Interesting thoughts. I've had some thoughts of my own which I have not shared, but since it's on topic I will now. As a precursor, I will say that you need to remember that I love Gord and his music and would be happy to hear him perform any time and any place. Also understand, that I have seen him perform often from the late 70's right through to the present day.
I also had a tinge of sadness when I left from the Saturday night performance at Massey this past year. I quite enjoyed the concert, but at the same time, I felt the music didn't have the same "umphh" that it used to. I especially noticed a real raspiness at that concert, like his voice had been strained. It seemed like he was really struggling to hit some notes.
Now when I saw his comeback concert at Hamilton, I thought he was quiet, but I thought his voice sounded quite good. At the first set of Massey hall concerts after his comeback, I thought he did well too. But this year, there was a serious raspiness I'd never heard before.
I basically chose to ignore this thought for some time, until about a month later when I found a bootleg copy of the Thursday night Massey concert from November. I listened and then realized, it was true. I heard the same quality of raspiness on the bootleg too. I wondered if he was just tired from his touring, I don't know. My only point is that I noticed this raspiness this year, and I had not detected it before.
So I can understand the sadness mentioned in the first post. It is like a realization/ reminder that time is passing and that what we've enjoyed all our lives will be passing into memory soon. There's a reluctance to accept that and yet we must.
On another note, I've been listening to my Original Lightfoot collection a lot recently. Because I became a fan of Gord in the 70's, I have often overlooked and ignored his earlier recordings. But listening to this collection, I am filled with a whole new admiration for that voice. Those first recordings sound beautiful. That clear youthful voice sure is a pleasure to listen to. Wish I could sing like that!
MM
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