Dan Fogelberg

Dan Fogelberg was born in Peoria, Illinois. He was the youngest of three sons born to Margaret (née Irvine), (1920-2015), a classically trained pianist, and Lawrence Peter Fogelberg, (1911-1982), a band director at Woodruff High School in Peoria, at Pekin Community High School in Pekin,[2] and at Bradley University in Peoria.[3] Fogelberg’s mother was a Scottish immigrant and his father was of Swedish descent.[4] Fogelberg often related his memory of his father allowing him to "conduct" the Bradley University school band when he was only four years old. In 1981, Fogelberg released the song "Leader of the Band", which was written for and inspired by his father.[3]

Using a Mel Bay course book, Fogelberg taught himself to play a Hawaiian slide guitar that his grandfather had given him. He also learned to play the piano. At age 14, he joined a band, The Clan, which covered The Beatles. His second band was another cover band, The Coachmen, who, in 1967, released a single with both tracks written by Fogelberg, recorded at Golden Voice Recording studio in South Pekin, Illinois, and released on the Ledger Record label: "Maybe Time Will Let Me Forget" and "Don't Want to Lose Her".[2][5]

After graduating from Woodruff High School in 1969, Fogelberg studied theater arts and painting at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He began performing as a solo acoustic player at a local coffeehouse, "The Red Herring", which is where he made his first solo recordings as part of a folk festival in 1971.[5] He was discovered by Irving Azoff, who started his music management career promoting another Champaign-Urbana act, REO Speedwagon. Azoff sent Fogelberg to Nashville, Tennessee, to hone his skills. There he became a session musician and recorded his first album with producer Norbert Putnam. In 1972, Fogelberg released his debut album Home Free to lukewarm response, although it eventually reached platinum status.[6]

He performed as an opening act for Van Morrison in the early 1970s.[7]

WZZQ, a radio station in Jackson, Mississippi, gave Home Free a lot of airplay and some local promoters secured the City Auditorium in Jackson for a concert. They sold out the show in ten days and when they called Fogelberg's agent to let him know the show sold out, he was in disbelief because Fogelberg had been playing in clubs with less than 100 people in attendance, whereas the City Auditorium had 2,500 seats. On February 22, 1974, this show was broadcast and recorded by WZZQ and can be found on YouTube.[8][9]

Fogelberg's second effort was successful – the 1974 Joe Walsh-produced album Souvenirs. The song "Part of the Plan" became his first hit. Fogelberg also received contributions from the Eagles throughout the album. He had toured with the Eagles during this time. After Souvenirs, he released a string of gold and platinum albums, including Captured Angel (1975) and Nether Lands (1977).

His 1978 Twin Sons of Different Mothers was the first of two collaborations with jazz flautist Tim Weisberg, which found commercial success with songs such as "The Power of Gold".[10] "The Power of Gold" peaked at number 59 on the UK Singles Chart – his sole entry on that chart.[11] The album reached number 42 on the UK Albums Chart, likewise his only entry there.[11]

Phoenix, from 1979, reached the top 10, with "Longer" becoming a #2 pop hit in 1980. This LP eventually sold two million copies.[7] It was followed by a Top 20 hit "Heart Hotels".

In 1980, Fogelberg appeared on the soundtrack to the film Urban Cowboy[12] with his song "Times Like These". He also first performed on a live television program.[7]

The Innocent Age, released in October 1981, was Fogelberg's critical and commercial peak. The double album included four of his biggest hits: "Same Old Lang Syne", "Hard to Say", "Leader of the Band", and "Run for the Roses". He drew inspiration for The Innocent Age from Thomas Wolfe's novel Of Time and the River. A 1982 greatest hits album contained two new songs, both of which were released as singles: "Missing You" and "Make Love Stay". In 1984, he released the album Windows and Walls, containing the singles "The Language of Love" and "Believe in Me".

According to MTV, "Fogelberg couldn't capitalize fully on his popularity, due to stage fright that caused him to cancel live appearances, including a Dodgers Stadium gig with Elton John." This claim was later refuted by Fogelberg himself, citing recurrent streptococcal tonsillitis as the cause of his cancellations, and a dramatic improvement in his health after a tonsillectomy.[7]

Fogelberg released High Country Snows in 1985. Recorded in Nashville, it showcased his and some of the industry's best talent in bluegrass. Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, Doc Watson, Jerry Douglas, David Grisman, Chris Hillman, and Herb Pedersen contributed to the record. In a world he defined as "life in the fast lane", Fogelberg described the music as "life in the off-ramp". In late 1985, he switched gears and took to the road with a group of musician friends, including Joe Vitale, Paul Harris, Tino Gonzales, Jeff Grossberg and Rick Rosas, playing blues in small clubs throughout Colorado as Frankie and the Aliens, covering songs by Cream and Muddy Waters, among others.[13] 1987 heralded a return to rock with Exiles, an album that contained "What You're Doing", a throwback to the old Stax Records sound made famous in Memphis during the 1960s. The Wild Places, an album whose theme was the preservation of nature, was released in 1990 followed by a tour. His live Greetings From The West album, and full-length concert film (with interview segments) of the same name, was released in 1991.

River of Souls, released in 1993, was Fogelberg's last studio album for Sony Records. In 1997, the box set Portrait encompassed his career with four discs, each highlighting a different facet of his music.[7] In 1999, he released a Christmas album, The First Christmas Morning, and in 2003, Full Circle showcased a return to the folk-influenced 1970s soft rock style of music.

In May 2017, a live album of Fogelberg's performance at Carnegie Hall, championed by his wife,[14] sourced from a 1979 tape made by his touring sound company, was released. It peaked at No. 71 on the Billboard album chart on June 10, 2017,[15] becoming the first of Fogelberg's live albums to chart on the Billboard Top 200 chart.

Although nominated multiple times for a Grammy Award, Fogelberg never received a Grammy. He did receive recognition and accolades for his contributions to music. Here are some notable awards and honors he received during his career:

Peabody Award: In 1979, Fogelberg was honored with a Peabody Award for his song "Same Old Lang Syne". The Peabody Awards recognize excellence in radio, television, and online media.

ASCAP Songwriter Awards: Fogelberg received multiple American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) Awards throughout his career for his songwriting. ASCAP is an organization that honors and protects the rights of music creators.

Country Music Association (CMA) Award: In 1981, Fogelberg received a CMA Award nomination for Vocal Duo of the Year for his collaboration with Emmylou Harris on the song "Only Love".

Songwriters Hall of Fame: Fogelberg was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2017. This recognition celebrates his songwriting talent and contributions to the music industry.

Fogelberg was married three times: to Maggie Slaymaker from 1982 to 1985, to Anastasia Savage from 1991 to 1996 and to musician Jean Marie Mayer from 2002 until his death in 2007.[16][17]

From the early 1980s until his cancer diagnosis, Fogelberg lived near Pagosa Springs, Colorado on a working ranch, which housed a recording studio that he built. He also owned a home in Maine, on Deer Isle, overlooking Eggemoggin Reach.[18]

In tribute to Fogelberg, Peoria renamed Abington Street in the city's East Bluff neighborhood "Fogelberg Parkway". The street runs along the northeast side of Woodruff High School, Fogelberg's alma mater and where his father was a teacher and bandleader. Fogelberg Parkway continues to the intersection of N. Prospect and E. Frye, the location of the convenience store where Fogelberg ran into his high school sweetheart one Christmas Eve – as described in the song "Same Old Lang Syne".[19] A group of Fogelberg fans created a memorial garden in Riverfront Park in 2010.[19]

Fogelberg was inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame at its "Rocky Mountain Way" induction concert on August 13, 2017.[22]

Ten years after the singer's death, Jean arranged for a CD tribute to Dan's work, A Tribute to Dan Fogelberg, with performances by his old friend and producer Joe Walsh with the Eagles, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Jimmy Buffett, Michael McDonald, Randy Owen, Donna Summer, Boz Scaggs, Dobie Gray, the Zac Brown Band and other artists.[23] The tribute CD was co-produced by Jean, with major assistance from Dan Fogelberg's friend, producer and arranger Norbert Putnam, Fogelberg's longtime friend and manager Irving Azoff and Denver music promoter Chuck Morris, who joined Fogelberg as a member of the Colorado Music Hall of Fame in 2018.[24][25]

Part of the Plan is a musical using the music of Fogelberg. Starring Harley Jay and Kate Morgan Chadwick,[26] it opened September 8, 2017, at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center (TPAC) in Nashville.[27]

My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James has cited Fogelberg as a musical favorite and an influence, with "Leader of the Band" being the first single he ever bought.[28] James' home studio features a Trident Series 80 recording console that formerly belonged to Fogelberg.[29] Garth Brooks has stated that Fogelberg had an influence on his music. "There are songs that people say are the soundtrack of your life....In college, I would take out my Dan Fogelberg records and would read a passage (of lyrics) from Fogelberg's work and go about my day. That was an artist who changed my life, who made me change where I wanted to go and the music I wanted to play and thus, led me here."[30]

Albums

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• Official website
• Dan Fogelberg at AllMusic
• Daniel Greyling Fogelberg Ever on Web Site/Fan Forum