“2012 Broke Out In Here” – Eric Church Proves He’s Still The Undisputed Chief During Night Two Of Red Rocks Shows

There’s only an hour time difference separating Nashville, Tennessee and Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado.

But somehow between the time I left Nashville on Sunday to Tuesday night at Red Rocks, I ended up back in 2012.

Eric Church was at the iconic venue last night for the second of three shows, and for all the fans who are constantly saying they “miss the old Eric Church,” this one was a bold statement. Because for two hours under the Colorado sky, he was once again the shaggy haired guy back in 2006 pledging allegiance to the Hag. He was the Carolina boy from 2009 calling out country music for still having a lot of boot left to fill. He was the guy from 2014 with the balls to tell the establishment to go to hell.

And for anyone who still says they miss the old Eric Church, it was a clear message: He’s still the Chief.

Night two at Red Rocks was significantly stripped back from night one, which featured a gospel choir, orchestra and horn section. This time around, it was just Church and his band – most of them the same musicians who have been with him since the beginning. And it’s probably a good thing they’ve been around a while, because Church dug back deep into his catalog for this one.

The entire show was a trip down memory lane for longtime Church fans. It was an opportunity to connect melodies with memories of Eric Church shows from years past, like when he broke out “Before She Does,” the leadoff track from Sinners Like Me, in just the second song of the night. (It’s obviously been a while since he played that one).

For those who go to an Eric Church show wanting to hear the old stuff, this was their night. From “How ‘Bout You” to “That’s Damn Rock & Roll,” along with many of his biggest hits like “Drink In My Hand,” “Talladega,” he hit all the highlights. And yes, he finally played “These Boots” for Eddie sitting beside me who was hoping to hear it on night one – and just like they did back on The Outsiders tour in 2014, everybody held their boots high in the air as they sang along.

It was part revival, part nostalgia, even for Church himself: At one point, after finishing “Lotta Boot Left To Fill,” Church chuckled as he recalled playing that song on his early tours:

“Damn, we were punks back then.”

The night also featured a heavy dose of Joanna Cotten, much to the delight of…well, pretty much everybody, including Eric himself. (On my way into the show, I talked to a lot of people who were excited that “Joanna is here tonight,” apparently not realizing that she was there for night one too). Church’s longtime duet partner and background vocalist has been a staple of his live shows for over a decade now, so it was only fitting that she took center stage with him on songs like “Mixed Drinks About Feelings,” just like she did on the Gather Again Tour back in 2021.

Midway through the show, Church revealed that after night one he had stayed up drinking some whiskey until 4:22 AM, and decided that he wanted to throw in some covers that they had played over the years. (It seems like he wasn’t as thrilled about the idea at 10 PM as he was 18 hours earlier). But nonetheless, Church and his band delivered a blistering performance of “Gimme Shelter” by the Rolling Stones before stopping to catch his breath for Bob Seger’s “Get Out Of Denver.”

“There’s no way Seger did that in one take. I’ll kiss your a-s if he did.”

Early on in the night, Church promised that they wouldn’t be repeating any songs from night one. And he kept that promise until the very end of the show, when he started with a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Born To Run” before launching into his own hit “Springsteen,” the only song that made an appearance on both setlists.

At one point during “Springsteen,” someone handed Church a mini bottle of Jack Daniel’s (although it didn’t seem to go down as easy as they used to), and after someone threw him an American flag scarf, Church couldn’t help but laugh:

“I’ve had an airplane bottle and I got a flag around me. 2012 broke out in here real quick.”

After performing his biggest hit, Church stayed on stage to close out the show with “Those I’ve Loved” from Carolina. And he ended the night at the very beginning of his career, the song that got him his record deal and launched his 20-year career, “Lightning” from his Sinners Like Me album.

It felt like a fitting end to a night that was as much of a statement as it was a throwback. If you were with Church when he was playing rock clubs after getting kicked off the Rascal Flatts tour, or singing along with the “Country Music Jesus” on his Blood, Sweat and Beers Tour back in 2012, this night was all about connecting the melodies with those memories from all across his two decades long career.

But it was also a powerful message to anyone who listened to Evangeline vs. The Machine or Heart & Soul and said they missed his old music: Eric Church is still the Chief. And night two at Red Rocks left no doubt.The post “2012 Broke Out In Here” – Eric Church Proves He’s Still The Undisputed Chief During Night Two Of Red Rocks Shows first appeared on Whiskey Riff.