My favorite song today is Rainbow Trout from, I believe, from Cold On The Shoulder.

'She said, please, please, I've lost my way, the current is too strong. In the name of love kind sir I pray, in the name of love.'

GL

My favorite song today is Rainbow Trout from, I believe, from Cold On The Shoulder.

'She said, please, please, I've lost my way, the current is too strong. In the name of love kind sir I pray, in the name of love.'

GL

Yarmouth Castle is a great one. I can really feel that old rusty boat catching on fire. Has to be one of my favorites although I'm pretty hooked on the whole new album(Painter Passing Through)

It's nice to read all these great posts!

Potter,
I'm with you on Rainbow Trout. I could listen to that over and over and over... COTS is one of my favorite albums. When I hear it I always wonder what kind of mind could come up with such a song. The line about that goes all dolled up like a blue eyed pup looking for something to spill... also great.

chris

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"It took most of my time to do what never was done" -- GL

I like pretty much everything, of course...but I thought I'd mention some of my particular favorites, especially the ones that no one else has mentioned yet. I really, really like the songs In A Windowpane and Apology from Sunday Concert. I'm in this incredibly complicated relationship with someone right now, and at various points, the lines
"wanting someone to be with me in the light of this uncertain time
waiting by the window for the man inside to please make up his mind"
(from In A Windowpane) and the lines
"But I could not go inside
I heard the sound of laughter
and the rustle of her hair upon his skin"
(from Apology)
really reasonated with me. I also really like "Walls". And anything from Don Quixote or Dream Street Rose will always remind me of riding around in the car with my mother when I was a little girl...we bought everything on records, and dad made a tape with one album on one side and the other one on the other, and it lived in our car for months. I can make a semi-credible attempt at singing pretty much anything off those albums...well, except for Auctioneer....never did quite catch all the lyrics in the chanted part...I swear, singing along with Gordon Lightfoot tapes all these years is probably why my voice is so low now....

Oh, I also very much like the song "Affair On 8th Avenue" I'm not entirely sure why, but the lines
"how long, said she
can a moment like this
belong to someone
what is wrong, what is right
when to live or to die
we must almost be born"
really seem to stick in my head....I'm not entirely sure what they mean, but they stick there all the same. Why is it so easy to remember Gordon Lightfoot lyrics and so diffcult to remember my PIN number? *sigh*.

My favorite GL song is "Minstrel of the Dawn." I was 13 years old the first time I heard it, about 17 years ago. It was the first song that hit me right between the eyes as far as lyrics go. The freedom it describes is something I have craved and pondered for many years. Since then, music and song lyrics, all different kinds, have been the bridges that connect all the parts of my life. For every experience I've had, good and bad, there are song lyrics that help me to understand my life better. Many of Gordon's songs have helped me in this way. "Minstrel of the Dawn" was the first. I've been reading a great deal lately about Woody Guthrie - does anyone know if "Minstrel" was written about anyone in particular? It could've been written about Woody. He was a great champion of songs that help us to understand our world. At any rate, I love this song, and it makes me think about true freedom every time I hear it. The freedom of "just wanting life and nothing more."

Laurie
watersedge7@yahoo.com

I have far too many favorite Lightfoot tunes. It depends entirely on my attitude and mood on a given day. Right now, I'm in the mood to hear "Restless." Beautiful song. One of the best of 1990s Gordon (and an excellent concert tune.

To Laurie: I have always been certain that the minstrel Gordon was writing about in Minstrel Of The Dawn is himself. Read through the lyrics with that in mind, and see if you don't agree.

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Valerie Magee

Laurie / Val,
I must admit, I always thought 'Minstrel' was about Gordon but now you've got me thinking - Dylan or Guthrie - perhaps? No, it must be about Him. Although D & G were both great song writers, I would not class them as Minstrels. Could they make the guitar sing (or ring)? I'm sure that if the song was about someone else, it would have got a mention in the sleeve notes - if it was about Him, it probably wouldn't.


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"some people join the party, and others say goodnight"

Further evidence re: Minstrel. Notice that he is also the "ghost" in If You Could Read My Mind, on the same album. Surely there is no doubt that IYCRMM is about him!

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Valerie Magee

Val,
Although I would love to agree with you, I'm not sure it's as simple as that. When writing songs it is very easy to fall into the trap of using words, a collection of words, or chord sequences that work well. Think about, or listen to:
"now it's midnight on the open sea and the moon is shining bright..." (Yarmouth Castle), then listen to "when it's midnight on the meadow and the cats are in the shed..." (Pony Man). Somewhat alike?
Proves nothing I know - except that re-cycling can't be bad!


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"some people join the party, and others say goodnight"

How about "Too many clues in this room"? I know that is an odd choice for favorite song, but the guitars sound scary to me. If I was a musician, I would love to play that tune.

At one of the many Gordon Lightfoot concerts I attended I was lucky enough to have procured front row center seats. When the people around me started to shout out names of songs as requests, I threw caution to the wind and requested that he sing, Hail Hero. I have only heard the song one time as it was the opening track to a movie of the same title. (With Michael Douglas as a young vet returning home from the Viet Nam conflict if I remember correctly.) To this day I am certain that Mr. Lightfoot heard me because he looked straight at me and gave me a very strange look...like, "Where in the world did you dig that up?" The movie ended with Wherefore and Why. Hail Hero, may not be my favorite GL tune and I am not even sure that he wrote it, but I would very much like to hear it again because I believe it is the one single recorded GL tune that I have heard only one time. I would love it if someone could shed some light on my dilemma.
...My favorite GL tune? Would have to say, Sit Down Young Stranger. I played it for a person who needed my help and in a small way it enabled us to connect.
"We treated him so badly
How could he wish us well" Kurt.

Hail Hero is discussed at length in another thread. The only place you will find it is in the movie soundtrack. The movie is long out of print, but copies are sold regularly at Ebay (they usually go for about $20). Lightfoot wrote the lyrics only.

He probably looked at you the way he did (I think that's called a "withering" look) because he thought you were nuts* to ask for that one. (He is not one to keep his feelings hidden). He has often said that he submitted three songs for that movie; and that they chose Hail Hero and left the two best for him. What were the other two? Why they were Sit Down Young Stranger and Don Quixote. (I have asked him for SDYS several times. He was doing it in concert in 1998, and he read my request and did it for me both times that I asked).

*I am NOT making fun of you at all. I like Hail Hero too!

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Valerie Magee

I'd have to say my favorite Lightfoot song is "Rainy Day People" off Gord's 1975 release "Cold On the Shoulder." This was the first song of his that I listened to (I heard it on an a.m. radio station) and it's the one that made me get out my uncle's old reel-to-reels and listen to more songs. Eventually I found myself buying the albums that I didn't already have on reels.

my fave song is 'if you could read my mind' it's haunting and brilliant. I love it

Love,
Ben, Leicester England

my fave song is 'if you could read my mind' it's haunting and brilliant. I love it

Love,
Ben, Leicester England

quote:Originally posted by bobo:
I am a firm believer in the dynamic and everchanging Lightfoot favorite, but I just realized that I really really love "The Watchman's Gone". Sometimes when I hear that song, I am just totally surprised that radio stations don't play it constantly. Mr. Potter had a really good point in another discussion forum, when he mentioned an all Gordo radio station. Wow, that would be amazing! Further, I have to agree with "A Painter". "Seven Island Suite" is truly an amazing piece of literature, set to brilliant music! I was recently asked by some young Lightfoot fans, "This music is great, but what would you call it?" Naturally I responded, "It's just the genius known as Lightfoot", but the question prompted deeper thought. as "A Painter" points out, he bridges many types of musical artistry. While I'd classify him by and large as a folk artist, his greatness certainly transcends boundaries.

"As I leave you in the sunset
Got one more nothi' I'd like to say
'You don't know me
A son of the sea am I'"
-GL

quote:Originally posted by bobo:
I am a firm believer in the dynamic and everchanging Lightfoot favorite, but I just realized that I really really love "The Watchman's Gone". Sometimes when I hear that song, I am just totally surprised that radio stations don't play it constantly. Mr. Potter had a really good point in another discussion forum, when he mentioned an all Gordo radio station. Wow, that would be amazing! Further, I have to agree with "A Painter". "Seven Island Suite" is truly an amazing piece of literature, set to brilliant music! I was recently asked by some young Lightfoot fans, "This music is great, but what would you call it?" Naturally I responded, "It's just the genius known as Lightfoot", but the question prompted deeper thought. as "A Painter" points out, he bridges many types of musical artistry. While I'd classify him by and large as a folk artist, his greatness certainly transcends boundaries.

"As I leave you in the sunset
Got one more nothi' I'd like to say
'You don't know me
A son of the sea am I'"
-GL

The Watchman's Gone is a wonderful song. I love many, many Lightfoot songs and it is very hard to pick just one song - but the Watchman's Gone never got the play it deserved on the radio. Gordon Lightfoot songs define who I was, and am.

quote:Originally posted by bobo:
I am a firm believer in the dynamic and everchanging Lightfoot favorite, but I just realized that I really really love "The Watchman's Gone". Sometimes when I hear that song, I am just totally surprised that radio stations don't play it constantly. Mr. Potter had a really good point in another discussion forum, when he mentioned an all Gordo radio station. Wow, that would be amazing! Further, I have to agree with "A Painter". "Seven Island Suite" is truly an amazing piece of literature, set to brilliant music! I was recently asked by some young Lightfoot fans, "This music is great, but what would you call it?" Naturally I responded, "It's just the genius known as Lightfoot", but the question prompted deeper thought. as "A Painter" points out, he bridges many types of musical artistry. While I'd classify him by and large as a folk artist, his greatness certainly transcends boundaries.

"As I leave you in the sunset
Got one more nothi' I'd like to say
'You don't know me
A son of the sea am I'"
-GL

The Watchman's Gone is a wonderful song. I love many, many Lightfoot songs and it is very hard to pick just one song - but the Watchman's Gone never got the play it deserved on the radio. Gordon Lightfoot songs define who I was, and am.

quote:Originally posted by bobo:
I am a firm believer in the dynamic and everchanging Lightfoot favorite, but I just realized that I really really love "The Watchman's Gone". Sometimes when I hear that song, I am just totally surprised that radio stations don't play it constantly. Mr. Potter had a really good point in another discussion forum, when he mentioned an all Gordo radio station. Wow, that would be amazing! Further, I have to agree with "A Painter". "Seven Island Suite" is truly an amazing piece of literature, set to brilliant music! I was recently asked by some young Lightfoot fans, "This music is great, but what would you call it?" Naturally I responded, "It's just the genius known as Lightfoot", but the question prompted deeper thought. as "A Painter" points out, he bridges many types of musical artistry. While I'd classify him by and large as a folk artist, his greatness certainly transcends boundaries.

"As I leave you in the sunset
Got one more nothi' I'd like to say
'You don't know me
A son of the sea am I'"
-GL

quote:Originally posted by Paul J. B.:
I would have to say I don't know my favorite GL song. There are so many that I could call my favorites, but right now I will say Hi'way Songs. Its just a great song to drive to. I spend alot of time driving. I first heard this song when I got his box set. tomorrow I'll probably have a new favorite, so I'll have something else to talk about.

Paul J.B.-Given you spend a lot of time driving,you might like "Long Thin Dawn" and/or "Mountains and Maryann"

quote:Originally posted by Paul J. B.:
I would have to say I don't know my favorite GL song. There are so many that I could call my favorites, but right now I will say Hi'way Songs. Its just a great song to drive to. I spend alot of time driving. I first heard this song when I got his box set. tomorrow I'll probably have a new favorite, so I'll have something else to talk about.

Paul J.B.-Given you spend a lot of time driving,you might like "Long Thin Dawn" and/or "Mountains and Maryann"

JayK I would have to say I love that song. It is just one of many of his great driving songs. I forget wich post it is, but I made mention of that song in a post I made recently. I appreciate your response greatly.It is always great to hear from someone else who likes Gordon as much as myself. Keep on listening.

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"If people could look into each other's eyes
What a wonderful place this world would be"
GL

JayK I would have to say I love that song. It is just one of many of his great driving songs. I forget wich post it is, but I made mention of that song in a post I made recently. I appreciate your response greatly.It is always great to hear from someone else who likes Gordon as much as myself. Keep on listening.

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"If people could look into each other's eyes
What a wonderful place this world would be"
GL