Dan Fogelberg passed away from prostate cancer Sunday the 16th of December.
I saw Dan at a local outdoor venue here in Dayton, Ohio a few years back. It rained "cats and dogs" and he and the band just kept going... His band contained a bunch of great sidemen and former one hit wonders like Jim Photglo. They played their hearts out while we sat under tarps and blankets and soaked it in. I'll never forget it... but I'll never remember it as vividly as I'd like to.
Perhaps it was a sign of Dan's sense of humor, but he never played "Rythym of the Rain" that night, even though a well lubricated fellow fan next to us shouted a request for it between every song. It would have been so perfect "In the moment." He probably knew we couldn't take that much perfection.
His songs grew up alongside me and were never far away. At every major life-event he had a new hit that seemed to define, signal or cushion the change. I'll miss him... and the chance to share him with my kids in a live setting. But you can bet that, like Rich Mullins, I'll share his music with my kids, my friends and anyone who'll listen.
