Singer-Songwriter Dan Fogelberg Dies

[Kadie]

Singer-Songwriter Dan Fogelberg Dies
By NEKESA MUMBI MOODY, AP Music Writer

Sunday, December 16, 2007


(12-16) 16:23 PST New York (AP) --

Dan Fogelberg, the singer and songwriter whose hits "Leader of the Band" and "Same Old Lang Syne" helped define the soft-rock era, died Sunday at his home in Maine after battling prostate cancer.

His death was announced Sunday in a statement by Anna Loynes of the Solters & Digney public relations agency, and was also posted on the singer's Web site.

"Dan left us this morning at 6:00 a.m. He fought a brave battle with cancer and died peacefully at home in Maine with his wife Jean at his side," it read. "His strength, dignity and grace in the face of the daunting challenges of this disease were an inspiration to all who knew him."

Fogelberg was found in 2004 to have advanced prostate cancer. In a statement then, he thanked fans for their support: "It is truly overwhelming and humbling to realize how many lives my music has touched so deeply all these years. ... I thank you from the very depths of my heart."

more...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/12/16/entertainment/e160944S30.DTL

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. I hav e a very vague recollection of meeting him once, a long long time ago.

[Dawggie]

I did meet him and his wife Anastasia once in Atlanta.

I had always loved his music from his first album (I worked in a record store back then and was given a heads up by corporate to look at his stuff).

I met then at a rare book store where I helped them for over an hour before I knew who they were after he gave me his credit card. They were both gentle and kind people.

I will miss knowing that there might be more coming from his great talent.

Rest well, young prince.

[GreenPartyVoter]

20. I was babysitting for someone and I think they were one of the couples that had

gone on the outing. It's all very fuzzy now.

[Horse with no Name]

2. Rest in Peace Dan

An only child
Alone and wild
A cabinet makers son
His hands were meant
For different work
And his heart was known
To none --
He left his home
And went his lone
And solitary way
And he gave to me
A gift I know I never
Can repay

A quiet man of music
Denied a simpler fate
He tried to be a soldier once
But his music wouldnt wait
He earned his love
Through discipline
A thundering, velvet hand
His gentle means of sculpting souls
Took me years to understand.

The leader of the band is tired
And his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs through
My instrument
And his song is in my soul --
My life has been a poor attempt
To imitate the man
Im just a living legacy
To the leader of the band.

My brothers lives were
Different
For they heard another call
One went to chicago
And the other to st. paul
And Im in colorado
When Im not in some hotel
Living out this life Ive chose
And come to know so well.

I thank you for the music
And your stories of the road
I thank you for the freedom
When it came my time to go --
I thank you for the kindness
And the times when you got tough
And, pap, I dont think i
Said i love you near enough --

The leader of the band is tired
And his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs through
My instrument
And his song is in my soul --
My life has been a poor attempt
To imitate the man
Im just a living legacy
To the leader of the band
I am the living legacy
To the leader of the band.

[Olney Blue]

12. Thanks for posting this, HWNN.

:hi:

RIP, Dan.

[PassingFair]

17. Oh!

I U-Tube that song every Father's Day
and have a good cry.

RIP Mr. Fogelberg.

[blogslut]

3. Noooo!

Not Dan. Oh my.

R.I.P

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IhjYbfK9vrk

[SeattleGirl]

4. Damn!

That's so sad.

I love "Same Old Lang Syne".

[CreekDog]

8. I remember that song as a kid

But didn't understand its meaning until my 30's.

A sad loss.

[Liberal Veteran]

13. There are few artists who tell a complete story in a song anymore.

He told stories through his music.

[BleedingHeartPatriot]

29. In the mold of Harry Chapin. Oh, this is so sad.

:cry: MKJ

[Liberal Veteran]

5. Bummer....I always liked him. My favorite was "Same Old Lang Syne"

What a shame.

[Flabbergasted]

6. Oh man. What a loss. nt

[The Straight Story]

7. Man, that sucks

peace be to him. He gave me a lot of memories.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

9. R.I.P.

My recollection of his music... http://youtube.com/watch?v=5Go6I2_PpBU

[CreekDog]

18. This is a great love song and a great tribute

Thanks.

[Buzz Clik]

10. Blah!

[shadowknows69]

11. Good journey to you bard

Many a fine tale did you sing us.

[spanone]

14. part of the plan....

[nonconformist]

15. He was only 56. RIP Dan Fogelberg... your music will live on.

[Bluebear]

16. And down in the canyon the smoke starts to rise, it rides on the wind til it reaches your eyes....

Here is a poem
That my lady sent down
Some morning while
I was away.
Wrote on the back of
A leaf that she found
Somewhere around Monterey.

And here is the key
To a house far away
Where I used to live
As a child.
They tore down the building
When I moved away
And left the key unreconciled.

And down in the canyon
The smoke starts to rise.
It rides on the wind
Till it reaches your eyes.
When faced with the past
The strongest man cries...cries.

And down in the canyon
The smoke starts to rise.
It rides on the wind
Till it reaches your eyes.
When faced with the past
The strongest man cries...cries.

And here is a sunrise
To set on your sill.
The ghosts of the dawn
Moving near.
They pass through your sorrow
And leave you quite still...
Sitting among souvenirs.

- Dan Fogelberg

:cry:

[EFerrari]

32. I haven't seen that for 25 years.

:(

[hyphenate]

19. RIP

Another underrated musical talent. We have lost sight of how much they have really meant to us: it's not until we hear them on the radio and begin to sing with them that we realize that while they might not have been in the front of our minds much, that they have lingered in the back, enticing us to remember them a song at a time and they inexorably become part of our culture.

Longer

Longer than there've been fishes in the ocean
Higher than any bird ever flew
Longer than there've been stars up in the heavens
I've been in love with you

Stronger than any mountain cathedral
Truer than any tree ever grew
Deeper than any forest primeval
I am in love with you

I'll bring fires in the winters
You'll send showers in the springs
We'll fly through the falls and summers
With love on our wings

Through the years as the fire starts to mellow
Burning lines in the book of our lives
Though the binding cracks
And the pages start to yellow
I'll be in love with you
I'll be in love with you



Longer than there've been fishes in the ocean
Higher than any bird ever flew
Longer than there've been stars up in the heavens
I've been in love with you
I am in love with you




on edit: clarification on sentence

[InvisibleTouch]

21. I just had one of his songs playing in my head the other day...

..."Run for the Roses," which I love. And his "Old Lang Syne" song is one of my favorites from this time of year, as I'm not so big on the traditional holiday music otherwise. So I can only say, RIP, good journey, and thanks for the music!

[Faux pas]

22. Feel like I lost an old friend....RIP Dan

:cry:

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. Oh wow what a great loss

Huge fan here :cry:

[K Gardner]

24. oh my god.. didn't even know he was sick.. he's one of my absolute

favorite singer/songwriters, chyte. Going to go play Auld Lang Syne..

[kestrel91316]

25. OH NO!!!! He was one of my college-era favorites......

Run For the Roses.......what horse-crazy girl vet student WOULDN'T love that song?

[sleepyhead]

28. I loved that song too.

And I wasn't even that horse-crazy.

[wisteria]

26. Damn, people shouldn' t die at the age of 56 . It is too young. May he be at peace. n/t

[Quixote1818]

30. Wisteria, have you ever seen this video?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GtBjND0dE4&feature=related

[pamela]

35. I always think of that song when I see Wisteria's screen name.

Thanks for the video. This is such sad news. I was a huge fan.

[midnight]

27. This is so sad to hear. His father was our band teacher. He

was a big deal in our little town. One Christmas concert that I saw many years ago, he put pine trees on the stage. No lights just beautiful pine trees. Peace.

[KT2000]

31. A beautiful voice

to sing his sweet lyrics.
How sad we have lost him.
Peace to his family.
RIP Dan Fogelberg....

[WillowTree]

33. An extraordinary talent...

....and a really lovely man, as well.

You are loved by many, my friend, and the world is a lonlier place this day as you continue on the next part of your journey along the Spirit Trail. Be at peace.

[undeterred]

34. What a shock

56 is so young.

Some of his songs really resonated with me because he got his start in central Illinois where I went to school and I imagined the places he wrote about were the same places I went to... especially meeting the old lover in the grocery store... I have a picture of the place in my mind.

:cry:

[undeterred]

36. kick

[quip]

37. I discovered his music when top forty found "Part of the Plan" from Souvenirs

and I've been a loyal fan ever since. I remember when a local radio station played "Phoenix" in its entirety before it was released in the record stores and I recorded it on my reel to reel as a freshman in college.

His music marked the chapters of life. Dan, you will always be loved and sorely missed.

Along the Road Dan Fogelberg

Joy at the start
Fear in the journey
Joy in the coming home
A part of the heart
Gets lost in the learning
Somewhere along the road.

Along the road
Your path may wander
A pilgrim's faith may fail
Absence makes the heart grow stronger
Darkness obscures the trail.

Cursing the quest
Courting disaster
Measureless nights forebode
Moments of rest

Glimpses of laughter
Are treasured along the road.

Along the road
Your steps may tumble
Your thoughts may start to stray
But through it all a heart held humble
Levels and lights your way.

Joy at the start
Fear in the journey
Joy in the coming home
A part of the heart
Gets lost in the learning
Somewhere along the road
Somewhere along the road
Somewhere along the road.

[road2000]

38. Cannot stop weeping...

I didn't know till this morning, when I saw an e-mail from a friend with the subject line, "Fogelberg." She assumed I'd heard.

Why are the gentle souls, who try to right things in the world through music, taken so young? Like Lennon, Harrison, Denver, Croce, and others before him, Fogelberg shed his dancing shoes way too soon.

R.I.P., blessed Dan.

[Liberal In Texas]

39. Damn. RIP. We sure are losing a lot of the great ones lately.