Gordon Lightfoot (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter

Gordon Lightfoot

Gordon Meredith Lightfoot, Jr. (Orillia, 17 novembre 1938) è un cantautore canadese. È la prima star del Canada per quanto riguarda la country music. Figura fra gli artisti che si sono esibiti nella trasmissione televisiva Top of the Pops (1971) e il suo nome è iscritto dal 1998 fra quello delle celebrità della Canada's Walk of Fame.  

Biografia

Vincitore di quindici Juno Award, è Compagno dell'Ordine del Canada e Membro dell'Ordine dell'Ontario. Ha fatto parte nel 1985 del supergruppo Northern Lights che ha visto riuniti artisti canadesi per l'incisione del brano singolo Tears Are Not Enough i cui proventi furono donati alla popolazione dell'Etiopia colpita da una carestia.
Tre anni dopo, nel 1988 è stato tra gli artisti che si sono esibiti nella cerimonia di apertura dei XV Giochi olimpici invernali di Calgary. Nel luglio 2005 ha partecipato al Live 8 Barrie, il raduno musicale interno al Live 8 tenutosi al Park Place di Barrie, presso Toronto.
Secondo il collega e connazionale Robbie Robertson di The Band, è uno dei maggiori cantautori canadesi ed è da considerarsi alla stregua di un patrimonio nazionale.

Primi anni

Nato nella città di Orillia, Lightfoot è un nome di risonanza internazionale all'interno del panorama della musica folk, country e pop. Ha iniziato ad esibirsi negli anni sessanta collaborando con Phil Ochs ed è entrato nelle classifiche di vendita a partire dal decennio successivo con brani come If You Could Read My Mind (1970), Sundown (1974) (prima posizione nella Billboard Hot 100 ed in Canada per tre settimane e quarta in Australia), Carefree Highway (1974) (decima posizione nella Billboard Hot 100), Rainy Day People (1975) e The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald (1976) (brano composto in memoria dell'affondamento della SS Edmund Fitzgerald).
L'album Sundown raggiunge la prima posizione per due settimane nella Billboard 200 e per cinque settimane in Canada.
Sue canzoni sono state incise da numerosi artisti fra cui Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash (If You Could Read My Mind, in American V: A Hundred Highways), Marty Robbins, George Hamilton IV, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bob Dylan (Early Morning Rain, in Self Portrait, Shadows live a Edmonton il 9-ott-2012), Judy Collins, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Richie Havens, Harry Belafonte, Tony Rice, Sandy Denny (con i Fotheringay), Scott Walker, Sarah McLachlan, John Mellencamp e The Dandy Warhols (The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, in The Black Album-Come on Feel the Dandy Warhols).

Il debutto

Lightfoot ha iniziato a cantare da bambino in registro sopranile sotto la guida di Ray Williams, direttore del coro dell'Orillia's St. Paul's United Church. Williams, secondo i racconti dello stesso Lightfoot, gli insegnò a cantare con emozione e ad avere confidenza nella propria voce. Periodicamente si è esibito in operette e oratori trasmessi dalle radio locali della zona di Orillia o rappresentati in festival musicali.
Aveva dodici anni quando debuttò alla Massey Hall di Toronto dopo aver vinto fra teen-ager. Ancora adolescente ha imparato a suonare il pianoforte, la batteria e le percussioni. Si è avvicinato alla chitarra acustica successivamente, al tempo della high school, quando le sue esibizioni in pubblico hanno iniziato ad incrementarsi. Ad influenzarlo maggiormente fu, in quel periodo, il cantautore statunitense Stephen Foster, uno dei padri della musica nordamericana.
Lightfoot si trasferì in California a vent'anni, nel 1958 per studiare composizione jazz ed orchestrazione all'Hollywood's Westlake College of Music, frequentato da altri studenti< canadesi. Per mantenersi agli studi, cantò in registrazioni demo scrivendo, arrangiando e producendo jingle musicali pubblicitari. Fu in quel periodo che subì l'influenza della folk music di Pete Seeger, Bob Gibson, Ian and Sylvia Tyson e The Weavers.
Tornato in Canada nel 1960, Lighfoot si unì al gruppo Swinging Eight, attivo sulla rete televisiva pubblica CBC con il programma Country Hoedown. Suonò poi anche con i Gino Silvi Singers facendosi un nome nelle coffee houses di Toronto che promuovevano la folk music.
Nel 1962, Lightfoot incise due singoli che divennero degli hit canadesi grazie alla diffusione radiofonica che ebbero. Il primo, (Remember Me) I'm the One, raggiunse a luglio il terzo posto nelle classifiche radiofoniche locali piazzandosi fra le canzoni top 20 nella classifica della CKGM di Montreal, al tempo una fra le più influenti stazioni radio canadesi. Il successivo, Negotiations/It's Too Late, He Wins, raggiunse la ventisettesima posizione nella chart CHUM ia dicembre.
Lightfoot cantò anche in quel periodo in coppia con Terry Whelan in un duo chiamato Two-Tones: assieme registrarono un album live che venne commercializzato sempre nel 1962 e che era intitolato Two-Tones at the Village Corner (1962, Chateau CLP-1012).
Nel 1963, il cantautore canadese si recò in Europa, esattamente nel Regno Unito, per lavorare per un anno al programma della BBC Television Country and Western Show. L'anno successivo fece ritorno in Canada per partecipare al Mariposa Folk Festival in una delle sue prime apparizioni come cantautore.
Il duo Ian and Sylvia incise le sue Early Mornin' Rain (che sarebbe stata poi ripresa nel 1970 anche da Bob Dylan per il suo album Self Portrait) e For Lovin' Me; un anno dopo le medesime canzoni venivano registrate anche da Peter, Paul and Mary. Altre registrazioni di queste canzoni sarebbero poi venute da parte di altri artisti come Judy Collins, The Kingston Trio, Elvis Presley, Chad and Jeremy, George Hamilton IV e Johnny Mann Singers.
Altre canzoni ancora di Lightfoot sono state poi portate al successo da Marty Robbins (Ribbon of Darkness), Leroy Van Dyke (I'm Not Saying) e Richie Havens (I Can't Make It Anymore).

Gli anni con la United Artists

Nel 1965, Lightfoot firmò un contratto con il manager Albert Grossman, che al tempo era anche rappresentante di Bob Dylan, firmando contestualmente un contratto discografico con la United Artists: il primo singolo con questa etichetta da lui inciso fu una propria versione di I'm Not Saying.
Questo periodo di attività fu sostenuto dalle partecipazioni al Newport Folk Festival, al The Tonight Show e da concerti alla Town Hall di New York City. L'anno seguente, incise l'album di debutto Lightfoot! che contribuì subito ad accrescere la sua popolarità nell'ambiente della musica folk. L'album - costituito da un insieme di musiche di fattura canadese frammiste a temi universali - comprendeva molte canzoni destinate a diventare famose: fra le altre, For Lovin' Me, Early Mornin' Rain, Steel Rail Blues e Ribbon of Darkness.
Fra il 1966 e il 1969, Lightfoot registrò quattro altri album per la UA: The Way I Feel (1967), Did She Mention My Name? (1968), Back Here on Earth (1968) e il live Sunday Concert (1969). Durante quegli anni, furono molti i suoi dischi singoli che raggiunsero le top 40 canadesi: Go-Go Round, Spin, Spin e The Way I Feel. Il suo maggior successo del periodo fu però un brano scritto da altro autore: segnatamente, la canzone di Bob Dylan Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues, che raggiunse come migliore posizione il terzo posto nella classifica canadese nel dicembre 1965.
Sul piano internazionale, gli album di Lightfoot registrati in quel periodo ebbero buona accoglienza pur senza che da essi venisse estrapolato alcun singolo di particolare successo. Fuori dal Canada continuava ad essere maggiormente conosciuto come cantautore piuttosto che come cantante puramente inteso. Il suo successo comunque continuò a crescere costantemente per tutti gli anni sessanta, favorito anche dal tour canadese del 1967 e da concerti tenuti a New York City. Dal 1967 al 1974 Lightfoot tenne poi concerti in Europa e, in due circostanze diverse, in Australia. Da queste esibizioni la UA ricavò successivamente l'album-raccolta Best of, sorta di saluto all'artista pronto a passare alla Warner Bros./Reprise Records.

Gli anni con la Warner Bros./Reprise

Lightfoot firmò per la Warner Bros./Reprise nel 1970 ed ebbe il suo maggiore hit in USA con il singolo contenente If You Could Read My Mind'. La canzone era originariamente contenuta nell'album dello stesso anno Sit Down Young Stranger, che peraltro non vendette bene. Con il successo fatto segnare da questa canzone, l'album venne pubblicato nuovamente con il nuovo titolo If You Could Read My Mind: raggiunse la quinta posizione in classifica segnando un punto di svolta nella carriera del cantautore. Comprendeva anche nuove versioni di Me and Bobby McGee, The Pony Man, Your Love's Return e The Minstrel of The Dawn.

Discografia

Album da studio

Anno	Titolo	Posizione in classifica				Certificazione		Etichetta
		Canadian Albums Chart	CAN Country	Billboard 200	Top Country Albums	CRIA	RIAA certification
1966	Lightfoot!	—	—	—	—			United Artists
1967	The Way I Feel	—	—	—	—
1968	Did She Mention My Name	21	—	—	—
	Back Here on Earth	21	—	—	—
1969	Sunday Concert (live)	21	—	—	—
1970	Sit Down Young Stranger	12	—	12	—		Disco d'oro	Reprise
1971	Summer Side of Life	3	—	38	—
1972	Don Quixote	1	—	42	—
	Old Dan's Records	3	—	95	—
1974	Sundown	1	—	1	—		Disco di platino
1975	Cold on the Shoulder	3	—	10	—
1976	Summertime Dream	1	—	12	—	Disco di platino	Disco di platino
1978	Endless Wire	2	—	22	14		Disco d'oro	Warner Bros.
1980	Dream Street Rose	9	1	60	58
1982	Shadows	16	—	87	—
1983	Salute	59	—	175	—
1986	East of Midnight	37	—	166	—	Gold
1993	Waiting for You	24	—	—	—
1998	A Painter Passing Through	92	—	—	—
2004	Harmony	—	—	—	—			Linus Entertainment

N.B.

• A ^ Poi distribuito nel 1971 come If You Could Read My Mind.
• B ^ Posizione al numero 35 in USA (Top Independent Albums).

Raccolte

Anno	Titolo	Posizione in classifica			Certificazione		Etichetta
		Canadian Albums Chart	Billboard 200	Top Country Albums	CRIA	RIAA certification
1969	Early Lightfoot	—	—	—			AME
1970	The Best of Gordon Lightfoot	—	—	—			United Artists
1971	Classic Lightfoot	41	178	—
1974	The Very Best of Gordon Lightfoot	—	155	—
1975	The Very Best of Gordon Lightfoot, Vol. 2	—	—	—
	Gord's Gold	8	34	15	2× Disco di platino	2× Multi-Platinum	Reprise
1976	Early Morning Rain	—	—	—
1985	Songbook	—	—	—
1988	Gord's Gold, Vol. 2	—	—	—	Platinum	Gold	Reprise
1989	The Best of Gordon Lightfoot	—	—	—			Curb
1992	The Original Lightfoot	58	—	—			United Artists
1993	The United Artists Collection	—	—	—
1999	Songbook	—	—	—			Rhino
2002	Complete Greatest Hits	—	128	—	Disco d'oro	Disco d'oro

Singoli

Anno	Titolo del singolo	Posizione in classifica							Album
		Canadian Singles Chart	CAN AC	CAN Country	Billboard Hot 100	Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks - USA	Hot Country Songs - USA	UK
1962	"(Remember Me) I'm the One"	3	—	—	—	—	—	—	solo singolo
	"It's Too Late, He Wins" / "Negotiations" (doppio lato A)	27	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Adios, Adios"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1963	"Day Before Yesterday"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1965	"I'm Not Sayin'"	12	—	2	—	—	—	—	Lightfoot
	"Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues"	3	9	—	—	—	—	—	(cover da Bob Dylan, solo singolo)
1966	"Spin Spin"	7	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Go Go Round"	27	—	—	—	—	—	—	The Way I Feel
1967	"The Way I Feel"	36	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Canadian Railroad Trilogy"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1968	"Black Day in July"	68	—	—	—	—	—	—	Did She Mention My Name
	"Bitter Green"	44	—	—	—	—	—	—	Back Here on Earth
1970	"Me and Bobby McGee"	13	—	1	—	—	—	—	If You Could Read My Mind
	"If You Could Read My Mind"	1	1	—	5	1	—	30
1971	"If I Could"	—	—	—	111	—	—	—	Back Here on Earth
	"Talking in Your Sleep"	19	2	—	64	—	—	—	Summer Side of Life
	"Summer Side of Life"	21	—	—	98	—	—	—
1972	"Beautiful"	13	1	—	58	—	—	—	Don Quixote
	"Alberta Bound"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"You Are What I Am" (Lato A)	3	1	1	102	—	—	—	Old Dan's Records
	"The Same Old Obsession" (Lato B)	3	1	—	101	—	—	—
1973	"Can't Depend on Love" (Lato A)	27	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"It's Worth Believin'" (Lato B)	—	—	12	—	—	—	—
1974	"Sundown"	1	2	4	1	—	13	33	Sundown
	"Carefree Highway"	11	1	1	10	1	81	—
1975	"Rainy Day People"	10	1	—	26	1	47	—	Cold on the Shoulder
1976	"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"	1	1	1	2	—	50	40	Summertime Dream
	"Race Among The Ruins"	30	11	14	65	—	—	—
1977	"The Circle Is Small (I Can See It in Your Eyes)"	6	1	9	33	3	92	—	Endless Wire
1978	"Daylight Katy"	44	—	—	—	—	—	41
	"Dreamland"	—	24	—	—	—	100	—
1980	"Dream Street Rose"	—	1	8	—	—	80	—	Dream Street Rose
	"If You Need Me"	—	5	21	—	—	70	—
1981	"Baby Step Back"	—	6	—	50	17	—	—	Shadows
1982	"Blackberry Wine"	—	15	—	—	—	—	—
	"In My Fashion"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1983	"Salute (A Lot More Livin' to Do)"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Salute
	"Without You"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1986	"Anything for Love"	39	14	—	—	13	71	—	East of Midnight
	"Stay Loose"	86	10	—	—	—	—	—
1987	"East of Midnight"	—	11	—	—	—	—	—
	"Ecstasy Made Easy"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1993	"I'll Prove My Love"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Waiting for You
	"Waiting for You"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1998	"A Painter Passing Through"	—	47	—	—	—	—	—	A Painter Passing Through
2004	"Inspiration Lady"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	Harmony

N.B

• C ^ Accreditato con il nome di Gord Lightfoot. Il Canada non aveva a quel tempo classifiche di vendita nazionali. Queste classifiche sono tratte dalla Toronto's CHUM Chart o dal magazine RPM.

Onorificenze

	Ufficiale dell'Ordine del Canada
	«Cantante folk e compositore di canzoni popolari di fama internazionale.» — nominato il 26 giugno 1970, investito il 31 marzo 1971

	Membro dell'Ordine dell'Ontario
	— 1988

Compagno dell'Ordine del Canada

«Cantautore, musicista e poeta, Gordon Lightfoot ha raccontato le nostre storie in canzoni per più di cinque decenni. Egli possiede una capacità unica di fondere musica contemporanea urbana con le nostre radici tradizionali. Genuino e riservato, ha uno stile con i piedi per terra che sfida ogni classificazione. Perfezionista consumato, ha influenzato una miriade di altri musicisti con la sua versatilità e gli stimolanti testi. Con un elenco impressionante di registrazioni di successo al suo attivo, ha ottenuto numerosi premi di settore e rimane uno dei musicisti più amati del Canada.» — nominato l'8 maggio 2003, investito il 13 dicembre 2003

 

Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. CC OOnt (born November 17, 1938) is a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is credited with helping to define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s. He is often referred to as Canada's greatest songwriter and is known internationally as a folk-rock legend.
Lightfoot's songs, including "For Lovin' Me", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon of Darkness"—a number one hit on the U.S. country chart with Marty Robbins's cover in 1965—and "Black Day in July" about the 1967 Detroit riot, brought him wide recognition in the 1960s. Canadian chart success with his own recordings began in 1962 with the No. 3 hit "(Remember Me) I'm the One", followed by recognition and charting abroad in the 1970s. His topped the US Hot 100 and/or AC chart with the hits "If You Could Read My Mind" (1970), "Sundown" (1974); "Carefree Highway" (1974), "Rainy Day People" (1975), and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" (1976), and had many other hits that appeared within the top 40.
Several of Lightfoot's albums achieved gold and multi-platinum status internationally. His songs have been recorded by renowned artists such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams Jr., The Kingston Trio, Marty Robbins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Herb Alpert, Harry Belafonte, Scott Walker, Sarah McLachlan, Eric Clapton, John Mellencamp, Jack Jones, Bobby Vee, Roger Whittaker, Tony Rice, Peter, Paul and Mary, Glen Campbell, The Irish Rovers, Nico, Olivia Newton-John, Paul Weller, Nine Pound Hammer, and Ultra Naté.
Robbie Robertson of the Band described Lightfoot as "a national treasure". Bob Dylan, also a Lightfoot fan, called him one of his favorite songwriters and, in an often-quoted tribute, Dylan observed that when he heard a Lightfoot song he wished "it would last forever". Lightfoot was a featured musical performer at the opening ceremonies of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Alberta. He received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree (arts) in 1979 and the Companion of the Order of Canada in 2003. In November 1997, Lightfoot was bestowed the Governor General's Performing Arts Award, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts. On February 6, 2012, Lightfoot was presented with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal by the Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario. June of that year saw his induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. On June 6, 2015, Lightfoot received an honorary doctorate of music in his hometown of Orillia from Lakehead University.

Early years

Lightfoot was born in Orillia, Ontario, to Jessica and Gordon Lightfoot Sr., who owned a large dry cleaning firm. His mother recognized Lightfoot's musical talent early on and schooled him into a successful child performer. His first public performance was "Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ral" (an Irish lullaby) in grade four, which was broadcast over his school's public address system on a parents' day event. As a youth, he sang, under the direction of choirmaster Ray Williams, in the choir of Orillia's St. Paul's United Church. According to Lightfoot, Williams taught him how to sing with emotion and how to have confidence in his voice. Lightfoot was a boy soprano; he appeared periodically on local Orillia radio, performed in local operettas and oratorios, and gained exposure through various Kiwanis music festivals. At the age of twelve, after winning a competition for boys whose voices had not yet changed, he made his first appearance at Massey Hall in Toronto. As a teenager, Lightfoot learned piano and taught himself to play drums and percussion. He held concerts in Muskoka, a resort area north of Orillia, singing "for a couple of beers."
Lightfoot performed extensively throughout high school, Orillia District Collegiate & Vocational Institute (ODCVI), and taught himself to play folk guitar. A formative influence on his music at this time was 19th-century master American songwriter Stephen Foster. He was also an accomplished high school track-and-field competitor and set school records for shot put and pole vault, as well as being the starting nose tackle on his school's Georgian Bay championship winning football team. His athletic and scholarly aptitude earned him entrance bursaries at McGill University's Schulich School of Music and the University of Toronto, Faculty of Music.^{[citation needed]}
Lightfoot moved to California in 1958 to study jazz composition and orchestration for two years at Hollywood's Westlake College of Music, which had many Canadian students. To support himself, he sang on demonstration records and wrote, arranged, and produced commercial jingles. Among his influences were the folk music of Pete Seeger, Bob Gibson, Ian and Sylvia Tyson, and The Weavers. He rented lodging in Los Angeles for a period, but missed Toronto and returned there in 1960, living in Canada since, though he has done much work in the United States, under an H-1B visa.
After his return to Canada, Lightfoot performed with The Swinging Eight, a group featured on CBC TV's Country Hoedown, and with the Gino Silvi Singers. He soon became known at Toronto folk music oriented coffee houses. In 1962, Lightfoot released two singles that were local hits in Toronto and received some airplay elsewhere in Canada. "(Remember Me) I'm the One" reached No. 3 on CHUM radio in Toronto in July 1962 and was a top 20 hit on Montreal's CKGM, then a very influential Canadian Top 40 radio station. The follow-up single was "Negotiations"/"It's Too Late, He Wins"; it reached No. 27 on CHUM in December. He sang with Terry Whelan in a duo called the "Two-Tones". They recorded a live album that was released in 1962 called Two-Tones at the Village Corner (1962, Chateau CLP-1012).
In 1963, Lightfoot travelled in Europe and in the United Kingdom, and for one year he hosted BBC TV's Country and Western Show, returning to Canada in 1964. He appeared at the Mariposa Folk Festival and began to develop a reputation as a songwriter. Ian and Sylvia Tyson recorded "Early Mornin' Rain" and "For Lovin' Me"; a year later both songs were recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary; other performers who recorded one or both of these songs included Elvis Presley, Chad and Jeremy, George Hamilton IV, The Clancy Brothers, and the Johnny Mann Singers. Established recording artists such as Marty Robbins ("Ribbon of Darkness"), Leroy Van Dyke ("I'm Not Saying"), Judy Collins ("Early Morning Rain"), Richie Havens and Spyder Turner ("I Can't Make It Anymore"), and The Kingston Trio ("Early Morning Rain") all achieved chart success with Gordon Lightfoot's material.

United Artists years

In 1965, Lightfoot signed a management contract with Albert Grossman, who also represented many prominent American folk performers, and signed a recording contract with United Artists who released his version of "I'm Not Saying" as a single. Appearances at the Newport Folk Festival, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and New York's Town Hall increased his following and bolstered his reputation. 1966 marked the release of his debut album Lightfoot!, which brought him greater exposure as both a singer and a songwriter. The album featured many now-famous songs, including "For Lovin' Me," "Early Mornin' Rain," "Steel Rail Blues," and "Ribbon of Darkness". On the strength of the Lightfoot! album, which blended Canadian and universal themes, Lightfoot became one of the first Canadian singers to achieve definitive home-grown stardom without having moved to the United States to develop it.
To kick off Canada's Centennial year, the CBC commissioned Lightfoot to write the "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" for a special broadcast on January 1, 1967. Between 1966 and 1969, Lightfoot recorded four additional albums for United Artists: The Way I Feel (1967), Did She Mention My Name? (1968), Back Here on Earth (1968), and the live recording Sunday Concert (1969), and consistently placed singles in the Canadian top 40, including "Go-Go Round", "Spin, Spin", and "The Way I Feel". His biggest hit of the era was a rendition of Bob Dylan's "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues", which peaked at No. 3 on the Canadian charts in December 1965. Did She Mention My Name? featured "Black Day in July", about the 1967 Detroit Riots. The following April 4, Dr. Martin Luther King was murdered; radio stations in 30 states pulled the song for "fanning the flames", even though the song was a plea for racial harmony. Lightfoot stated at the time that station owners cared more about playing songs "that make people happy" and not those "that make people think." Unhappy at a lack of support from United Artists, he defected to Warner Bros. Records, scoring his first major international hit in early 1971 with "If You Could Read My Mind".
Lightfoot's albums from this time were well received abroad, but did not produce any hit singles. Outside of Canada, he remained better known as a songwriter than as a performer.
His success as a live performer continued to grow throughout the late 1960s. He embarked on his first Canadian national tour in 1967, and also performed in New York City. Between 1967 and 1974, Lightfoot toured Europe and was well-received on two tours of Australia.
UA continued to release "Best of" album compilations in the 1970s even after Lightfoot became a subsequent success at Warner Bros./Reprise.

Warner Bros./Reprise years

Lightfoot signed to Warner Bros./Reprise in 1970 and scored a major hit in the United States with "If You Could Read My Mind", which sold over one million copies by early 1971 and was awarded a gold disc. The song had originally appeared on the poorly-selling 1970 album Sit Down Young Stranger. After the song's success, the album was reissued under the new title If You Could Read My Mind; it reached No. 5 nationally and represented a major turning point in Gordon Lightfoot's career. The album also featured a second recorded version of "Me and Bobby McGee", as well as "The Pony Man","Your Love's Return", and "The Minstrel of The Dawn".
Over the next seven years, he recorded a series of successful albums that established him as a singer-songwriter:

• Summer Side of Life (1971), with songs "Ten Degrees and Getting Colder", "Miguel", "Cabaret", "Nous Vivons Ensemble", and the title track
• Don Quixote (1972), with "Beautiful", "Looking at the Rain", "Christian Island (Georgian Bay)", and the title track, which is a concert favorite
• Old Dan's Records (1972), with the title track, the two-sided single "That Same Old Obsession"/"You Are What I Am", and the songs "It's Worth Believin'" and "Can't Depend on Love"
• Sundown (1974). Besides the title track, it includes "Carefree Highway", "Seven Island Suite", "The Watchman's Gone", "High and Dry", "Circle of Steel", and "Too Late for Prayin'"
• Cold on the Shoulder (1975). Along with title track are songs "Bend in the Water", "The Soul Is the Rock", "Rainbow Trout", "All the Lovely Ladies" and the hit "Rainy Day People"
• A double compilation LP Gord's Gold (in 1975) containing nine new versions of his most popular songs from the United Artists era
• Summertime Dream (1976), along with "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" are the songs "I'm Not Supposed To Care", "Race Among the Ruins", "Spanish Moss", "Never Too Close", and the title track
• Endless Wire (1978) with "Daylight Katy", "If Children Had Wings", "Sweet Guinevere", a new version of "The Circle Is Small" from Back Here on Earth, and the title track

During the 1970s Lightfoot's songs covered a wide range of subjects, including "Don Quixote", about Cervantes' famous literary character, "Ode to Big Blue", about the widespread killing of whales, "Beautiful", about the simple joys of love, "Carefree Highway", about the freedom of the open road, "Protocol", about the futility of war, and "Alberta Bound", which was inspired by a lonely teenaged girl named Grace he met on a bus while travelling to Calgary in 1971.^{[citation needed]}
In 1972 Lightfoot contracted Bell's palsy, a condition that left his face partially paralyzed for a time. The affliction curtailed his touring schedule but Lightfoot nevertheless continued to deliver major hits: in June 1974 his classic single "Sundown" from the album Sundown went to No.1 on the American and Canadian charts. It would be his only number one hit in the United States. He performed it twice on NBC's The Midnight Special series. "Carefree Highway" (about Arizona State Route 74 in Phoenix, Arizona) was the follow-up single from the same album. It charted in the Top 10 in both countries. Lightfoot wrote it after traveling from Flagstaff, Arizona on Interstate 17 to Phoenix.
In late November 1975 Lightfoot read a Newsweek magazine article about the loss of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, which sank on November 10, 1975, on Lake Superior during a severe storm with the loss of all 29 crew members. The lyrics in his song, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", released the following year, were substantially based on facts in the article. It reached number two on the United States Billboard chart and was a number one hit in Canada. Lightfoot appeared at several 25th anniversary memorial services of the sinking, and continues personal contact with the family members of the men who perished in the Edmund Fitzgerald.
"Sundown" and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" continue to receive heavy airplay on many classic rock stations^{[citation needed]}. In 1978, Lightfoot had another top 40 hit on the United States Hot 100, "The Circle Is Small (I Can See It in Your Eyes)," which reached number 33.
During the 1980s and 1990s Lightfoot recorded six more original albums and a compilation for Warner Bros./Reprise: Dream Street Rose (1980), Shadows (1982), Salute (1983), East of Midnight (1986), another compilation Gord's Gold, Vol. 2 (1988), Waiting for You (1993), and A Painter Passing Through (1998).
The album Dream Street Rose has the folk-pop sound that Lightfoot established during the previous decade.^{[citation needed]} In addition to the title song, it includes songs such as "Ghosts of Cape Horn" and "On the High Seas". It also includes the Leroy Van Dyke 1950s composition "The Auctioneer," a bluegrass-like number that was a concert staple for Lightfoot from the mid 60s to the 80s.^{[citation needed]}
The album Shadows represents a departure from the acoustic sound of the 1970s and introduces an adult-contemporary sound.^{[citation needed]} Songs like "Shadows" and "Thank You for the Promises" contain an underlying sadness and resignation.^{[citation needed]} The 1982 American released single "Baby Step Back" marked his last time in the top 50 in that country. The 1983 album Salute produced no hit singles; the 1986 East of Midnight album had several Adult Contemporary songs like "A Passing Ship","Morning Glory", and "I'll Tag Along" (East of Midnight). A single from East of Midnight, "Anything for Love", made the Billboard Country & Western chart.^{[citation needed]}
In April 1987, Lightfoot filed a lawsuit against composer Michael Masser, claiming that Masser's melody for the song "The Greatest Love of All"—recorded by George Benson (1977) and Whitney Houston (1985)—stole 24 bars from Lightfoot's 1971 hit song "If You Could Read My Mind". The transitional section that begins "I decided long ago never to walk in anyone's shadow" of the Masser song has the same melody as "I never thought I could feel this way and I got to say that I just don't get it; I don't know where we went wrong but the feeling's gone and I just can't get it back" of Lightfoot's song. Lightfoot later stated that he did not want people thinking that he had stolen his melody from Masser.
Lightfoot rounded out the decade with his follow-up compilation Gord's Gold, Vol. 2, in late 1988, which contained re-recorded versions of his most popular songs, including a re-make of the 1970 song "The Pony Man". The original had been brisk in pace, acoustic, and about three minutes long. This new version was slower, clocking in at four minutes plus.
Lightfoot performed with noted Canadian artist k.d. lang at the opening ceremonies of the 1988 winter Olympics in Calgary.
During the 1990s Lightfoot returned to his acoustic roots and recorded two albums. Waiting for You (1993) includes songs such as "Restless", "Wild Strawberries", and Bob Dylan's "Ring Them Bells". 1998's A Painter Passing Through reintroduced a sound more reminiscent of his early recordings,^{[citation needed]} with songs like "Much to My Surprise", "Red Velvet", "Drifters", and "I Used to Be a Country Singer". Throughout the decade, Lightfoot played about 50 concerts a year. In 1999 Rhino Records released Songbook, a four-CD boxed set of Lightfoot recordings with rare and unreleased tracks from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s plus a small hardback booklet for his fans that described how he created his songs and gave facts about his career.
In April 2000 Lightfoot taped a live concert in Reno, Nevada—a one-hour show that was broadcast by CBC in October, and as a PBS special across the United States. PBS stations offered a videotape of the concert as a pledge gift, and a tape and DVD were released in 2001 in Europe and North America. This was the first Lightfoot concert video released. In April 2001 Lightfoot performed at the Tin Pan South Legends concert at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, closing the show. In May he performed "Ring Them Bells" at Massey Hall in honour of Bob Dylan's 60th birthday.

Illness and return to performing

By January 2002 Lightfoot had written 30 new songs for his next studio album. He recorded guitar and vocal demos of some of these new songs. In September, before the second concert of a two-night stand in Orillia, Lightfoot suffered severe stomach pain and was airlifted to McMaster Medical Centre in Hamilton, Ontario. He underwent surgery for a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm, and he remained in serious condition in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Lightfoot endured a six-week coma and a tracheotomy, and he underwent four surgical operations. All of his remaining 2002 concert dates were cancelled. More than three months after being taken to the McMaster Medical Centre, Lightfoot was released in December to continue his recovery at home.
In 2003 Lightfoot underwent follow-up surgery to continue the treatment of his abdominal condition. In November he signed a new recording contract with Linus Entertainment and began rehearsing with his band for the first time since his illness. Also in 2003, Borealis Records, a related label to Linus Entertainment, released Beautiful: A Tribute to Gordon Lightfoot. On this album, various artists, including The Cowboy Junkies, Bruce Cockburn, Jesse Winchester, Maria Muldaur, and The Tragically Hip interpreted Lightfoot's songs. The final track on the album, "Lightfoot", was the only song not previously released by Lightfoot. It was composed and performed by Aengus Finnan.
In January 2004 Lightfoot completed work on his album Harmony, which he had mostly recorded prior to his illness. The album was released on his new home label of Linus Records on May 11 of that year. It was his 20th original album and included a single and new video for "Inspiration Lady". Other songs were "Clouds of Loneliness," "Sometimes I Wish," "Flyin' Blind", and "No Mistake About It". The album contained the upbeat yet reflective track called "End of All Time"
In July 2004 he made a surprise comeback performance, his first since falling ill, at Mariposa in Orillia, performing "I'll Tag Along" solo. In August he performed a five-song solo set in Peterborough, Ontario, at a flood relief benefit. In November he made his long-awaited return to the concert stage with two sold-out benefit shows in Hamilton, Ontario.
Lightfoot returned to the music business with his new album selling well and an appearance on Canadian Idol, where the six top contestants each performed a song of his, culminating in a group performance – on their own instruments – of his Canadian Railroad Trilogy. In 2005, he made a low-key tour called the Better Late Than Never Tour.
On September 14, 2006, while in the middle of a performance, Lightfoot suffered a minor stroke that eventually left him without the use of the middle and ring fingers on his right hand. He returned to performing nine days later and for a brief time used a substitute guitarist for more difficult guitar work. Since early 2007, Lightfoot has regained full use of his right hand and plays all of the guitar parts in concert as he originally wrote them. He continues to perform.
While a tour was being planned for 2008, Lightfoot's manager, Barry Harvey, died at age 56 on December 4, 2007. In late 2009, Lightfoot undertook a 26-city tour.
In February 2010, Gordon Lightfoot was the victim of a death hoax originating from Twitter, when then-CTV journalist David Akin posted on Twitter and Facebook that Lightfoot had died. Lightfoot was at a dental appointment at the time the rumors spread and found out when listening to the radio on his drive home. Lightfoot dispelled those rumors by phoning Charles Adler of CJOB, the DJ and radio station he heard reporting his demise, and did an interview expressing that he was alive and well. In 2012, Lightfoot continued to tour, telling a sold-out crowd June 15 at Ottawa's National Arts Centre that he still performs sixty times a year. Lightfoot played two shows at the NAC after his induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Lightfoot performed at the 100th Grey Cup in November 2012, performing "Canadian Railroad Trilogy," and was extremely well received.
Lightfoot's first tour of the United Kingdom in 35 years was announced in 2015, with 11 dates across England, Ireland and Scotland between May 18, 2016 and June 1, 2016 currently announced. According to his website, 2017 tour dates include the United States and Canada.
Lightfoot played at Canada's 150th birthday celebration on Parliament Hill, July 1, 2017, introduced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The Prime Minister mentioned that Mr. Lightfoot had played the same stage exactly 50 years earlier, during Canada's 100th birthday.
In a 2016 interview with The Calgary Herald Lightfoot said: "At this age, my challenge is doing the best show I can ... I'm very much improved from where I was and the seriousness with which I take it."

Legacy

Gordon Lightfoot's music career has spanned more than five decades, producing more than 200 recordings. He helped define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s, with his songs recorded by artists such as Bob Dylan, Gene Clark, Dan Fogelberg, Jimmy Buffett, and Jim Croce The Canadian band The Guess Who recorded a song called "Lightfoot" on their 1968 album Wheatfield Soul; the lyrics contain many Lightfoot song titles.
Lightfoot's biographer, Nicholas Jennings, sums up his legacy this way: "His name is synonymous with timeless songs about trains and shipwrecks, rivers and highways, lovers and loneliness. His music defined the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and '70s. He is unquestionably Canada's greatest songwriter."

Sound

Lightfoot's sound, both in the studio and on tour, is centred on Lightfoot's baritone voice and folk-based twelve-string acoustic guitar. From 1965 to 1970, lead guitarist Red Shea was an important supporting player, with bassists Paul Wideman and John Stockfish filling out the arrangements.
In 1968 bassist Rick Haynes joined the band, and lead guitarist Terry Clements joined the following year. Shea left the touring band in 1970, but continued to record with Lightfoot until 1975. He hosted his own Canadian variety show, played with Ian Tyson, and became band leader for Tommy Hunter's TV show in the 1980s on CBC. Shea played on most of Lightfoot's early hits. Haynes and Clements remained with Lightfoot and composed the core of his band.
In 1975, Pee Wee Charles added pedal steel guitar to Lightfoot's songs. Drummer Barry Keane joined the following year and in 1981, keyboardist Mike Heffernan completed the ensemble. This five-piece backup band remained intact until 1987, when Charles left the band to operate a radio station in Southern Ontario.
Three members of Lightfoot's band have died over the years: Red Shea in June 2008 from pancreatic cancer, Clements at 63 on February 20, 2011, following a stroke  and original bassist John Stockfish from natural causes on August 20, 2012 at 69.
Haynes, Keane and Heffernan continue to tour and record with Lightfoot, having added in 2011 guitarist Carter Lancaster from Hamilton, Ontario, a "great player," according to Lightfoot.

Personal life

Lightfoot has been married three times. His first marriage in April 1963 was to a Swedish woman, Brita Ingegerd Olaisson, with whom he had two children, Fred and Ingrid. They divorced in 1973, the marriage ending in part because of his infidelity. Lightfoot has acknowledged that his musical touring and the difficulty of fidelity in a long-distance relationship contributed to the failure of at least two relationships:
The song "If You Could Read My Mind" was written in reflection upon his disintegrating marriage. At the request of his daughter, Ingrid, he performs the lyrics with a slight change now: the line "I'm just trying to understand the feelings that you lack" is altered to "I'm just trying to understand the feelings that we lack." He has said in an interview that the difficulty with writing songs inspired by personal stories is that there is not always the emotional distance and clarity to make lyrical improvements such as the one his daughter suggested.
After being alone for 16 years between marriages, Lightfoot married Elizabeth Moon in 1989. They had two children: Miles and Meredith. They divorced in 2011 after a separation that Lightfoot said had lasted nine years.
Lightfoot also has two other children from relationships between his first and second marriages: Gaylen McGee and Eric Lightfoot.
Lightfoot wed for a third time on December 19, 2014 at Rosedale United Church to Kim Hasse.
To stay in shape to meet the demands of touring and public performing, Lightfoot works out in a gym six days per week, but declared in 2012 that he was "fully prepared to go whenever I'm taken." He calmly stated, "I've been almost dead a couple times, once almost for real ... I have more incentive to continue now because I feel I'm on borrowed time, in terms of age."
Lightfoot band members have displayed loyalty to him, as both musicians and friends, recording and performing with him for as many as 45 years.
He said in 2016 that he wasn't planning to return to songwriting later in life as he'd concluded it was "such an isolating thing" for him earlier in his career, affecting his family life.

Honours and awards

As an individual, apart from various awards associated with his albums and singles, Gordon Lightfoot has received sixteen Juno Awards—for top folk singer in 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1977, for top male vocalist in 1967, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1973, and as composer of the year in 1972 and 1976. He has received ASCAP awards for songwriting in 1971, 1974, 1976, and 1977, and has been nominated for five Grammy Awards. In 1974 Lightfoot's song "Sundown" was named pop record of the year by the Music Operators of America. In 1980 he was named Canadian male recording artist of the decade, for his work in the 1970s.
Lightfoot was chosen as the celebrity captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs for the NHL's 75th anniversary season in 1991–1992.
Lightfoot was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001. He was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame in 1998. In May 2003 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada, the country's highest civilian honour. Lightfoot is a member of the Order of Ontario, the highest honour in the province of Ontario. In 1977, he received the Vanier Award from the Canadian Jaycees. In 2007 Canada Post honoured Lightfoot and three other legendary Canadian music artists (Anne Murray, Paul Anka, and Joni Mitchell) with postage stamps highlighting their names and images. On June 24, 2012, Lightfoot was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in a New York City ceremony, along with Bob Seger.
Between 1986 and 1988 Lightfoot's friend Ken Danby (1940–2007), the realist painter, worked on a large (60 x 48 inches) portrait of Lightfoot dressed in the white suit he wore on the cover of the album East of Midnight. The picture was backlit by the sun, creating a visually iconic image of the singer.
On June 16, 2014, Lightfoot was awarded the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award by SOCAN at the 2014 SOCAN Awards in Toronto.
On October 23, 2015, Lightfoot was honoured with a 4-metre tall bronze sculpture in his hometown of Orillia, Ontario. The sculpture, called "Golden Leaves - A Tribute to Gordon Lightfoot" features Lightfoot sitting cross-legged, playing an acoustic guitar underneath an arch of golden maple leaves. Many of the leaves depict scenes from Lightfoot's 1975 greatest hits album, Gord's Gold.
In 2017 he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society 

Discography

Main article: Gordon Lightfoot discography

• Lightfoot! (1966)
• The Way I Feel (1967)
• Did She Mention My Name (1968)
• Back Here on Earth (1968)
• Sunday Concert (1969)
• Sit Down Young Stranger (aka If You Could Read My Mind) (1970)
• Summer Side of Life (1971)
• Don Quixote (1972)
• Old Dan's Records (1972)
• Sundown (1974)
• Cold on the Shoulder (1975)
• Summertime Dream (1976)
• Endless Wire (1978)
• Dream Street Rose (1980)
• Shadows (1982)
• Salute (1983)
• East of Midnight (1986)
• Waiting for You (1993)
• A Painter Passing Through (1998)
• Harmony (2004)
• All Live (2012)

Gordon Lightfoot - If You Could Read My Mind - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5tr_L31StI

 

 

Lyrics

If you could read my mind love
What a tale my thoughts could tell
Just like an old time movie
About a ghost from a wishing well
In a castle dark or a fortress strong
With chains upon my feet
You know that ghost is me
And I will never be set free
As long as I'm a ghost you can see

If I could read your mind love
What a tale your thoughts could tell
Just like a paperback novel
The kind the drugstore sells
When you reach the part where the heartaches come
Come the hero would be me
Heroes often fail
And you won't read that book again
Because the ending's just to hard to take

I walk away like a movie star
Who gets burned in a three way script
Enter number two, a movie queen
To play the scene of bringing all the good things out in me
But for now love let's be real

I never knew I feel this way
And I've got to say that I just don't get it
I don't know where we went wrong
But the feeling's gone and I just can't get it back

If you could read my mind love
What a tale my thoughts could tell
Just like an old time movie about a ghost from a wishing well
In a castle dark or a fortress strong
With chains upon my feet
The story always ends
And if you read between the lines
You'll know that I'm just trying to understand
The feeling that you left

I never knew I feel this way
And I've got to say that I just don't get it
I don't know where we went wrong
But the feeling's gone
And I just can't get it back

Songwriters: Gordon Lightfoot

If You Could Read My Mind lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

 

Gordon Lightfoot Sundown - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8rR7E6NfY4

 

Lyrics

I can see her lyin' back in her satin dress
In a room where ya do what ya don't confess
Sundown you better take care
If I find you beenn creepin' 'round my back stairs
Sundown ya better take care
If I find you been creepin' 'round my back stairs

She's been lookin' like a queen in a sailor's dream
And she don't always say what she really means
Sometimes I think it's a shame
When I get feelin' better when I'm feelin' no pain
Sometimes I think it's a shame
When I get feelin' better when I'm feelin' no pain

I can picture every move that a man could make
Getting lost in her lovin' is your first mistake
Sundown you better take care
If I find you been creepin' 'round my back stairs
Sometimes I think it's a sin
When I feel like I'm winnin' when I'm losin' again

I can see her lookin' fast in her faded jeans
She's a hard lovin' woman, got me feelin' mean
Sometimes I think it's a shame
When I get feelin' better when I'm feelin' no pain
Sundown you better take care
If I find you been creepin' 'round my back stairs
Sundown you better take care
If I find you been creepin' 'round my back stairs
Sometimes I think it's a sin
When I feel like I'm winnin' when I'm losin' again

Songwriters: Gordon Lightfoot

Sundown lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

GORDON LIGHTFOOT - BEAUTIFUL - YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RN80_VB0WIY

 

 

 

Lyrics

At times I just don't know
How you could be anything but beautiful
I think that I was made for you
And you were made for me

And I know that I won't ever change
We've been friends through rain or shine
For such a long, long time

Laughing eyes and smiling face
It seems so lucky just to have the right
Of telling you with all my might
You're beautiful tonight

And I know that you won't ever stray
'Cause you've been that way from day to day
For such a long, long time

And when you hold me tight
How could life be anything but beautiful
I think that I was made for you
And you were made for me

And I know that I won't ever change
We've been friends through rain or shine
For such a long, long time

Well, I must say it means so much to me
To be the one who's telling you
I'm telling you, that you're beautiful

Songwriters: Gordon Lightfoot

Beautiful lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

gordon lightfoot canadian railroad trilogy live in concert bbc 1972 ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjoU1Qkeizs

 

 

Canadian Railroad Trilogy

Gordon Lightfoot

There was a time in this fair land when the railroad did not run
When the wild majestic mountains stood alone against the sun
Long before the white man and long before the wheel
When the green dark forest was too silent to be real

But time has no beginnings and hist'ry has no bounds
As to this verdant country they came from all around
They sailed upon her waterways and they walked the forests tall
Built the mines the mills and the factories for the good of us all

And when the young man's fancy was turnin' to the spring
The railroad men grew restless for to hear the hammers ring
Their minds were overflowing with the visions of their day
And many a fortune lost and won and many a debt to pay

For they looked in the future and what did they see
They saw an iron road runnin' from sea to the sea
Bringin' the goods to a young growin' land
All up through the seaports and into their hands

Look away said they across this mighty land
From the eastern shore to the western strand
Bring in the workers and bring up the rails
We gotta lay down the tracks and tear up the trails
Open 'er heart let the life blood flow

 
Gotta get on our way 'cause we're movin' too slow

Bring in the workers and bring up the rails
We're gonna lay down the tracks and tear up the trails
Open 'er heart let the life blood flow
Gotta get on our way 'cause we're movin' too slow

 
Get on our way 'cause we're movin' too slow

Behind the blue Rockies the sun is declinin'

 
The stars, they come stealin' at the close of the day
Across the wide prairie our loved ones lie sleeping

 
Beyond the dark oceans in a place far away

We are the navvies who work upon the railway
Swingin' our hammers in the bright blazin' sun
Livin' on stew and drinkin' bad whiskey

 
Bendin' our old backs 'til the long days are done

We are the navvies who work upon the railway
Swingin' our hammers in the bright blazin' sun
Layin' down track and buildin' the bridges

 
Bendin' our old backs 'til the railroad is done

So over the mountains and over the plains
Into the muskeg and into the rain
Up the St. Lawrence all the way to Gaspe
Swingin' our hammers and drawin' our pay
Drivin' 'em in and tyin' 'em down
Away to the bunkhouse and into the town

 
A dollar a day and a place for my head
A drink to the livin' and a toast to the dead

Oh the song of the future has been sung
All the battles have been won
O'er the mountain tops we stand
All the world at our command
We have opened up the soil

 
With our teardrops and our toil

For there was a time in this fair land when the railroad did not run
When the wild majestic mountains stood alone against the sun
Long before the white man and long before the wheel
When the green dark forest was too silent to be real
When the green dark forest was too silent to be real

 
And many are the dead men too silent to be real

Songwriters: Gordon Lightfoot

Canadian Railroad Trilogy lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

 

 

"The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" - Gordon Lightfoot (HD w/ Lyrics ...

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vST6hVRj2

 

su Amazon Music

"The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald"

The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
[Former version:] That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
[Latter version:] That good ship and crew was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early

The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most
With a crew and good captain well seasoned
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
Then later that night when the ship's bell rang
Could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?

The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
When the wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the captain did too
'Twas the witch of November come stealin'
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashin'
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane west wind

When suppertime came, the old cook came on deck
Saying, "Fellas, it's too rough to feed ya."
[Former version:] At seven PM a main hatchway caved in
[Latter version:] At seven PM it grew dark, it was then
He said, "Fellas, it's been good to know ya."
The captain wired in he had water comin' in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her
They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters

Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the rooms of her ice-water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams
The islands and bays are for sportsmen
And farther below, Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered

[Former version:] In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
[Latter version:] In a rustic old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they said, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early