"Rocky Mountain High" is a

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers s ...

song written by

John Denver Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. (December 31, 1943 – October 12, 1997), known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor, activist, and humanitarian whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singe ...

and Mike Taylor and is one of the two official

state songs ''State Songs'' is a concept album released by John Linnell (of They Might Be Giants) in 1999. It was Linnell's third solo project and first full solo album. It consists of tracks that are named after, and are at least partially inspired by, 15 ...

of Colorado. Recorded by Denver in 1972 it is the title track of the 1972 album '' Rocky Mountain High'' and rose to No. 9 on the US Hot 100 in 1973. Denver told concert audiences in the mid-1970s that the song took him an unusually long nine months to write. On April 10, 2017, the record was certified Gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

for sales exceeding 500,000 digital downloads. Members of the

Western Writers of America Western Writers of America (WWA), founded 1953, promotes literature, both fictional and nonfictional, pertaining to the American West. Although its founders wrote traditional Western fiction, the more than 600 current members also include historian ...

chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.

Background and writing

"Rocky Mountain High" was primarily inspired by John Denver's move to

Aspen, Colorado Aspen is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,004 at the 2020 United States Census. Aspen is in a remote area of the Rocky Moun ...

, three years before its writing and by his love for the state. The seventh stanza makes reference to the destruction of the mountains' beauty by commercial tourism. The song was considered a major piece of 1970’s pop culture and became a well-associated piece of Colorado history. The song briefly became controversial that year when the U.S.

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

was permitted by a legal ruling to censor music deemed to promote

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

. Numerous radio stations cautiously banned it until Denver publicly explained that the "high" was his innocent description of the sense of peace he found in the Rockies. In 1985, Denver testified before Congress in the Parents Music Resource Center hearings about his experience: ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an onli ...

'' said that the song "sparkles with sincerity and beautiful lyrical images."

In popular culture

After years as an unofficial anthem for Colorado, on March 12, 2007, the

Colorado General Assembly The Colorado General Assembly is the state legislature of the State of Colorado. It is a bicameral legislature that was created by the 1876 state constitution. Its statutes are codified in the ''Colorado Revised Statutes'' (C.R.S.). The se ...

made "Rocky Mountain High" one of two official state songs, sharing the honor with "

Where the Columbines Grow "Where the Columbines Grow" is one of the two official state songs of the U.S. state of Colorado. It was written and composed by Dr. Arthur John Fynn in 1911, and was adopted on May 8, 1915. In the early to mid-2000s, there was debate over repla ...

". In late 2007, the John Denver Sanctuary in Aspen drew some controversy after the last lines of the song were removed from the "Rocky Mountain High" stone. The song was also heard in " Final Destination" as a sign which was heard before each character dies.

Chart performance

References

{{Authority control 1972 songs 1972 singles John Denver songs Songs about Colorado Music of Colorado Symbols of Colorado

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

Songs written by John Denver Song recordings produced by Milt Okun RCA Victor singles Environmental songs Songs about mountains