Paul Cauthen returns to Belly Up for a dancing good time, A-

 This past Friday night, country Texas Western star Paul Cauthen returned to Aspen's Belly Up for a packed show. It was a great experience to witness him at such a small venue, with who knows how many more chances the public may be able to see such an unique event.

There were lots of cowboys and cowgirls in attendance at Belly Up Friday night. More than a few dozen folks were dressed for the occasion with cowboy hats and boots, and in reality, it was that kind of evening. Paul Cauthen is one of the kings of modern day country western music, and the man appeared larger than life on the small stage Friday night, of course all dressed in black.

After playing a few song's solo, Paul's band joined him on stage for a rocking good time for the rest of the evening. They were fast, loud and furious in the small venue which proved to be a perfect place to be nice and cozy with the group. The group was highlighted by some incredible guitar playing by the main guitarist, but everyone was equally good.

Paul performed for a two-hour set, including most of his hits like 'Holy Ghost Fire', 'Black on Black', and the final song of the evening, 'Cocaine Country Dancing'. What was missing was 'Country as Fuck', but Paul managed to play some great tunes nonetheless throughout his career. Of course, any number of his fans knows the similarities between Paul and Johnny Cash, both with his style and his music, so it was no wonder that he covered 'Folsom Prison Blues'. Another interesting cover the band performed was 'Freak Like Me' after Paul asked if there were any freaks in the audience.

Paul has performed in Aspen and at Belly Up many times before, so it was great finally being able to see one of his shows at the iconic venue. Mostly everyone in the crowd was dancing, and the entire show was one of the funnest concerts of 2025.

However, it was far from perfect. We've noticed Belly Up has suffered from extremely loud concerts there before-perhaps the small venue isn't the place for incredibly loud music and as a result, the sound quality does suffer a bit.

Overall, it was a great concert and worth going to!

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Photos from Jessica Lewis coming soon!