Singer-songwriter John Denver left us (ironically, "on a jet plane") 28 years ago, in October 1997. His music remains with us today. A few tribute artists work hard to continue his legacy. Chris Collins is one of them. Together with his three-piece Boulder Canyon Band, Collins takes us back to the 1970s and '80s, to help us remember the songs we used to know so well.

The Broadway Theatre is one of those old-fashioned, highly decorated, small-town auditoriums. It holds just a little more than a thousand people. It is the perfect kind of venue for a concert that is going to offer more than mere casual listening. It's going to demand audience participation. It's going to be an all-out sing-along, featuring some of our favorite songs of the past.

John Denver's catalogue is larger and wider than what can be performed in two hours or less. The trick for the contemporary artist is to choose representative selections that will connect the most with the audience. Collins does this, here. And he adds his own spin to the music, too. He shares some of Denver's best songs from the 1970s, including "Back Home Again," "Leavin' on a Jet Plane," "Grandma's Feather Bed," "Annie's Song," "Sunshine on My Shoulders," "Take Me Home, Country Roads," "Poems, Prayers, & Promises," "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" and "Fly Away," to name just some. Collins adds two album cuts that may both surprise and delight fans: "Wild Montana Skies," and "Eagles & Horses." He and the band also throw in a Jimmy Buffett song and a George Harrison song, for good measure. And they predicted correctly. The audience knew these lyrics by heart, too.

If we had to come up with a theme for the evening, it would be pure, clean, FUN. Collins has even mastered a few impersonations. At one point, he takes a familiar John Denver song -- I won't reveal which one -- and sings a few lines alternatively as Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan, John Wayne and Kermit the Frog. Hilarious! He also pairs John Denver with Johnny Cash on "Folsom Prison Blues." Such unexpected frivolities serve to make the program even more entertaining.

The main portion of the concert concludes with "Rocky Mountain High," with the follow-up encore of "Calypso." It is the perfect way to end a perfect musical evening.

I keep referring to Collins alone, yet the members of his Boulder Canyon band cannot be overlooked. The three musicians that accompany Collins are each stand-outs in their own right. Alexander Mitchell sings harmonies and plays lead acoustic guitar, harmonica and a really mean fiddle. Nigel Newton sings and adds the keyboard lines. And Ralph Gordon adds the bottom with his resounding upright electric bass. Collins himself alternates between his acoustic 6-string and 12-string guitars. My first thought was: No drummer? Well, none was needed. The instrumentation and the arrangements kept a steady pace without one.

As an avid John Denver fan, I have attended and witnessed a number of tribute programs over the past two decades. I have even hosted my own events. I can see why Chris Collins and Boulder Canyon are at the top of the list. Every October, when such groups descend upon Aspen, Colorado, these fine musicians are found on the playbill at the Wheeler Opera House, exactly where they deserve to be. If you like John Denver's songs and you want to spend a few hours strolling down memory lane and singing along with professional musicians, then I highly recommend that you catch Collins and the band whenever they are out and about in the countryside. You may not have to hike to the Rockies in the fall to find them.

[ visit Chris Collins online ]