From “Country Roads” to “Rocky Mountain High”, John Denver’s influence can be seen in his music, environmental efforts, and his passion for free speech as evidenced in his testimony at the Senate PMRC Hearings in 1985. You don’t have to be a huge fan to recognize the impact of John Denver’s music on the Americana scene. Denver’s music is woven into the consciousness of American Music. This Americana inspired legend’s lyrics paint the American landscape, especially those of his once home Colorado home. These grand brush strokes are seen in his 1973 hit song “Rocky Mountain High”¹. A scenic introspection that describes the vastness of the Colorado Rockies themselves, “Talked to God and listened to the casual reply. Rocky mountain high” eventually became Colorado’s second state song¹.

“His sight has turned inside himself to try and understand
The serenity of a clear blue mountain lake.”

– John Denver, from the song Rocky Mountain High

Born Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr. and later prompted by friends, he adopted the stage name John Denver after the capitol of his favor state. Later moving to Aspen, Colorado to live⁴ John’s songs became synonymous with the way of life in The Centennial State. His rise to fame began with the hit “Leaving on a Jet Plane”, written by John Denver and recorded by the folk powerhouse Peter, Paul, and Mary.⁵ The song spent nine weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and beat out The Beatles, Elvis Presley, and The Supremes for the number one position the week of December 20^th, 1969.⁶

Rocky Mountain High Controversy

Debuted at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre¹, “Rocky Mountain High” was banned by many radio stations for its perceived meaning. Just prior to its release the FCC had released a warning to radio stations about playing any music that glorified illegal drug use¹¹. John later denied the association in his testimony at the 1985 PMRC Senate hearings. John vocalized his stance against the censorship³ and the Senate hearings later resulted in the RICAA trademark “Parental Advisory Explicit Content” labels¹⁰.  

Environmental Activist

Released the same year as Joni Mitchell’s conservational song “Big Yellow Taxi”⁷, the 1970 Tom Paxton cover of “Who’s Garden is This?” helped create Denver’s seamless transition from poetic appreciation of nature to songs of environmental activism⁴. The skillfully crafted song’s narrator asks the listener to describe the forest, oceans, and sky in a way that brings the listener to conclude they are no longer there or disfigured beyond recognition.

“Whose garden was this? It must have been lovely
Did it have flowers? I’ve seen pictures of flowers
And I’d love to have smelled one” – John Denver’s song “Who’s Garden is This”

Denver went on to cofound The Windstar Foundation, an environmental education and research center⁹, and start the non-profit Plant-It 2000, that lead to almost 100,000 indigenous trees planted in its first year⁸.

The Longevity and Universal Appeal of “Take Me Home, Country Roads”

Recorded in at least nineteen different languages¹², there is something that bonds others together in this song. Whether it be the word “home”, the sense of belonging woven in its lyrics or the visuals it paints, the song connects people of a variety of backgrounds. The research study by Heidi Netz Rupke and Grant Blank called “’Country Roads’ to Globalization: Sociological Models for Understanding American Popular Music in China” breaks down greatly not only American Music’s influence, but also specifically the song “Country Roads”. Most likely you’ve sung the identifiable ear worm yourself from time to time when driving down a dirt road.¹³ At the 50^th anniversary of the CMA awards “Country Roads” was woven with the songs “I Will Always Love You” and “On the Road Again” in a mash up. Various popular country artists from the past and present participated in the song.¹⁴ Even though Americana Music wasn’t even a genre during the time of John Denver’s career height, his music has influenced and spread across genres and can easily be seen in today’s Americana Scene.

References:

1. https://www.denverpost.com/2022/06/15/john-denver-rocky-mountain-high-50th-anniversary-colorado-symphony/
2. https://www.kunc.org/regional-news/2022-09-26/john-denvers-iconic-tune-rocky-mountain-high-turns-50
3. https://www.newsweek.com/2015/10/09/oral-history-tipper-gores-war-explicit-rock-lyrics-dee-snider-373103.html
4. https://johndenver.com/about/biography/
5. https://www.historycolorado.org/about-john-denver
6. https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100/1969-12-20/
7. https://www.rhino.com/article/april-1970-joni-mitchell-releases-big-yellow-taxi
8. https://www.umsl.edu/hwec/WEArecipients/denver.html#:~:text=Denver%20created%20Plant%2DIt%202000,demonstrated%20by%20his%20WildLife%20Concert.
9. https://johndenver.com/about/philanthropy/
10. https://www.riaa.com/resources-learning/parental-advisory-label/
11. https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1971/3/8/fcc-orders-broadcasters-to-ban-pro-drug/
12. https://expatalachians.com/country-roads-how-john-denvers-hit-became-the-worlds-most-popular-song
13. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228005415_Country_Roads_to_Globalization_Sociological_Models_for_Understanding_American_Popular_Music_in_China
14. https://youtu.be/s9gAXwYZtfk – CMA Video with Country Roads