This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories, the show where America is the star and the American people.

To search for the Our American Stories podcast, go to the Iheart Radio app to Apple

podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. All show long, we're celebrating Father's Day and the

importance of fathers and the effect and impact good fathers have on young men's lives and

young women's. In a canon of personal songs,

leader of the band stands out as Dan Fogelberg's Most Treasured.

It's a loving tribute to his musician father, Lawrence Fogelberg.

Released in late 1981, it peaked at number nine

on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and hit number one

on adult contemporary here is Dan Fogelberg with the story of his love song to his father

if I think I could only have written one song in my life it would have been leader of the band. Because what that meant to my

father and to me, there's no way I could quantify that or even explain it. My father passed away

over 10 years ago now and he got to hear that that song he got to see this enjoyed the

success of that song people were calling him on the phone and interviewing him in

his last days you know who is this man the leader of the band you know and he just he

loved that and I loved that because I respected him so much I I mean, he gave me everything I am, really. My mother and he were both musicians. And the idea of being a living legacy is really the truth. I don't think I'll ever be as accomplished a musician as he was. But I've had a different gift. It came to me in a different way.

I've been able to reach and touch people with these songs. And that one has probably touched

more people more deeply than anything I've ever done.

And only child alone and wild, a cabinet maker's's son his hands were meant for different work and his

heart was known to none he left his arm and went his lone and solitary way and he gave to me a gift I know

I never can repay

Every night when I sing that song I feel him

...