Friday, April 17, 2009

Dan Fogelberg's Retrospective Interview - Virtual Blog Tour

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I've been a fan of Dan Fogelberg's music ever since Leader of the Band first made me cry so many years ago, so it's a real treat for me to have been asked to review the new compilation CD Dan Fogelberg: A Retrospective Interview as part of Promo 101's virtual blog tour.
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Dan left us at the much too young age of 56 on December 16th, 2007 after losing his battle against prostate cancer. After his death Fred Migliore, the host of the FM Odyssey radio show, compiled this 2-CD set from an interview he conducted with Dan in 1997, where they spoke about Dan's many years in the music business. The Retrospective CD contains 13 full-length songs as well as a lot of the stories and thoughts behind them.
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The way the interviews and the music flow together it's almost as if Dan were sitting right there in your living room with you, talking and playing on into the night, letting his reminiscing guide the way through a virtual house concert.
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What makes Dan's music, and this CD, so special?
I think it's part of Dan's magic that he was able to do things like turn something as minor as a chance meeting with an old flame in the frozen food aisle of the grocery store into a song that touched millions, making them both smile and cry at memories of times long past and roads not taken. Or perhaps it was the way his heartfelt vocals and soft acoustic guitar chords bypass your mind, heading straight into your heart, into your very blood.
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There are so many favorites on this album - Same Old Lang Syne, Run for the Roses, Rhythm of the Rain (YouTube clip from an appearance on the Carson Show, and so much richer than the original Cascades version from 1962), but just as it did so many years ago, it's still the Leader of the Band that makes my breath catch in my throat. Listen for yourself and see what I mean:
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Retrospective, available from the FM Odyssey Store, would be a great addition to the collection of anyone who loves Dan Fogelberg, easy listening, or just beautiful ballads and sweet sweet guitar. Even better, $3 from each sale will be donated to the Prostate Cancer Foundation in Dan's name, so that perhaps someday we won't have to lose so many to this terrible disease.
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If you too treasure the gift that Dan Fogelberg left us as his own
legacy be sure to leave a comment here - the promoters have told me that there are about 45 minutes of “lost segments” from the CD which have never been likely never will be released to the public, but each person that posts a comment on this or any other participating blog during the virtual blog tour will be entered in a drawing to win a free copy of this one-of-a-kind CD with the remainder of the interview! In addition to the random drawing winners, the most unique, insightful, special comment will also be chosen to win a copy, so be sure to warm up your typing fingers!
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17 comments:

Janet said...

lol are you getting paid for blog entries now?

Jill said...

I must admit that I'm very unfamiliar with Dan Fogelberg - but my Uncle is a HUGE fan!! So much so that I remember buying him his records for past Hanukkah's and birthdays.

kayerj said...

Oh--put me in for the drawing. I'm a big fan!

kay said...

Dan died on Dec. 16, 2007, not Dec. 6...
I have been reading this 'blog tour' and every post reads the same...was hoping for something more interesting....

Robin said...

So sorry to disappoint you Kay, but thanks for taking the time to visit and leave a big ray of sunshine in your wake ;-).

And no, I'm not getting paid, but they have offered free review copies of the cd to those willing to do a post, which I think is more than fair. I thought that was clear from my writing, I apologize for any confusion if it wasn't.

Kelly said...

Robin,
Thank you so much for hosting & for helping to raise awareness of Prostate Cancer & to help in raising money for the foundation.
I hope all commenters realize it is the "most unique, original, intriguing" comment that will be chosen to win the Bonus CD.
Dan's Fans are all over the world & we are pleased to be a part of promoting this CD. He was a fine man, a wonderful songwriter & a great husband (I hear).
Thanks again!
Kelly Kravitz

Gilit Frank said...

Some people think that nostalgia means you are stuck and don't grow. I think that nostalgia keeps me young, enables me to modify the cynicism I have acquired getting older. Nostalgia, like listening to Dan, gives me hope to love again, to keep some inkling of adolescence naiivity despite the sometimes harsh realities of this century.

This Eclectic Life said...

What Frank said... yeah! He deserves that cd, don't you think?
I've been listening to that cd since I received it and reviewed it (wasn't it wonderful?). I've even gotten my husband hooked. He wouldn't listen to Dan because some girl who dumped him in High School loved Dan Fogelberg. I think I even caught him strumming some of Fogelberg's music on the guitar the other night, lol.

Too bad Kay is bored. Perhaps she should get a blog and write an article? OH! Put away the "snarky," Shelly.

Daryl said...

I didnt realize he was so handsome... or that I had never heard any of these songs .. heading to iTunes tonite to get me some

Stephanie in Idaho said...

I have ALWAYS loved Dan, today yesterday...always. Still cry every year when Same Old Lang Syne comes on. Also LOVE the album Home Free. What a nice retrospect in such a wonderful artist

Stephanie in Idaho said...

Holy Cow Valarie! You deserve that CD, for sure.

Unknown said...

Robin,
I was a fan of his when I was a young high schooler in the U.S. Right from the first album but I actually lost interest around the time you discovered him. Not sure why. I just especially loved those two or three first records.

Nice post, Robin.

Paper on Steroids said...

Wow, great comments, a winner just may come from this particular blog-- maybe, just maybe!!
:) Kelly

Susan Wingate said...

You couldn't be closer to the truth with this review. Dan Fogelberg & I spent many wonderful days in the hot sun by the pool (and of course my transistor radio)! What a terrible loss but what a wonderful gift to leave behind such a beautiful body of work.

RivkA with a capital A said...

Leader of the Band is one of my all time favorite songs.

Though our dads are very different, what strikes me about the song, and the thing I relate to most, is the deep respect, awe and love of one's father.

To this day, my father likes to tell of the essay I had to write for school about my hero -- I wrote it about my dad.

Robin said...

Oh wow RivkA, that is just about the sweetest thing ever. I think I'm going to cry.

Anonymous said...

Sorry to be such a Johny come lately, but better late than never I guess. :)

I enjoyed your post very much. Nice blog ya got here also! I look forward to hosting a stop on this wonderful tour at both my main blogs on the 29th and 30th.

Marvin D Wilson
http://inspiritandtruths.blogspot.com/
http://tiedyedtirades.blogspot.com/