Top 10 Dan Fogelberg Songs

Photo: Epic Records [Public domain]

Our Top 10 Dan Fogelberg Songs looks at the songs of a brilliant songwriter who released his first album in the 1970s. Dan Fogelberg’s songs attracted audiences of folk, rock, and pop while achieving mass stardom. His lyrics and melodies bled through with a tenderness and beauty that captivated music fans. A golden voice, a magical pen, and an acoustic guitar sound that wrapped it all together into an artist for the ages. No person is alive in the modern world who grew up in the 1970s and 80s and was not affected by a Dan Fogelberg song.

The 1970s were a time when the singer-songwriter flourished. Artists like Jim Croce, Harry Chapin, Joni Mitchell, Don Mclean, Paul Simon, and many more understood how to ride the line between pop, folk, and sometimes jazz. Dan Fogelberg’s songs added another dimension. They had an almost mystic sound that was, in essence, ahead of its time. Dan Fogelberg passed away in 2007 at the age of 56.

Our top 10 Dan Fogelberg songs list is a tribute to this incredible artist. It is our way of expressing our thanks to Fogelberg for contributing most beautifully to this world. It’s a small representation of his body of work that we hope inspires you to check out all of his great songs and albums. We went back and forth many times with the songs to be placed on this list. Ultimately, we added a few extra because we couldn’t leave them off.

# 10 – Tie – Nether Lands / Sketches

Our top 10 Dan Fogelberg songs list opens with two beautiful tracks: “Nether Lands” and “Sketches.” We didn’t know whether to open or close our list with these two gorgeous songs. If these songs don’t inspire you, please check the temperature of your skin. These will be at the top when we compose our list of the ten most beautiful songs ever written.

Dan Fogelberg’s Nether Lands was the title track of the 1979 album Nether Lands. The album’s title came from the city of Netherland, Colorado, where it was recorded. A great cast of musicians, including Don Henley and Joe Walsh of The Eagles, performed on the album. Dan Fogelber released so many great albums throughout his career, but this one will always be our favorite.

# 9 – Aspen / These Days

If the first Dan Fogelberg songs did not capture your undivided attention to this brilliant man, then this one should instantly do the job. The beautiful opening track, “Aspen/These Days,” from the magnificent Captured Angel album, is on full display here. As we said in the opening paragraph, such magnificent melodies fuel the stunning voice and emotional guitar playing. It’s all here in this mesmerizing track.

# 8 – The Power Of Gold / False Faces

Dan Fogelberg recorded two albums with jazz musician Tim Weisberg, known for his brilliant flute playing. The first album was released in 1978, Twin Sons of Different Mothers. Dan Fogelberg wrote the majority of the songs on the album. The two musicians released a follow-up album in 1995 entitled No Resemblance Whatsoever. The album’s closing track

“The Power of Gold” was the closing track on the album Twin Sons of Different Mothers. It was released as a single in 1978 and was a Top 40 hit, peaking at number 28 on the United States Billboard Hot 100.

While the Power Of Gold was a hit, and for good reason, we just had to include one of the album’s best deep tracks, “False Faces.” This extremely powerful song stands as another of Dan Fogelberg’s best.

# 7 – Part Of The Plan

In 1974, Dan Fogelberg released his second album entitled Souvenirs. It was a brilliant album. Legendary guitarist Joe Walsh produced the album. The souvenir album would also feature many of Joe Walsh’s future bandmates of The Eagles, such as Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Randy Meisner, and, of course, Joe Walsh. The record also featured the sounding vocals of Graham Nash. The album’s opening track was the beautiful song “Part Of The Plan.” The song was released as the second single from the record after the first single release entitled “Changing Horses.”

Read More: Top 10 Joe Walsh Songs

# 6 – Run For The Roses

Most legendary and brilliant artists like Dan Fogelberg will release a masterpiece at one time or another during their careers. Springsteen had his Born to Run, Bob Dylan had Blood on the Tracks, Prince had Purple Rain, and so on. Dan Fogelberg released his masterpiece in 1981. It was a two-record set entitled The Innocent Age. The album presented fans with some of the best music of Dan Fogelberg’s career. Dan Fogelberg had four top 20 hits on the album. These are not just pop songs; they are works of art. Dan Fogelberg’s song “Run For The Roses” was the fourth single from the album. It was released in 1982, a year after the album had been released.

# 5 – The Language Of Love

If there were any doubters that Dan Fogelberg could rock, have them check out this video. The emotionally charged rock tune “The Language Of Love” was released on the album Windows and Walls. The song “The Language Of Love” would become another top 20 hit for Dan Fogelberg, peaking at the number thirteen position on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Once again another Eagles band member sang backing vocals on a Dan Fogelberg song as Timothy B. Schmidt loaned his golden vocal chords to the track.

Read More: Top 10 Eagles Songs

# 4 – Tucson Arizona Gazette

Dan Fogelberg’s ability to tell a mesmerizing story is never more present than in this stunning track called “Tucson Arizona Gazette.” The song was released on the album Windows And Walls. The album was released in 1984. While this song was never released as a single, it would become one of the most loved Dan Fogelberg songs by fans, and even Dan Fogelberg himself, who had mentioned it as one of his favorites.

# 3 – Tie – Longer / Phoenix

As we come close to the top of our list of top 10 Dan Fogelberg songs, we turn to one of the artist’s biggest hits. The song “Longer” was released on the album Phoenix. The album was released in 1979. “Longer “ hit number two on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song hit number one on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary Hot 100. It was, in fact, Dan Fogelberg’s highest-charting song of his career.

It’s hard to mention any song from the Phoenix album without mentioning the album’s killer rocking title track, “Phoenix.” Dan Fogelberg may have been well known for his heartwarming ballads, but the man could also rock with the best of them in his own brilliant way.

# 2 – Leader Of The Band / To The Morning

Dan Fogelberg composed one of the most beautiful songs anyone has ever written in tribute to their father. It’s as heartfelt and genuine as it gets. The song “Leader of the Band” was released on Dan Fogelberg’s excellent album The Innocent Age. It would go on to become a top 10 hit for Dan Fogelberg, hitting number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981. It’s hard to listen to this one without getting emotional for anyone who has ever lost their father.

“To The Morning” stands as one of the most jaw-dropping songs Dan Fogelberg ever composed. The sound of that piano wrapping around the angelic voice of Fogelberg’s is almost too much beauty to take in. Add some heart-tugging strings, and it’s pretty much all over. This one will list your spirits no matter how down you may be. The best medicine out there is a song like this. “To the Morning” was released on Dan Fogelberg’s debut album Home Free in 1972. It was the album’s opening track. It also stands as the first single Dan Fogeleber ever released. What a way to start a career.

# 1 – Same Old Lang Syne

As we close out our top 10 Dan Fogelberg songs list, we finally turn to The Innocent Age album. If ever there was a song that painted a picture as vividly in story fashion, it was Dan Fogelberg’s “Same Old Lang Syne.” The story of running into an old lover on Christmas Eve is both painful and beautiful. Dan Fogelberg instantly captures the listener by setting it up in a supermarket on a snowy evening. We feel his joy, his pain. It’s the ultimate story of ‘The One That Got Away.’ We are speechless at the song’s end when the snow turns into rain. Our words do not do this song justice. Listen, if you’ve never heard this one, it will stop you in your tracks.