Tag: folk singers of the 70s

The Essential Dan Fogelberg Playlist

Posted on by Editor

Contrary to what it sounds like on his records, Dan Fogelberg wasn’t born in Colorado. He was born in Peoria, IL, the son of a classically trained pianist mom and a high school band director dad (the person who inspired Fogelberg’s hit, “Leader of the Band”). As a teenager, Fogelberg played in the requisite Beatles cover bands before trying his hand at the folk music circuit around Chicago during the early '70s. It was there, at the famed Red Herring Café, that REO Speedwagon’s manager and future label exec, Irving Azoff, discovered him and signed him to a record deal.

Transplanted in Nashville, Fogelberg tracked his first record, Home Free, with Norbert Putnam behind the wheel. It pretty well tanked commercially (though has since gone platinum) but it encouraged Epic Records to stick with him and assign him a second session (with the strange bedfellow Joe Walsh as producer). Souvenirs — recorded with a cadre of L.A. session players plus Graham Nash and guys from both America and the Eagles — reached the Top 20, the single “Part of the Plan” made the Top 40, and Fogelberg’s career achieved liftoff.

Starting with Souvenirs, Fogelberg recorded five straight multi-platinum albums, wrapped up the '80s with a pair of platinum records, and became the unofficial voice of the Colorado snows (second only to John Denver). His 1985 album, High Country Snows, is a fine record of songs in the bluegrass tradition and, mixed in with his solo albums, he tracked two sets with jazz flautist Tim Weisberg, the first of which — Twin Sons from Different Mothers — is considered an acoustic classic.

Though some would categorize the late singer as nothing more than an MOR pablum pusher — which was true on a few occasions — Fogelberg was a well-loved performer, a respected songwriter among his peers, and a guy who made a melody sing. Herein, we offer an essential playlist of his best songs, a mix of those pop radio classics and some deep album cuts.

Photo courtesy of DanFogelberg.com

The Essential Cat Stevens Playlist

Posted on by Editor

For all of the controversy Steven Demetre Giorgiou has caused since the late '80s with his pointed political commentary, the man who was once known as Cat Stevens (and is now known as Yusuf Islam) can’t be denied his place as one of the most popular and influential folk singers in the history of contemporary music. His full and fascinating life story — from his early years growing up above the Moulin Rouge on London’s famed Shaftsbury Avenue to his days as a certified rock star, from his fervent denial of the music business to his notable return — is a narrative too long to be managed here. But the influence of some of the records he made during the 1970s, which can be heard today in every sensitive British songwriter from James Blunt to Passenger’s Michael Rosenberg, is a topic worthy of our consideration.

At the height of his popularity from 1970 through 1977 — working with longtime friend, guitarist, and fellow perfectionist Alun Davies — Stevens created six Top 10 albums that translated the English folk of Pentangle and Fairport Convention into a sound that was accessible to rock audiences. Along with hits like "Father and Son," "Wild World," and "Hard Headed Woman," his 1970 release, Tea For The Tillerman, included gems like "Where Do the Children Play?" and "On the Road to Find Out." "Changes IV," "Rubylove," and "Bitter Blue" lived on 1971’s Teaser and the Fire Cat along with the hits "Morning Has Broken" and "Moonshadow." With just one hit ("Oh Very Young"), Buddha and the Chocolate Box was a massively popular record in 1972 on the strength of "Music," "Ghost Town," and "King of Trees."

Herein we pay tribute to the wholly undeniable influence of Cat Stevens with an Essential Playlist that blends the hits and album tracks from those three albums into one exceptional listen.

Photo of Cat Stevens in Boeblingen, Germany, 1976 taken by William McElligott (Creative Commons)