LEGENDARY ROCK CONCERT PROMOTER BARRY FEY PASSES AWAY AT 73

Posted by Gemma Solomons

The world of rock n’ roll lost a huge piece of it’s heart this weekend with the passing of Barry Fey (73). The renowned concert promoter worked with some of the biggest stars in rock and roll of all time.

The iconic “Rockfather,” Fey had an impressive reputation, and is responsible for bringing Denver into the music scene, when he moved his promotion business to Colorado from Chicago in 1967.

Barry had an excellent ear for music, recognizing top name talent before they were completely popular in the United States. He got Bruce Springsteen to play at Red Rocks Amphitheater in 1979, when he was only really known on the East Coast, a show that only filled a third of the seats.

“But, I got him back to Red Rocks in 1981,” wrote Fey in his 2011 memoir, Backstage Past. “He sold out this time. Back-to-back nights under the stars; well, at least one night under the stars. The first night was perfect. The second night, it poured. Rained like hell. And there he was, soaking wet, telling the crowd, also soaking wet that if they want to call it off and go home, he’d come back the next night and play somewhere indoors for free. The crowd booed, loudly, or maybe they were yelling ‘Bruuuuuce’.”

Fey is also responsible for the roof that is now over the stage at Red Rocks, built a few years after the Springsteen concert.*

Barry Fey and Roger Daltrey.

One of the most infamous names in the music business, Barry worked tirelessly to ensure great musicians got to play and fans got to listen.

Fey recognized immediately the obvious talent of musicians we look back on today in admiration, musicians like Jimi Hendrix and Keith Moon, and his role in their rise to fame gave him an opportunity to live and experience the era and rock and roll legend.

“My admiration for The Who aside, what a bunch of crazy fuckers,” Fey wrote in Backstage Past. “I mean, Keith Moon was legitimately bat shit crazy…I booked a private room in a fancy restaurant for all of them and as the meal went on, course after course and bottle after bottle, I noticed that Keith was ignoring most of the restaurant food. That’s because he was eating the floral centerpiece. Flower by flower, stem by stem…”

In later years, he produced the concert video “U2 At Red Rocks: Under a Blood Red Sky”, and he is credited with saving the Denver Symphony, and forming the Colorado Symphony Orchestra in 1989. He was known for donating generously to anti-youth violence campaigns.

Barry played such a monumental role in bringing the Colorado music scene to life, and brought great talents to the public that might have never been known…he will be greatly missed.

“The Rockfather” making Lynyrd Skynyrd an offer they couldn’t refuse!

The family of Barry issued this statement a short while ago:

WE CONTINUE TO BE COMFORTED BY THE AMOUNT OF THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS WE’VE RECEIVED OVER THE LAST 24HRS. THE FAMILY WILL BE HOLDING A PRIVATE FUNERAL AND ASK THAT YOU RESPECT OUR PRIVACY DURING THIS TIME. WE WILL BE PLANNING A CELEBRATION OF HIS LIFE IN THE COMING DAYS AND WILL LET EVERYONE KNOW, SO THAT YOU CAN CELEBRATE WITH US THE AMAZING THINGS HE ACCOMPLISHED.

*WE ASK THAT INSTEAD OF FLOWERS A DONATION BE MADE IN HIS NAME TO:

Preserve The Rocks Fund
Arts & Venues Denver
1245 Champa St
Denver, CO 80204