(MORRISON, Colo.) — With decades of sold-out stadiums, books, and now a movie starring Jeremy Allen White, it’s difficult to imagine an era of The Boss without outdoor performances. Well, before 1978, it would’ve been impossible to see the E Street Band in anything other than a closed venue. That would be until the fledgling legend and his band saw Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
By 1978, it would have been over three years since Springsteen released Born to Run, and had toured the album at historic venues like The Bottom Line Club in New York City and West Hollywood’s Roxy Theatre. And what can be said about the 1975 landmark album that countless music journalists and historians haven’t? According to Billboard, Born to Run sold 700,000 copies in the United States in 1975 alone.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band on stage at their 1975 show at New York City’s The Bottom Line. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
An Amsterdam performance during the Born to Run tour, 1975. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at the Monmouth Arts Center in Red Bank, NJ, Oct. 11, 1975. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
But what did all the shows in this legendary run have in common? They were all indoors: clubs, theaters, and the like. And that makes sense when considering Springsteen’s desire for his performances to have a certain degree of intimacy and the ability to talk to and connect with audiences, which isn’t easy in an outdoor space. Add on the unpredictability of the elements, and it’s little wonder why an artist would be wary of performing outdoors.
“Honestly, the elements are always the biggest wild card. Wind, rain, and in Colorado, of course, snow, can challenge the best-laid plans,” said Ford Amphitheater’s Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Philanthropy Chloe Polhamus.
By the time the hype around Born to Run finally settled, and after weeks of his manager’s convincing, Bruce booked his first outdoor show on a national tour, reportedly after being told that Red Rocks was essentially “indoors without a roof.”
According to Colorado Music Experience, only 6,200 people of Red Rocks’ 8,000 seats were able to catch the Tuesday night show. In personal recordings of the concert, Bruce can be heard remarking, “Nice place you got here, bunch of big rocks,” before opening with a new track from the album Darkness on the Edge of Town: Badlands.
The comment might have been a tad snide, but, just like all of us who get to have that first childlike experience of Colorado’s staggering natural beauty, it would appear that the kid from Asbury Park had discovered what makes both Red Rocks and performing outdoors special.
So special, in fact, the Boss proceeded to perform for a blistering three hours, including three different encores. Both Springsteen’s autobiography Born to Run and Warren Zane’s Deliver Me from Nowhere, on which the 2025 movie is based, mention that this remains one of the artist’s favorite performances.
Whether it be Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Fiddler’s Green, or Colorado Springs’ Ford Amphitheater, the Centennial State has the most beautiful potential to experience your favorite bands, creating memories that will last a lifetime.
“Coloradans wait all season to soak up those 300 days of sunshine, and outdoor concerts are the cherry on top. There’s nothing like watching the sunset with your loved ones while your favorite artist plays live; it’s the kind of moment that sticks with you and can’t be replicated indoors. We believe so deeply in those moments that we built our brand around it; we invested in it. At Ford Amphitheater, we’ve taken that feeling and amplified it,” Polhamus said.
