Being from Windsor, what are you looking forward to most about being a part of this CSU tradition, the Lagoon Concert Series?

Dan Kenny: Last year we had the great privilege of playing our set at the CSU Alumni Center prior to all of the CSU home football games this past season, and we will again for the upcoming ’23 season. We met such great people and had such a great time that this just feels like a real cool extension of that experience.

Fred Babb: And it’s such a great honor knowing the tradition of CSU Lagoon Concerts. We have made so many friends within the CSU family, and we’re really looking forward to making more!

What’s your favorite song to perform at concerts that is regularly in your setlist? What is it about that song that you enjoy the most?

Fred Babb: One thing that Dan and I do is make sure that we are playing songs that we love. Songs that bring back a ton of childhood memories. One of those songs for me is “Saturday in the Park” by Chicago. It always takes me back to a simpler time when I would spend time with family celebrating holidays, birthdays, anniversaries.

Dan Kenny: I consider us a “vocal” group first, which I think is pretty unique among bands. My partner Fred has an incredibly versatile voice, great range, dynamic and soulful, he can sing just about anything and have it do justice to the original tune. “Night Moves” by Bob Seger is a staple in our set and really popular with our followers, and one that I always look forward to.

Who were some of your musical influences growing up? What was it about their sound that resonated with you?

Dan Kenny:  I was so all over the place! I loved jazz and fusion at an early age but really fell in love with bands that focused on vocals and harmonies, the Eagles, ELO, America, Simon & Garfunkel, the Beatles, and I was fully into Steely Dan and the whole “yacht rock” genre.

Fred Babb: Most of my early influences were R&B singers like Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye. It was the emotion in their voices that really hit me.

You mention that music can take you back to the soundtrack of your youth. Is there a song that you perform that takes you back to a specific moment in your life?

Fred Babb: There’s a song that holds deep emotion for me and that would be “Into the Mystic” by Van Morrison. It reminds me of my uncle and our growing up together. He is no longer with us, and I miss him very much.

Dan Kenny: There’s so many songs, but for me it’s probably “Ventura Highway” by America. It just has great visuals of what it’s like to be young and “cruising” on a summer day. It reminds me of my first AM/FM car radio, and the entire world of music it had inside.

What is it about the music from the 1970s and 1980s that keeps people and even new generations listening to it?

Fred Babb: Simply put, that music is real. Instruments being played by people. It’s so easy to connect to. It was a time of togetherness and hope, not like today when there is so much division.

Dan Kenny: Great question. We had a request (yes, we take requests!) for “Brandy” by Looking Glass a while back and we were amazed that teens, young families, as well as folks from our generation were all singing along. Movies like “Guardians of the Galaxy” take the greatest songs of our generation and expose new generations that can appreciate it the way we have. We had a 10-year-old request “Come and get your Love” by Redbone. How cool is that?

Is there anything else that you’d like to add?

We both want to add our sincere gratitude for giving us this opportunity to be a part of this Fort Collins tradition. We would also like to thank all the really kind friends/supporters at CSU who are now our friends for helping us get here. We are so looking forward to July 19!