Going a little old school this week, none of the albums are exactly "new". I actually started off listening late last night with Sara McLaughlin on the Classic dual release that includes both "Fumbling Towards Exstacy" and "The Freedom Sessions". Followed that with the Analog Productions pressing of Janis Ian's "Breaking Silence" and then gave a spin to Liz Phair's deeply biting "Exile in Guyville" on Matador. This morning it was Dead Can Dance on an import pressing of "Spiritchaser", then a listen to my nearly 35 year old copy of Dan Fogelberg's "Souvenirs", and currently spinning another classic, Tom Petty's "Damn the Torpedo's".
Still hard for me to believe Dan Fogelberg is dead. Listening to that album brought a flood of memories back to me. So many great artists on that album - Joe Walsh (who played and produced), his soon to be Eagles bandmates Glenn Fry, Don Henly and Randy Meisner, America frontman Gerry Beckley, Grahm Nash, Russ Kunkel - truely a stellar lineup. I listened to that album over and over, fresh out of high school, trying to figure out who I was. In some ways it helped define me.
I remember stopping off with some friends one night in a little store up in Nederland, just up Boulder canyon. I was trying to decide if I could afford both a hot dog and a coke since my buddy Tom was asking to borrow some money to get some beef jerky. I remember it was cold outside, just on the verge of snow. The door to the store opened and the bells above it jingled. The guy at the front counter said "Hey Dan, how ya doin' tonight" and they guy replied "Good Buddy, how 'bout you" among other small talk. He walked right past me and nodded his head on his way to get a six pack of beer and I recognised that it was in fact Dan Fogelberg (he was living in Nederland at the time). I was too dumbfounded and awestruck to say anything to him, and I probably would have stumbled all over my words even if I'd have had the presence of mind to open my mouth. I was a geeky, spindly 18 year old and he was just plain cool and worldly as he picked up the beer that I couldn't legally touch, and then he was gone out the door. I'll never forget it as insignificant as it sounds.
