out to venues large and small, regardless of weather conditions, to support live music. The dynamic music scene in Denver and the surrounding region is sustained and enriched by the dedicated individuals who participate in and advocate for it.
But something happened this past Thursday night. I don’t know what, or why, or how. All I know is that two legends of the blues rock world put on a killer show at an intimate Denver venue, and only a couple dozen people showed up. I felt so bad for the artists, both of whom held their heads high and put it all on the line, despite playing to a nearly empty house.
There’s the shame. Here I offer a bastardized take on the Carl Sandburg inspired quote… What if they put on a blues rock show and nobody came? After Thursday night, I can honestly say I’ve been there, done that. And it felt really… miserable.
One of the few people who did show up for the show was local legend in his own mind, R. Dewey. You might (or might not) remember me quoting R. Dewey in my review of Joe Bonamassa at Red Rocks last summer. I ran into R. Dewey for a second time at the Duarte/Greene show (it wasn’t difficult to “run into” anyone in that crowd). After the show, I asked him what he thought. He told me he would text me after he’d had a moment to gather his thoughts. Here’s his text…
“Just saw two great blues performances at the Roxy. But what really made me blue was how so many Denverites missed it. The place should have been filled to the rafters. Sad!”
While I obviously agree with R. Dewey’s assessment, I don’t want to close this piece on that note. My job, as a Live Music Evangelist (it even says that on my new business cards… shoutout Denver Entertainment Hub) is to excite and encourage, not chastise and discourage. We’ll do better next time, right? I’ve already talked to Alastair about it, and I assured him that when he comes back to Denver the next time, I’ll promote the hell out of the show, and Denver will turn out to see and support him.
The Chris Duarte/Alastair Greene Tour wraps up the four-date Colorado leg of their tour tonight in the far southeastern corner of the state, in my hometown of Lamar, before heading back home to Austin, TX. Both are taking a little time off, before heading back out on the road, on separate tours. Greene is back at the end of February, with dates in Mississippi and Florida. Duarte will be heading in the opposite direction, with dates in California, Washington and Oregon beginning March 20. No word yet on when either might be returning to Colorado… I’ll let you know as soon as I do.
Story and photos by Rick Witt www.rickwittphotography.com
