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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A thoughtful work of consistently high quality, August 8, 2001
In his first two albums, Dan Fogelberg was finding his feet and developing his style, although on his third he seemed rather to have lost his way. This was rectified in 1977, with 'Nether Lands' being the album in which he really seemed to find his niche artistically. From then on, he moved forward confidently and met with considerable commercial success.However, this album does not make any concessions in order to be commercial and contains no hit singles - it is an uncompromising artistic effort and merits sustained listening in order to fully appreciate its deep qualities. This was the first Dan Fogelberg album which I heard, and initially I did not particularly enjoy it. However, that soon changed, and it became the much-loved 'soundtrack' for an important time in my life. It remains my favourite Fogelberg album, sounding as good as ever after more than 20 years. Whilst all the musical styles used here appear in some form or another in Dan's other albums, this one perhaps contains the broadest range of styles, as he experiments with intricate arrangements ranging from dramatically orchestrated ballads (the title track and 'Sketches') to rolling country-rock ('Once upon a time' and 'Lessons learned'), gentle acoustic guitar picking ('Scarecrow's dream'), light jazz ('Give me some time'), and slow, moody rock ('Loose ends'). And throughout, Fogelberg's tasteful guitar and keyboard work, and his soaring vocal harmonies, demonstrate his maturing musical talent. Whilst not a concept album in the accepted sense, the mood and lyrical content of the album has a consistency throughout, the themes being the search for direction in life, issues of conscience and idealism, and the transitory nature of many relationships. Dan seems to have been going through a particular period of self-examination when this album was written, and there is a sense of strong feeling being put into the songs. This work is thought-provoking rather than entertaining, and is best listened to alone, without distractions. It would be perhaps unfair to single out a particular track, but in many ways the closing song 'False faces' epitomises Dan Fogelberg at this time, with its powerful orchestration, strong vocal harmonies, intricate guitar work and lyrics expressing the inner struggles of the artist.
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~ Dan Fogelberg
~ Dan Fogelberg
~ Dan Fogelberg
~ Dan Fogelberg
~ Dan Fogelberg & Tim Weisberg
by Dan Fogelberg 
