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17 Nov 08 - 11:49 AM (#2495875) Subject: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Little Hawk They put a nice biographical article on the front page of the Orillia Packet & Times today about hometown boy Gordon Lightfoot who reached his 70th birthday today. I was surprised to read that he did his first Canadian tour in 1967. I had thought he was touring long before that, but apparently not, although he was doing a lot of local performing and TV work from the early 60s on. |
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17 Nov 08 - 11:53 AM (#2495879) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: burntstump What a great performer and song writer, he was the one that influenced me most. Happy birthday from all of his fans in the UK I hope there will be many more |
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17 Nov 08 - 12:33 PM (#2495917) Subject: RE:Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: GUEST,Comrac I became a fan after seeing him live in Belfast, I think it was 1972. "The circle is small" and "Carefree Highway" will always be the ones for me. Not forgeting the haunting "Wreck of the Edmund fitzgerald". The History chanel did a wonderful programme about the wreck. Good on you reaching 70 Gordon. I also love the music of Harry Chapin, saw him live in Belfast in 1977. Gordon and Harry came to Belfast when no big names would even consider it. We never forgot that, well done Canada. |
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17 Nov 08 - 12:42 PM (#2495924) Subject: RE:Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: olddude May he perform for 100 years more. God Bless him They don't get better than Gord |
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17 Nov 08 - 12:52 PM (#2495938) Subject: RE:Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Beer I was leafing through an old newspaper one day getting things ready for an upcoming auction and in the entertainment section (Could have been the now defunct Montreal Star.)there was a small clipping of a night club featuring Bruce M. as the opening act followed by Gordon L. I told the fellow who was working with me that when this bundle of newspapers come up bib for me as I couldn't be there for the auction. He forgot. Happy birthday and I wish your agent would answer my request. Beer (adrien) |
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17 Nov 08 - 12:55 PM (#2495942) Subject: RE:Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: C. Ham I was surprised to read that he did his first Canadian tour in 1967. I had thought he was touring long before that, but apparently not, It probably depends on how you define tour. Maybe it was 1967 when he went city-to-city on an organized tour of concert halls. But he was certainly performing in coffee houses in Toronto, Montreal and elsewhere by 1964. |
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17 Nov 08 - 01:53 PM (#2495990) Subject: RE:Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: John on the Sunset Coast I am happily surprised he has reached this milestone. Many more! |
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17 Nov 08 - 02:07 PM (#2496003) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Little Hawk I've been attending a local song circle here of late and have had the good fortune to learn a number of chord patterns used in Lightfoot's songs from a guy here who played a lot with Red Shae over the years. Where my interest is founded more in Dylan's catalog, he has a very good knowledge of Lightfoot's repertoire and mostly plays those songs. |
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17 Nov 08 - 03:08 PM (#2496043) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Genie Happy birthday, Gordon! A few years ago I wasn't at all sure you were going to make it nearly this far. Glad you're still with us. Genie |
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17 Nov 08 - 03:14 PM (#2496047) Subject: RE:Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: topical tom Happy birthday to a great Canadian singer-songwriter!I received a two-album set by Gordon Lightfoot as a gift back in the seventies and had the good fortune to see a live performance.I'm still playing the records and enjoying them.A Canadian performer to be really proud of. |
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17 Nov 08 - 03:59 PM (#2496081) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Capo da Monty Best Wishes from me too! A proud (UK) owner of his signature guitar #57 |
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17 Nov 08 - 04:10 PM (#2496098) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: VirginiaTam I was utterly addicted to The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald when I was a young teen. Guess I was a bit of a freak, because I don't know that any of my peers were as taken with this song. Still gives me the shivers. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QyqAp3wek5o&feature=related |
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17 Nov 08 - 04:31 PM (#2496116) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Lizzie Cornish 1 Happy Birthday, Gordon! :0) Now this is so weird, because today I received his 'Complete Greatest Hits' CD in the post and I had no idea it was his birthday. I ordered it a little while back (old dude to thank for that as he reminded me how great Gordon was). I saw him waaaaay back over here in the UK, at the Royal Albert Hall, when I was around 17/18. I grew up listening to his music, along with that of Harry Chapin (mentioned above) and John Denver. Was lucky enough to see them all 'live' over here. From Adrien: "I was leafing through an old newspaper one day getting things ready for an upcoming auction and in the entertainment section (Could have been the now defunct Montreal Star.)there was a small clipping of a night club featuring Bruce M. as the opening act followed by Gordon L..." And what is even weirder, is that I've Bruce M's music playing on my Myspace page, because I love it so. But maybe, just for tonight, I should put Gordon on there to play. Shame I can't have them both playing alternate tracks, then I could 'reunite' them 'for one night only' Hey, now wouldn't that be grand! I never got to see Bruce playing live, so I reckon he and Gordon should to a World Tour together and then..........Yes! :0) Altogether now... "Oh, 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.............." |
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17 Nov 08 - 07:04 PM (#2496238) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: GUEST,Ivy near Rochester, NY HAPPY BIRTHDAY GORDON LIGHTFOOT!!! He has been my favorite since 1971 and I have had the extreme fortune of seeing him perform live 12 times in both NY state and Toronto. He has given the world such beautiful music for so very long. He has really enriched and blessed all of our lives with his talent. I even had the opportunity of meeting him after a concert in Canandaigua, NY at the Finger Lakes College. My favorite songs include The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald and If I Could Read Your Mind, although I truly cherish each and every one of his songs. I have made a large investment of his records, tapes and CDs as well as other fan items. It has been the best investment that I have ever made. He is one of the greatest artists that has ever lived. I thank God for him and his fine band. Thank you Gordon for giving so much of your heart and soul to so many all of your life. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! |
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17 Nov 08 - 10:03 PM (#2496334) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Beer When it comes to music I feel that I have lived through a time that I wouldn't exchange for any other period. Hank W. Elvis P. The Beatles Bob Dylan and our very own Gordon Lightfoot. Thank you all for the great memories. Adrien |
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17 Nov 08 - 10:22 PM (#2496348) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Cluin Fred, the fiddle player in one of the groups I play with turned 70 not too long ago too, though you'd easily believe he was 20 years younger, for all his energy and stamina. He did some TV work, including a few appearances on the CBC's "Country Hoedown" and "Tommy Hunter Show", as well as recording in Nashville and touring all over in his younger days. And is a goldmine of stories from "the old days". At a rehearsal last year, we started talking about Lightfoot. We had a train-oriented gig coming up and I half-jokingly suggested we cover "Canadian Railroad Trilogy". Fred said he remembered playing the "Country Hoedown" one time and talking to Gordon Lightfoot. Lightfoot was quitting the show to pursue his singer-songwriter career. Fred said he thought the boy crazy at the time, giving up a regular sweet gig like that. |
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17 Nov 08 - 11:01 PM (#2496366) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Beer Great story Cluin. Adrien |
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17 Nov 08 - 11:51 PM (#2496383) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Michael Harrison Happy Birthday Gordon - a fellow Scorpion, I believe. Guest, Cormac - you have great taste - Chapin and Lightfoot have been two of my very favorites since I first heard them. I was most fortunate to be able to interview both of them while in college at Eastern Michigan, and, Lightfoot, again, a couple of years after moving down to Texas. Both were/are class people. Anectdote: I grew-up in the Detroit area and in the early seventies I frequently worked with a bass player by the name of Marc Chover. Marc was, I believe, a "gunslinger" on guitar and bass and during the 1960's he was frequently called in to facilitate the needs of a Detroit coffeehouse (the name escapes me - not The Raven, though) and one night he was called in to play behind some guy from Canada that he didn't know. As Marc told it, the guy was impressed with Marc's playing and asked him to join him. Marc, of course, turned him down because his band, "The Southbound Freeway," had just signed a record deal and was headed to L.A. to become rock stars. I guess you figured that the "guy from Canada" was Gordon Lightfoot; and The Southbound Freeway?...well, what more can be said? Cheers. |
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18 Nov 08 - 01:55 PM (#2496916) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego I just saw Gordon perform with his current group a few weeks ago in San Diego. He looked a little thin and his voice lacked the power it once had, but there was nothing lacking in his musicianship or delivery. The outdoor venue's sound system betrayed him to some extent. I was very glad to see him up and about and performing again after such a close call. His sense of humor was intact! He's less than two years older than I, and I have been listening to him for most of his career. Obviously, I no longer consider 70 "old." I confess that my favorites, for the most part, were part of his earlier acoustic work with the late Red Shea. All in all, though, it is a startling body of work that spans several decades. Few ever achieve anything close to that. |
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18 Nov 08 - 02:24 PM (#2496940) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: gnu Indeed, Beer. One of the greats of our time. |
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18 Nov 08 - 04:09 PM (#2497058) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: bankley that's a lot of candles.... always room for a few more one of the things I like about GL... is that I never heard any of his music used for commercials. He said early on that it wasn't his job to sell soap. good for him.... a cultural icon to be sure. |
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18 Nov 08 - 07:06 PM (#2497215) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: gnu THAT'S the one I was lookin for! That's Gordon. |
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18 Nov 08 - 07:09 PM (#2497219) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: wysiwyg I'll be damned! ~S~ |
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18 Nov 08 - 07:10 PM (#2497221) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: gnu "He is trying to get into things more happy than blue." That's the line I was trying to find. |
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18 Nov 08 - 07:16 PM (#2497224) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: gnu No, not you, ~S~. Maybe some of the rest of us.... not you. |
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18 Nov 08 - 07:27 PM (#2497232) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Peter T. given that Little Hawk started this, it is interesting that Gordon Lightfoot is one of Bob Dylan's two favourite songwriters (K. Kristofferson is the other) -- according to the Bobster himself. (The Bobster's two favourite singers -- wait for it -- are Sinatra and Al Jolson). yours, Peter T. |
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18 Nov 08 - 07:47 PM (#2497251) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: Beer Gnu, there are just so many of his songs that I love that I would find it difficult to choose one. However here is one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4jlpIFa3Gk |
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16 Apr 23 - 03:45 PM (#4170063) Subject: RE: Gordon Lightfoot's 70 today. From: GUEST,Carol Kappus - Harpdiva1 I don't know if I'm a member of Muscat or not. I got to know Joe several years back on Jim Malcolm's Scotland tour. While searching for any info on my old friend Marc Chover, this post came up. I see it was years ago but if Michael Harrison is still around, the Detroit coffee house he referred to was not The Raven, which was in Birmingham, but The Retort, which was in the basement of a hotel on Woodward Ave in downtown Detroit. A lot a big name folks played there including Gordon Lightfoot, Buffy St. Marie, Jose Feliciano, and many more before they got to be well known. It was a great place and I hung out there every possible moment until I went off to U of M. Here's the post I'm referring to:
From: Michael Harrison Date: 17 Nov 08 - 11:51 PM Happy Birthday Gordon - a fellow Scorpion, I believe. Guest, Cormac - you have great taste - Chapin and Lightfoot have been two of my very favorites since I first heard them. I was most fortunate to be able to interview both of them while in college at Eastern Michigan, and, Lightfoot, again, a couple of years after moving down to Texas. Both were/are class people. Anectdote: I grew-up in the Detroit area and in the early seventies I frequently worked with a bass player by the name of Marc Chover. Marc was, I believe, a "gunslinger" on guitar and bass and during the 1960's he was frequently called in to facilitate the needs of a Detroit coffeehouse (the name escapes me - not The Raven, though) and one night he was called in to play behind some guy from Canada that he didn't know. As Marc told it, the guy was impressed with Marc's playing and asked him to join him. Marc, of course, turned him down because his band, "The Southbound Freeway," had just signed a record deal and was headed to L.A. to become rock stars. I guess you figured that the "guy from Canada" was Gordon Lightfoot; and The Southbound Freeway?...well, what more can be said? Cheers. |