Dan Fogelberg - Very Best of Dan Fogelberg

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Music reviews of Very Best of Dan Fogelberg

Music Review: Fogelberg is more than Ballads
Rating: 4 Stars

There are really three Greatest Hits sets by Dan Fogelberg. On 1982's "Greatest Hits", Fogelberg's hits up until 1982 are included. All of the songs on "Greatest Hits" are included on "The Very Best of Dan Fogelberg" except for the song "The Power of Gold". "The Very Best" does include much of his post 1982 material. This material is not as commercial, but should not have its quality discounted. "The Very Best" doesn't nearly have the depth that his 4 CD boxed set "Portrait" has. All of the songs on "The Very Best" are also included on the "Portrait" collection. However it is worth noting that "The Very Best" seems to be the perfect medium between "Greatest Hits" and "Portrait". It really captures the essential Dan Fogelberg and provides a good profile for Fogelberg's 30+ year career. Most of Fogelberg's albums are represented on the collection except for 1972's "Home Free", 1975's "Captured Angel", 1978's "Two Sons of Different Mothers", and 1985's "High Country Snows" (which I was disappointed not to see any songs from this album).

As mentioned, many people consider Fogelberg more of a balladeer. It is worth noting that Fogelberg can do some songs with a Rock and Roll edge. "Missing You", a song from the original "Greatest Hits" album is probably the best song he did. This song has almost a 1980s Santana feel to it as it opens. It also showcases Fogelberg's outstanding range for vocals. Another good Rock song he does is "She Don't Look Back" from 1987's "Exiles" which has more of a Bob Seger feel to it. 1993's "Magic Every Moment" from "River of Souls" is almost a cross between Paul Simon and a Coffee House song. The latter two songs listed are both fine examples of Fogelberg's post 1982 work.

Fogelberg can also do some outstanding piano work. "Nether Lands" and "Heart Hotels" are fine examples of Fogelberg's piano work. "Heart Hotels" almost has a Moody Blues-like feel to it. Then there is "Same Old Lang Syne" - this is a classic Fogelberg song that shows another great example of his piano side. Here we have the classic Fogelberg ballad that has become for all practical purposes - a Christmas song. Fogelberg paints a picture of a "holiday like story" while brilliantly narrating the song with his vocals. The end of the song features some great saxaphone. Another popular song is "Run for the Roses" - this is Fogelberg's tribute to Thoroughbred Horse Racing. It has a Kentucky Blue Grass rhythm to it. This might be as good as any song Fogelberg has written.

The collection includes a lot of his acoustic classics - "Longer" and "Leader of the Band" are on here and are well recognized Fogelberg classics. "Hard to Say" is also popular song and features background vocals from The Eagles' Glenn Frey. Glenn Frey along with Eagles Don Henley and Joe Walsh worked with Fogelberg very early in his career on the Souvenirs album so there is past history on this album.

The liner notes are a mixed bag. There is an absolutely terrific one page writeup on Fogelberg's career by Paul Evans. This is as good as any writeup I have seen in a Greatest Hits or "Best of" collection. The credits are really poor - they don't match up from song to song. The albums are listed, but the songs aren't mapped back to the albums. There are also no lyrics included. As for the songs, I normally prefer my Greatest Hits collection to be in chronological order - the songs are mixed although Fogelberg's newer stuff is toward the end of the CD.

I learned a lot about Dan Fogelberg's career and came to have a new appreciation for him I would definitely recommend this collection - especially if you are looking to start out with Fogelberg. If you want to go deeper, then get "Portraits" - but for the most part this CD should satisfy.

Description of Very Best of Dan Fogelberg

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