“Same Old Lang Syne” by Dan Fogelberg

Dan Fogelberg released "Same Old Lang Syne" as a single in 1980, ahead of its home on his 1981 album The Innocent Age, and it plays like a short story told at the piano: a first-person ballad, drawn from his own life, about running into an old flame in a grocery store on a snowy Christmas Eve. With no bars open, they share a six-pack in her car. She married an architect for security rather than love; he makes his living in music, loving the crowds and hating the road. Then a kiss goodbye, and she drives off.

Fogelberg plays piano, electric piano and bass and sings every vocal, co-producing with Marty Lewis, who also engineered and mixed; Russ Kunkel drums and Michael Brecker plays soprano saxophone. It reached number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and has become a holiday-season radio staple.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.