Tommy Castro & The Painkillers rolled through the Colorado Front Range this past weekend for two shows – Saturday, March 7 at Stargazers in Colorado Springs, and Sunday, March 8 at The Armory in Fort Collins. I had the distinct pleasure of attending both shows, and offer the following recap that covers both of them.
Castro & The Painkillers continue to tour in support of their latest album, 2025’s Closer To The Bone, for good reason. The album has been both a commercial and critical hit, recently earning several 2026 Blues Music Awards nominations, including Album of the Year, Blues Rock Artist (for Castro), and Song of the Year for “Can’t Catch A Break,” which Castro co-wrote with Christoffer Andersen. Such recognition is familiar territory for Castro & The Painkillers. Their 2021 release, the “roots music odyssey” Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came To Town, won three 2022 Blues Music Awards – Album of the Year, B.B. King Entertainer of the Year (for Castro), and Band of the Year (for Castro & The Painkillers). Throughout his more than forty year career, Castro and his band have collected eleven Blues Music Awards altogether, including four B.B. King Entertainer of the Year titles for Castro.
Yeah, they’re a pretty big deal.
They’re also road warriors, seemingly always on tour. According to their website, they play in the neighborhood of 150 gigs a year. They play a lot of those gigs in Colorado – a place they genuinely love to visit. As Castro told the rowdy crowd in Fort Collins on Sunday night, there “must be something in the water” because Colorado audiences are always incredible. You might think he tells that to all the girls, but the look in his face as he was expressing his gratitude suggested (at least to me) that he was absolutely sincere. More to the point, because we all know that artists and bands draw significant energy from the vibe generated by the crowd, the incredible performances on both nights speak not only to the band, but to the people who came out to see and hear them, as well.
As they did when they visited the Oriental in Denver last March, Castro & The Painkillers chose not to have an opening act, instead delivering two sets separated by a twenty-five minute break. Each night, the first set featured eight songs and lasted fifty-five minutes. The second set consisted of ten songs, ending with a single-song encore, running for one hour and five minutes. Altogether, they played eighteen songs across two hours.
The setlists for both nights were almost identical, differing by only one song. During the second set on Sunday night, the band made a last minute substitution. I know it was last minute because I took a peek at the setlist taped to the floor in front of Castro’s mic stand, so I knew what was (supposedly) coming. For the fourth song of the second set, the band replaced the previous night’s James Brown cover, “I Feel That Old Feeling Coming On,” with “Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine.” Both are dance songs, but “Old Feeling” is more rock and roll, and “Sex Machine” is more soul/funk. Both do the job of getting the crowd on their feet, which is something Castro encouraged all night(s) long.
The setlists for both nights, presented in order, can be found in the photo gallery below. I’m not going to go through them song by song, but I will call out a handful of highlights…
- “A Bluesman Came to Town” was the opener in the first set. Thank you, thank you, thank you to Castro for bringing this fantastic song back into the live show rotation. There’s a reason the 2021 album by the same name was awarded the Blues Music Award for Album of the Year… it’s simply phenomenal. If for some reason you aren’t familiar with that album, do yourself a favor. Sit down and listen to it, front to back, in a single sitting. You won’t regret it.
- “Nasty Habits,” the fourth song of the first set, is one of Castro’s most popular songs, and is always a crowd pleaser. I’ve seen Castro perform this song probably ten times, and it never gets old.
- “Freight Train (Let Me Ride)” followed “Nasty Habits,” and was the first show stopper of the night. On this old fashioned blues thumper, Castro plays a blistering slide guitar.
- “It Serves Me Right To Suffer” was the closing song of the first set. Castro has been performing this cover of John Lee Hooker’s 1969 classic for a long time, but his version on these two nights was decidedly different from what I’d seen and heard performed in prior shows. In the past Castro would start slow and moody, but shift gears after the first verse into an extended instrumental romp. The romp is still there, but now it follows what is pretty much the full and faithful version of the original. And if that weren’t enough, Castro now does an audience walkabout during the song as well. It was one hell of a way to close out the opening set.
- “Everywhere I Go” was the second song of the second set. This is the lone song on which Castro gives up lead vocal duties to bassist Randy McDonald, and is another of those songs that audiences go crazy for. McDonald is so engaging and entertaining anyway, and letting him take over on lead really fires the crowd up.
- “Blues Prisoner” was the fifth song of the second set, and is the kind of song that pretty much defines what a show stopper is. On this slow, traditional blues number, Castro shines on both lead vocal and guitar. It’s an exceptional song to begin with, and the live presentation is nothing short of masterful.
- “My Old Neighborhood” is definitely a change of pace tune, at least to begin with. What made it a highlight for me was watching McDonald on the bass. There’s playing the bass, and then there’s PLAYING the bass. Dude was flat out jamming, so much so that I almost overlooked the fact that Castro had launched into a very Allman Brother’s like guitar jam at the same time. One of the best overall jams of the night.
- “Hole In The Wall” served as the single song encore for the night. A feel good, audience singalong tune that had everyone on their feet, hands clapping and hips swaying.
The music was amazing. From the live show standards to some of the “deep cuts” Castro noted they pulled out, dusted off, and learned how to play all over again, it was superb. But what really makes a Castro/Painkillers show special is the evident camaraderie among the band members, their mutual respect, and the genuine enjoyment they display during their live performances.
Castro and McDonald have been together pretty much from the beginning. Castro is definitely the front man, and he gets the majority of the between songs mic time, but McDonald gets his fair share as well. There’s an infectious playfulness between them that you can’t help but get swept up in. If you’re not smiling with delight as you watch the two of them do their choreographed dance moves, you might want to get that checked out.
On drums, Stewart Burr is amazingly cool and laid back, laying down the beat, but deferring to Castro and McDonald for “air time.” The evening’s biggest revelation was Dave Fleschner on keyboards – a true newcomer, having joined the band only a week prior, as he told me before the FOCO show. His performance, however, gave no hint of his recent arrival; he played superbly. Watching him jam was also a highlight, as his energy and expressiveness made it especially enjoyable.
The word “legendary” is often used in blues and blues rock, and it’s not without merit. Many artists and bands have spent years perfecting their craft, releasing outstanding music, and building loyal followings. Among them, Castro & The Painkillers stand out. Over forty years and more than twenty albums, they’ve truly earned legendary status. Their performances last Saturday in Colorado Springs and Sunday in Fort Collins proved why. If you were there, you know I speak true. If you weren’t there… well, you have an opportunity for redemption. Castro & The Painkillers will be playing at the Greeley Blues Jam in early June. For information, schedules, and tickets, visit https://greeleybluesjam.org/.
Before I leave, a handful of thank you’s and shoutouts…
A HUGE shoutout to the two amazing venues that hosted the shows this past weekend. Stargazers Theatre & Events Center in Colorado Springs is truly a historic gem. Originally built in 1969 as a United Artist movie theater, I saw several movies there in the mid-70’s. The building was purchased and renovated by John and Cindy Hooten in 2008, and reopened in 2009 as an events center. The unique round, domed architecture naturally provides extraordinary acoustics for concerts. A heartfelt thank you to John Hooten for the kindness and courtesy he showed me when I showed up to cover the show this past weekend.
Then there’s The Armory FOCO in Fort Collins, which is my absolute favorite venue for covering shows along the Colorado Front Range. It’s a fantastic, smallish venue in the Old Town area of Fort Collins. Outstanding acoustics, impressive lighting, and an absolutely gorgeous background behind the stage makes this an amazing place to see live music. Thank you so much to the wonderful staff at The Armory, including Erin Palmer, for all your help.
Now I know many of you Denver area peeps are hesitant to make the drive south to Colorado Springs or north to Fort Collins to see concerts, but I’m telling you that you need to get over that. Yes, there are MANY outstanding live music venues right here in the immediate Denver area, but when your favorites bands aren’t playing in Denver, but are playing in Colorado Springs and/or Fort Collins, don’t let a little drive time stop you from seeing them. I cover a lot of shows in both of those cities, and find that the short road trips are well worth it. I mean, how can a late night stop at Buc-ee’s, on your way back from a show in FOCO, be anything but awesome!?
Story and photos by Rick Witt www.rickwittphotography.com
