Dan Fogelberg: Phoenix CD Track Listing

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Dan Fogelberg Phoenix (1979)
Originally Released 1979\nCD Edition Released February 1984\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: AMG EXPERT REVIEW: His first solo album since 1977's Netherlands, Phoenix was a fine effort but one that didn't add any new twists to Fogelberg's ever-expanding vision apparent up till then on one album after another. The album paled somewhat in comparison to Fogelberg's previous efforts and didn't do much to expand his audience. On the other hand, it certainly didn't dissuade many from continuing to support him through buying his records and seeing him play live, both of which contributed to his receiving extensive airplay. "Longer" is perhaps the best track on the album and quickly became a live favorite. The title cut proved again that Fogelberg could rock, and as punk and new wave began creeping into the mainstream, Fogelberg appeared to be one artist who would not fade away as tastes changed. -- Steve Matteo\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nA flawed, but worthwhile album from an ambitious artist, September 22, 2004\nReviewer: Dave "missing person" (United States)\nOver the course of Dan Fogelberg's career, he has demonstrated that he is an extremely talented artist. He had a lot of capability and was quite ambitious, & he aimed high, & this resulted in a very mixed output, but there are many fantastic songs to be found. His sixth album (including the "duet" album with Tim Weisberg, "Twin Sons of Different Mothers"), "Phoenix", was released in November of 1979, & it's a strong introduction to his work -- although his weaknesses are in evidence, they are far outweighed by his strengths. He handles all of the lead & background vocals on the album, all of the guitars (aside from "Face the Fire", which presumably features Joe Walsh on slide, though the credits don't flat out say so) & nearly all of the keyboards as well, & he wrote all the songs himself & also served as the primary producer -- all that said, Fogelberg is running the show in a big way. \n\nOver the years he has displayed a taste for having brief (minute & a half or so) instrumental album openers, a tactic he got excellent mileage out of here with the outstanding "Tullamore Dew", featuring a haunting guitar melody which is punctuated by light, but very effective use of phasing, as well as atmospheric synthesizer & percussion. It also serves as a terrific prelude to the exciting, driving title track, with masterful, thick layers of guitar -- lyrically, it's about breaking free from one's troubles, "getting out there", & being yourself, & despite their simplicity, he sings them passionately & convicingly. \n\n"Gypsy Wind" & "The Last To Know" are both nice, tuneful, somewhat country-fied ballads, although the former highlights him slipping into the annoying vocal inflections that at times get in the way (the way he sings the line "It's only when you listen that you learn" is a perfect example). ("The Last To Know", at 2:27, just after the guitar solo, is entirely reminiscent of the Doobie Brothers/ Carly Simon tune "You Belong To Me".) \n\n"Face the Fire" features very direct, angry lyrics regarding the fears/ dangers of nuclear energy, and the tune ends up being kind of a drag -- it exhaustingly beats the simple, endlessly repeated riff into the ground, & the chorus feels badly forced, though the extended guitar soloing that ends the song is engaging. On the other hand, "Wishing On The Moon" is a solidly enjoyable, melodic mid-tempo rocker (the half-baked chorus leaves a bit to be desired though), & features a cool, riffy instrumental break. \n\nA pair of hit singles are placed side-by-side. I'm not going to say "Longer" is a sap-free ballad--it certainly isn't, but it's not EXCRUCIATINGLY sappy, & it's pretty, & also relatively stripped down (though there are a couple of slightly, yet gratingly, off-key notes in the harmony vocals). Even better though is the outstanding "Heart Hotels" -- a lyrically clever song about romantic desperation, it starts out with bright, rich piano chords shaded with electric piano (played in unison), before morphing into an irresistibly bouncy song, additionally graced with an effective lyricon solo. However, "Beggars Game", is a solid example of Fogelberg aiming high & not being able to carry out his ambitions in a fully satisfying manner. It's a minor-keyed story song about a man who falls prey to a seductive woman -- the guy expresses his realization that he's another "fool" to fall for her, but a blink of an eye later, the music swells & switches to a major key for what's supposedly the chorus (though it doesn't feel like a chorus), & the "chains fall free" -- then there's an instrumental break, after which Fogelberg, seemingly out of steam, goes back & repeats the first verse & the chorus again. It's painfully anti-climactic, & the verses are additionally marred by the annoyingly melodramatic vocals, despite the strong melody. He does end the album in fine fashion with the melodic ballad "Along The Road" (which reprises the "Tullamore Dew" sound, & features a refreshingly mellow vocal). \n\nIn the end, the album really does strongly capture of essence of Dan Fogelberg, warts and all -- the excellent tracks that are here, & the fact that the album is consistently strong overall, make it worth checking out, & it's also a good place to start if you're new to him/ curious about him.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nSomething to Displease Everyone, August 29, 2001\nReviewer: Eric R. Last "misterrockobscurities" (San Bruno, CA United States)\nI followed Fogelberg's career from the debut in '72 though this title in '80 before finally giving up on him. Every album has a few great cuts but for someone more drawn to his rock 'n' roll side, the drippy ballads and folkish muzak just got to be too much to bear. On this, his sixth album, Fogelberg's stylistic swings reach the breaking point - he rocks harder on the songs "Face the Fire" and "Phoenix" than he ever has before, but with "Longer" and "Heart Hotels" he lets his sappy romantic side go way overboard as well. Hard to believe a fan of one side of Fogelberg can stomach the other. I recently burned my own "Best of" CD for Fogelberg - 2 or 3 songs from each of the first 6 albums. Now I'll sell the albums and never miss them a bit.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nNot a bad cut on the disk, April 13, 2001\nReviewer: Arthur E. Ragosta (Santa Clara, Ca USA)\nAnother Fogelburg winner! Second only to the unbelievable "Innocent Age" in his collection of fine albums.\nEveryone has hear "Longer" on the radio, but I believe both "Beggar's Game" and "Along the Road" are better songs and give you a full appreciation for the artist's talent. He uses non-traditional instruments (from a rock standpoint) to present more than just a beat to the listener. And for heaven's sake, listen to the lyrics...\n\n'Joy at the start, fear in the journey, joy at the coming home. A part of the heart gets lost in the learning somewhere along the road.'\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThe beginning of phase 2....., October 23, 2000\nReviewer: homefree (Mass)\nAfter the success of ' Power of Gold' people anxiously awaited Fogelberg's next release. 'Phoenix' released in 1979 did not disappoint. Radio jumped on this album, and the top twenty "Heart hotels" and the #2 'Longer' which may be Dan's best known song. This gave Dan his biggest seller to date, and began the years where more people knew Fogelberg than did not.\nAs he did on 'Captured Angel' he began with an instrumental. 'Tullamore Dew' is a nice electric instrumental that segues into the title track. These two were staples of Dan's late 70's early 80's concerts. 'Tullamore Dew' was often stretched into quite a lengthy selection live, and is worth tracking down. ' Beggars game' as said by Fogelberg "is about chasing a ballerina around Nashville" It is a standout cut lyrically, and is still performed by Dan today. 'Face the fire' you may remember from the attention it received during the nuclear crisis (no nukes) of 1979. It was also a popular concert favorite for many years.\n\n'Heart hotels' is the lesser of the two hits on this one. Where 'Longer' is in a sense timeless, 'hotels' does a better job of bringing you back to 79 when you hear it. Whether that is a good thing or bad is up to the listener!\n\nThe album ends with 'Along the road.' From 'Home free' almost 10 years prior each album contains a classic Fogelberg song that defines the album With 'Along the road' we get a feeling for where Dan has been and what he has seen thus far. Where the journey will go from there is answered in his next album.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nOne Of Dan Fogelberg's Best ALbums!, August 28, 2000\nReviewer: Barron Laycock "Labradorman" (Temple, New Hampshire United States)\nThis incredible album helped to propel Dan Fogelberg's popularity in the late 1970s, and represented an announcement of his arrival as a major figure in the folk-rock pantheon. This was the follow-up album to a string of successful efforts that started with "Souvenirs' and went on to "Captured Angel" and "Twin Sons Of Different Mothers", leading up to this instant smash release. All in all, it provides terrific testimony to his talents, and proof positive of the incredible talents of one of folk-rock's most under-appreciated artists. From the stirring and dreamy opening instrumental of "Tullamore Dew" to the pulsating segue into the complex and quite accomplished lyrics of "Phoenix" describing Fogelberg's near submersion in a negative relationship and his rise above its pain to recreate himself, this album showcases Dan's wide range of songwriting, musical, and arrangement skills.\nOf course, the album was also helped along to the top of the charts by the inclusion of the hit single "Longer", which was a number one song. Fogelberg tends to favor a very full "wall of sound" approach to his music, and sometimes tends to somewhat overproduce arrangements by having too much going on simultaneously in his works. In this case, however, the songs are clear, crisp, and simply terrific, from "Gypsy Wind" to "Last To Know" to a terrific performance of "Face The Fire", Fogelberg's personal contribution to the "No Nukes" anti-nuclear power movement. My own personal favorites here are "Face The Fire", with its intricate, amazing, and powerful electric guitar arrangement, "Along The Road", a dreamy recolelction of life on the run, and "Wishing On The Moon". This is a wonderful album, folks, and a splendid example of Mr. Fogelberg's considerable skills and talents. I highly recommend it. Enjoy.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nFogelberg Rises Like Phoenix Into 80s Rock Decade, July 22, 2000\nReviewer: Anthony G Pizza "trivialtony" (FL)\n \nReleased in the closing weeks of the 1970s, Dan Fogelberg's "Phoenix" drew from many of the era's singer-songwriter themes: acoustic ballads, socially-concious rockers, sensitive lyrics, high harmonies from the country-folk rock songbooks of James Taylor, America, John Denver, Poco and others. The Rolling Stone Guide to Rock and Roll accurately described Fogelberg's work then as a "one-man CSN."\nBut if Fogelberg saved his best stories for his finest album, 1981's "The Innocent Age," he was at his strongest melodically here. Early 1980's wedding standard "Longer" remains a precious melody even with somewhat sappy lyrics ("We'll fly through the fall and summers with love on our wings..."). "Gypsy Wind" and "The Last To Know" are also well-crafted mid-tempo ballads, "Heart Hotels" a nice pop-jazz, and the haunting guitar work in "Tullamore Dew" hauntingly prefaces the album. Less effective is "Beggars Game" and the anti-nuclear rocker "Face The Fire" (this was the year of "No Nukes," remember) with an inappropriate Fogelberg growl.\n\nHow inconsistent was Fogelberg as a songwriter? The title track is apparently half about resurrection, half about revenge. It builds some Eagles-ish country-rock steam and suspense (with some Joe Walsh-ish guitar)before the beat slows down at the bridge...the acoustic guitars rise...and Fogelberg makes his grand statement: "I never knew what you wanted/I guess that I never will." Great melody, great arrangement, misguided lyrics. That's why Fogelberg's music would hit the bullseye or miss the target altogether.\n\nAfter the singer-songwriter movement faded, Fogelberg enjoyed varying success in the 1980s and 1990s trying everything from bluegrass to world music styles. The hits from "Phoenix" are on his "Greatest Hits" album, making this a supplemental purchase after "Souvenirs," "Innocent Age," and "Nether Lands."\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nSong power!, March 12, 2000\nReviewer: The Sanity Inspector (USA)\nNothing brings back the late '70s like the sound of a Prophet 5 synthesizer and lushly arranged strings and acoustic guitar. Like many hipper-than-thou kids from that time, I sneered at Fogelberg. Nowadays, I can relate (pardon the Californianism) to his music better, now that I've seen enough of life to know what he's been singing about. "Longer" is an almost-too-sweet ballad, but oh that flugelhorn solo! Traces of this song hover throughout, for instance, Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" and "Tears in Heaven". The title track is my favorite, along with the instrumental introductory track, "Tullamore Dew". (Note: on the cd, there's a cue blip between the two tracks--very mood-breaking.) On "Phoenix", his vocals are still glassy smooth, but he still manages to generate some real steam. This is a fine, classically rocking mememto of the end of the singer-songwriter era.\n\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nPeople often mock John Denver for his supermellow, sticky-sweet wholesomeness, yet hardly anyone ever picks on Dan Fogelberg, who traffics in the same trite, treacly sentiments that made Denver a pet peeve (and, of course, several million dollars).\n\n\n\nFogelberg's work not only utilizes numberless storybook-romantic platitudes but also every laid-back, folk-rock clich

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