Run for the Roses (song)

This article is about the song by Dan Fogelberg. For the song by Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter, see Run for the Roses (album).
"Run for the Roses"
Single by Dan Fogelberg
from the album The Innocent Age
B-side"The Sand and the Foam"
Released1982
GenreSoft rock
Length4:20
LabelFull Moon Records
Songwriter(s)Dan Fogelberg
Producer(s)Dan Fogelberg, Marty Lewis
Dan Fogelberg singles chronology
"Leader of the Band"
(1981) 		"Run for the Roses"
(1982) 		"Missing You"
(1982)

"Run for the Roses" is a song written and recorded by singer/songwriter Dan Fogelberg in 1980.

Background

The chorus mentions "the chance of a lifetime in a lifetime of chance", at once describing the experience of horse racing and life itself. The song has since been used as an unofficial theme for the Kentucky Derby.

Chart performance

Released as a single from the album The Innocent Age the following year, it peaked at number 18 on the Billboard Hot 100.[1]

Chart (1981–1982) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 18
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks[2] 3
Canadian RPM Top Singles 33
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks 1
Canadian RPM Country Tracks 16

The song was commissioned by ABC for its telecast of the 106th running of the Derby in 1980, and premiered on the network's Derby preview special the night before. Fogelberg stated that it was written in two days.[3] The performance was broadcast from the Red Barn, the student activities building at the University of Louisville.[4]

References

  1. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications)
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 95.
  3. ^ "Dan Fogelberg Prodigy Chat transcript Treehouse.org". Retrieved 2013-05-04.
  4. ^ "UofL's Red Barn marks 50 years as student hub". 24 October 2019. Retrieved 2022-08-04.