
Dan Fogelberg and the Father Behind “Leader of the Band”
From Our American Stories by iHeartPodcasts
May 7, 2026 · 8 min
About this episode
This episode explores the story behind Dan Fogelberg's song 'Leader of the Band,' a tribute to his father, Lawrence.
On this episode of Our American Stories, in the canon of personal songs, “Leader of the Band” is one of the most treasured. The song is Dan Fogelberg’s heartfelt tribute to his father, Lawrence, a high school band director who shaped both his life and his music. As part of our Story of a Song series, Dan Fogelberg himself, along with our own Greg Hengler, share the story behind the song and the man who inspired it. Support the show ( https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate) Support the show: https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
People in this episode
Host: Greg Hengler
Guest: Dan Fogelberg
Topics covered
- music
- family
- tribute
- songwriting
- personal stories
Keywords
- Dan Fogelberg
- Leader of the Band
- father
- music
- tribute
- story of a song
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Our American Stories
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