[spocksbrain]

Thanks, Geocitieman,

I appreciate your sentiments on this thread. I must say that some of you guys on Corfid are Lightfoot SNOBS and have totally closed minds, which is certainly something that Lightfoot himself, being an artist, would likely discourage. I am a huge Bob Dylan fan, so I am used to hearing lots of criticism from closed minded people who say "He can't sing," and that's all fine and dandy, but from a group of people who claim to be devotees of one of the greatest musical artists of all time, I would expect some sort of appreciation for one of America's greatest poets.

So Dylan did not write "The Watchman's Gone" or any other Gordon tunes. This seems to make him totally invalid to some of you. To just totally dismiss someone whose poetry is laden with enough symbolism and imagery to keep scholars studying for the next 200 years is indeed antiacademic, and qualifies some to be called obsessive about Gordon Lightfoot. Lightfoot is still my favorite over Dylan, but some of you guys certainly need to take a step back and sit on ice for a while before listening to your Lightfoot LPs again. This lambasting of Dylan, without regard to the merits of his work has really "ground my gears". He does not sing in a traditional manner, and never has. His voice has a purpose. It is like sandpaper against the soul as David Bowie once put it. When Dylan sings, people are forced to listen.

Dylan is also one of the worlds foremost experts on the history of recorded music, with an unparalelled record collection. His XM show is quite enjoyable and shows that when he compliments Lightfoot, it REALLY MEANS A LOT!. He rarely makes TV appearances, and so for him to come to Toronto and be on a Canadian TV show to show his appreciation for one of his favorite songwriters was a true gesture of respect and friendship. HOW MANY OTHER ARTISTS HAS DYLAN DONE THIS FOR?

People on this group have let their thoughts become stale over the years with pilgrimages to Massey Hall and an overflow of concert reports. A while back I wrote a short story about a trip that included a Lightfoot concert. Some people on this group called it a CONCERT REPORT!!!!!!!!!! I could not believe it. The story was twent nine pages long and they called it a concert report. Take a damn break from Lightfoot if call someone else's art a concert report.

Bob Dylan is popular because he is an artist. He reads his music like poetry and he personifies American music. He is rough, just as this country has been. His music is not gentle for the most part, because our country is not a gentle place. AND WHEN HE COVERED "I'M NOT SUPPOSED TO CARE", it was a huge COMPLIMENT to Lightfoot. At the end he said, "That song was written by Gor-don Lightfoot, one of my favorite songwriters."

That's my vent for now.
Peace