CENTRAL CITY - Jimmy Joseph Lewis, 75, passed away peacefully on March 22, 2025, surrounded by family members at St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood, Colorado.
Born on April 29, 1949, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, he moved to Colorado in the 1970s and began playing gigs at local venues.
While performing in Central City, he met his soon-to-be bride Annie at the former Silver Slipper Saloon in 1978. Their wedding was held in Russell Gulch, where Jimmy and three others thundered down the mountain on horseback to the ceremony.
Jimmy and Annie enjoyed 46 years together, along with their two talented sons, Paul Willis and Grady Lewis.
Jimmy’s golden voice and expert guitar playing entertained countless people at many Gilpin and Clear Creek County events. Doing what he loved until the end, Jimmy’s last performance was at Crook’s Palace in Black Hawk just over a month before his passing.
Friends and family remember Jimmy for his sense of humor, ability to engage a crowd, and always having a joke at the tip of his tongue. The twinkle in his eyes and mischievous boyish grin were hard to resist.
Jimmy’s bandmate for 50 years, multi-instrumentalist Jamie P., recalled “I met Jimmy in the mid-seventies. He was playing with The Silver Slipper Slugs in Central City. Hailing from Philly, my hometown, we hit it off quickly. He and his lovely wife Annie were already an item. Paul was a little kid and Grady but a glimmer in the future.
“Always warm, funny, and playing good-time music, I subbed many times over the years for his rotating stable of wonderful guitar players. Jim was very social, while I never hung out. Yet he would often invite me to play gigs and stay at his house. We once rode ponies around Russell Gulch as he spoke of the local history that he loved so much. And his green thumb with plants was legendary.
“A bon vivant who will be remembered and missed forever by many. I picture him paddling a spirit canoe on the Colorado River, right now. Row on, my brother. Thanks for being a good and steady friend.”
Knowing Jimmy for almost as long as Jamie is band member, drummer, and harp player Joe Romer. Jimmy and Romer first hooked up in 1987 as The Budz at Marty’s Crazy Horse in Georgetown.
They would go on to perform in Vail, Steamboat, Breckenridge, Glenwood Springs, and many other locations across the state. The Pioneer Inn in Nederland was one of the country rock ‘n’ roll band’s regular stops.
For five years the group appeared at the gazebo in Black Hawk every weekend during the summer. Romer figures that they headlined Madam Lou Bunch Day in Central City 20 times. He related that “Jimmy and I have always been great buddies even when we weren’t in the same band. We relished playing together. He was a fantastic friend.”
Teaming with Grady Lewis, Jamie P., and Joe Romer of the Jimmy Lewis Tribute Band for this summer only is guitarist/songwriter Robby Wicks to honor Jimmy. Wicks said, “When we lost Jimmy earlier this year, we knew that there would be a big piece missing in our community.
“Jimmy’s music was often times the soundtrack of some of our best moments and memories in Central City.
“My best memories of Jimmy were jamming together on stage or around a bonfire. We could always share our mutual love for the music. I’ll never forget how supportive Jimmy was of me, and other musicians in the area. He will be missed.”
On his first Father’s Day without him, and still mourning the loss of his dad, after appearing at Madam Lou Bunch Day this year, guitarist and vocalist Grady Lewis recounted that Jimmy profoundly influenced and inspired him his entire life. Picking up the guitar as a teenager, Grady began performing with Jimmy over a decade ago.
The Jimmy Lewis Tribute Band will host a memorial celebration of life and music event at Crook’s Palace in Black Hawk on Saturday, June 21, 2025, from 11:30 a.m. until 9 p.m.
Continuing their homage to Jimmy, they will appear at Stills in the Hills in Central City on June 28, July 12 at Gregory Plaza in Black Hawk from 5 until 7 p.m., and at the Gilpin County Fair on July 13.
