Merrillville’s venue, performance, and audience were very different from Wednesday’s South Bend show. I’d heard of but never been to the Star Plaza Theatre before. It’s a fairly large facility and The Plaza’s proximity to Chicago guaranteed a varied audience mix.

Cindy Bullins opened the show again Saturday. She was a little unorganized, but explained it away due to the drive from St. Louis. Musically her performance was about the same. Her music is heartfelt.

Dan and the band came on and struck off with “Magic Every Moment.” The play list closely followed Wednesday night except “To the Morning” was dropped. There were a number of instrument and sound problems in the beginning and I wasn’t sure if the drop had been planned or necessitated. It was disappointing for me, but most of the audience didn't’t know what they were missing. I thought Dan’s voice held up and quite honestly, his performance was more relaxed. He was quite chipper toward the close. I forgot to comment on the intro of “Changing Horses.” It was winding and clever. “Morning Sky” was excellent both shows. Of course there were the normal yellers. One yelled something along the lines of “How about another 30 years?” and Dan responded to him. He thought it was a nice sentiment, but not likely. My side of the audience got the biggest kick out of a guy on the 5th or 6th row. When Dan introduced “The Reach” the fan jumped up and down, pumping his fist, I think he twirled around a few times and yelled out sporadically throughout the entire song. If I hadn’t seen it performed Wednesday, I might have been aggravated. (It was a great song both nights for Dan and the band) As it was, I joined in the laughter. Maybe I would do that if he played “Old Tennessee.” Nah. I don’t worship at the Bud altar and I’d probably cry. Perhaps it’s a gender thing.

I felt that the audience was in fairly defined tiers. Those people in the “orchestra” and lower rows were diehard fans and clearly having a great time. Rows six through 15 were mixed with devotees, some that know the hits and a few who weren’t sure. The further back into the audience you traveled, the reactions to the performance were more irreverent. It could be my reactions to the audience were colored by some of their reactions to me. I was trying to do the ambassador thing. It was very bizarre, yet I still managed to have fun.

It’s obvious that I’m a huge Dan follower. His performance was wonderful. If he has a good time, I have a good time. I'm really disappointed that I didn't make time to see him with a band in the 70's, 80's or 90's. He's a versatile performer and tosses out some of the funniest zingers. I have to compliment the performance of Mike Hanna. It’s clear that he loves playing Dan’s songs. His accompaniment on the synthesizer was fun to watch and added to Dan’s performance. I have no complaints about the other band members. He just stood out for me. I missed the wild shirt Saturday. I’m looking forward to 2003 and better planning on my part so I can go to more shows! Perhaps California…… Jen:)

After seeing Dan last Saturday night I just had to come on and voice my pure joy. An inspiration it was as Dan cranked off tune after ever-loving tune to a small but appreciative crowd of Midwesterners. Dan, it was an incredible concert and I couldn't have been more proud to be there. Other than my disappointment at not hearing "Forefathers" the night was One Magic Moment. When one of the patrons shouted out " 30 more years ", I couldn't have agreed more. Dan's response of "Sweet, but highly unlikely" brought a roar to the house. At one point during the concert after a particularly great bluesjam, I said to my wife "can Colin Raye do that, I think not". Once again a great time in a great time to know of Dan Fogelberg. Inspire me you do my friend as I await your next gift of soul. ~ David P.

I attended the Merrillville show with my wife and 7 year old daughter. This was one of the best shows I have seen and this is my 15th. We really enjoyed Cindy Bullens as Dan's opening act. We purchased both of her CD's at the show and had her autograph them both. Dan has a history of picking excellent opening acts (Tim Weisberg, Beth Nielsen Chapman, Chris Hillman Band, etc.) and this was no exception.

The thing that I really enjoy about a Dan concert is that you never know what to expect. I have read some reviews on other websites where there seems to be a great deal of complaining about Dan doing too many cover songs. I think it is great that Dan performs some things that you cannot find on his albums. If I only wanted the hits I would stay home and play The Very Best of Dan Fogelberg on my CD player. I think there was a good mix of hits and covers. I also think it is great that Dan allows the other musicians to step out and sing lead on a few songs. There are a lot of other artists who could not get their ego out of the way to let someone else take the spotlight. I think the highlight of the show for me was my daughter bouncing along to the opening strains of Magic Every Moment. I can't think of a better first concert for her to attend. There were also several other children in the audience which I find very encouraging. At one point some guy yelled out "Thirty More Years". Dan looked at the ground and smiled, probably mulling over the fact he would be 80 years old, then shook his head and said "That's very sweet, but highly unlikely". Dan seemed to really enjoy playing with the guys in the band. They had great interaction all night. All in all a great night. Can't wait for the new CD. ~ John

Merrillville was my second and final chance to see Dan this summer. Having seen him in South Bend a few days earlier didn't lessen my excitement or enthusiasm for seeing Dan and the band again. His set list was slightly different in Merrillville; he omitted To The Morning and the encore was If I Needed Someone instead of Gambler. The show was wonderful and I enjoyed myself immensely. I decided early on in the show that I'm spending way too much time thinking about Dan and his band--I noticed that Robert McEntee had gotten a haircut between Wednesday night in South Bend and Saturday night in Merrillville, and I wondered where Mike Hanna's colorful shirt was! When Dan played The Reach there was a gentlemen off to the right side of the stage who seemed unable to control his enthusiasm--obviously a big fan of that song!! Someone from the audience shouted out "30 more years Dan" when he was doing the solo set and his reply was something like "That's very sweet, but highly unlikely". When he came out for the encore he had a baseball hat on backwards, which I don't know the significance of! As soon as the encore started, many people left their seats and headed up to the front of the stage, myself and my friend included!! Dan and his band put on a great show, and I look forward to the new CD, and a chance to see him again next summer!! ~ Brenda

Being an old Fogelberg fan from way back, i.e. 48 years old, I have seen Dan
in concert many times. I had the pleasure of seeing him twice this year....once on 6/1 in Atlanta at the Chastain Theater and most recently last night at the Star Theater in Merrilville, Indiana. The concert in Atlanta could not have been better! Dan's music was very enthusiastic, feeding off the large crowd and Dan and his band seemed to be very much in "tune" with the audience. He was talking to the fans, was sharing some history of the songs and seemed to be very much enjoying himself. It truly was an outstanding evening.

I must say the concert last night in Merrilville was not as rewarding. For whatever reason, Dan seemed to be tired and left the feeling that he was just trying to get through the concert. There was minimal small talk with the audience and there was little if any real "soulful feeling" in the delivery of his performance. I felt sorry for those others in attendance, although they might have enjoyed the performance as they had no other performance to refer to...as we did with the performance in Atlanta. Certainly, we did enjoy the music, but I think his delivery was a bit forced and probably will be "critiqued" as such in the reviews.

I will always be a Fogelberg fan as I have been for 30 years however and savor every time I get the chance to attend a performance or obtain some new music. I truly believe Dan is one of the most talented, if not the most talented songwriter of our time and hope he continues on. Thanks ~ Elmer Cummings (Elizabethtown, KY)

Had the chance to see Dan in South Bend then again a few nights later in Merrillville. Both concerts were great. Acoustics were better in Merrillville. Different encore song in Merrillville, but that was ok. Dan rarely reacts to comments from audience, which I think is great -- because if you get into a dialogue with complimentary fan, what do you do with the jerk who calls out and interrupts? Even Dan couldn't let this by, though. He spoke about 30 years of performing, loyalty of fans, concert goers, etc. Then it got quiet and one fan called out: "30 more!". First, no noticeable reaction, then thesmall smile started at the corners of the mouth. As the fans whistled, cheered,clapped and hollered, a bigger smile emerged -- then mouth close to the mike, fans quieting to hear response -- and Dan shared "a very nice thought, but highly unlikely". Wonderful, fun concert. Thanks, Dan the Man. ~ Mary

My first Dan Fogelberg concert... I gave my wife a present for her birthday taking her to her favorite artist's concert. It was very interesting that I enjoyed the concert more than her. She did not agree with Dan promoting his fellow artists skills with songs devoted to their talents, not his. She came to hear her artist, not his friends. Overall she did enjoy the concert, but did not think the mikeing for the piano was set up correctly. She would have also enjoyed his voice of 15 years past (as if we all wouldn't want 15 years off our chronological age). Dan looked tired. I looked at his schedule...St. Louis the night before and Rockford the night after. I don't know how he endures all that travel. He had a good format for the concert mixing all his talents into one performance. My only regret is that other concerts were able to get 2 encores, and we only got one.

I am three weeks younger than Dan and did not realize that he was at U of I at same time as my high school and college classmate, Kevin Cronin of REO Speed Wagon. I knew Kevin when he had the LD's at Brother Rice and Fuscia at Loyola before transferring to U of I to become lead for REO in 1971. I keep track of Kevin who plays at Taste of Chicago and Summerfest in Milwaukee. I think REO has better commercial success over the years, but if you put Kevin head to head against Dan, Dan would win hands down. My wife left for a music workshop up in Lake Geneva, WI and took Dan's CD with her. I complained. So you decide who got the present. ~ Michael

Overall a very good concert. Dan has been playing music for thirty years and
I have been going to concerts that long. Dan played the most cover songs of
any major entertainer that I have seen. This would be OK if they were in addition to his other songs but too many songs were left off to justify them. ~ Rogge56

As always, it was a great time. Been a fan since 74 and I just want to thank him for 30 years of thoroughly enjoying his music. ~ Jim McKinney