15th Street Tavern and more music venues in Colorado that we miss

MEMORIES

Fans cheer while Elvin Bishop plays a set at a concert headlined by The Allman Brothers on June 23, 1974, at Mile High Stadium in Denver. JOHN BEARD — THE DENVER POST

Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend perform during The Who’s concert at McNichols Sports Arena on April 24, 1980, in Denver. JOHN HOPKINS — THE DENVER POST

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The Rainbow Music Hall isn’t the only venue that we have fond memories of. Long-gone stages in Denver, Boulder and elsewhere have hosted the first Colorado visits from big names such as Dolly Parton, Eagles, White Stripes and The Shins. Their disappearance has taken a piece of Colorado music history with them.

Here are just a few Front Range stages we still miss. (Note: We opted to exclude venues that are still operating in the same building under a different name.)

McNichols Sports Arena: 1635 Bryant St., Denver. Built for $16 million and opened in 1975, it shut down in 1999 and was demolished in 2000. Capacity: approx. 16,500. Who played there: Elvis Presley (1976); Robert Plant, ZZ Top, Cheap Trick, U2.

15th Street Tavern: 623 15th St., Denver. Opened in 1994, closed in 2004. Capacity: 250. Who played there: the Apples in Stereo, White Stripes, The Shins, Bright Eyes, Queens of the Stone Age, Daniel Johnston, and more punk, indie and garage rock artists.

Cricket on the Hill: 1209 E. 13th Ave., Denver. Opened in 1963, closed in 2008. Who played there: Big Head Todd & the Monsters (first show), Bo Diddley, the Subdudes, the Emmas, Page 27, Rainbow Sugar, Orbit Service, a variety of punk, folk and metal acts.

Ebbets Field Nightclub: 1020 15th St., Denver. Opened in 1973, closed in 1977. Capacity: 250. Who played there: Dan Fogelberg, Jackson Brown, Tom Waits, and Billy Joel. Once owned by promoter Chuck Morris (in partnership with Barry and Cindy Fey), it was sold to allow him to focus on larger concert promotions.

Tulagi: 1129 13th St., Boulder. Opened in the 1940s, closed in 2003. Capacity: 300. Who played there: the Eagles, Bonnie Raitt, Doobie Brothers, Linda Ronstadt, ZZ Top, Steve Martin.

Old Mile High Stadium: 2744 W. 17th Ave. Built in 1948, demolished in 2002 (the site is now a parking lot for Empower Field at Mile High). Original capacity: 17,000, expanded to accommodate approx. 72,000 before it closed. Who played there: The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Jacksons, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, Van Halen, U2 and Metallica.

El Chapultepec: 1962 Market St., Denver. Built circa 1890, opened in 1933, and began hosting jazz in 1968. Shut down in 2020. Capacity: approx. 200. Who played there: Freddy Rodriguez Sr., Ron Miles, Chet Baker, Art Blakey, Etta James, Al Grey, Ike Cole, the Marsalis brothers, Harry Connick Jr., Natalie Cole, Chick Corea, and President Bill Clinton.

Tennyson’s Tap: 4335 W. 38th Ave. in Denver. Built in 1973, became Tennyson’s Tap in 2011. Shut down in 2020. Capacity: approx. 90. Who played there: Khemmis, Muscle Beach, In the Company of Serpents, Sid Delicious and more rock, metal and cover acts.

Soiled Dove Underground: 7401 E. First Ave. in Denver. Opened in Lower Downtown in 1997 and moved to a new building in Lowry in 2006. Shut down in 2024. Capacity: approx. 350. Who played there: Otis Taylor, Mason Jennings, Shelby Lynne, The Avett Brothers, Mike Doughty, Firefall, Jolie Holland