[Oh, Linda]

First of all, it was nice to finally meet you Char! I had a great time and enjoyed meeting everyone else at the pre-show dinner (thanks for arranging Char!). And Jenney--my vintage bag is working out great!

I really enjoyed the show. Being in Toronto, at Massey Hall, it really had a heartwarming feel about it. At least in my opinion. My friends from Toronto/Atlanta also enjoyed it and they had never been to one of his concerts before. A few songs shy of the end of the first set, my friend sitting next to me said "I'm thoroughly enjoying myself." And she was!

For me, being at the famous Massey Hall made it all the more memorable. I'd heard about these legendary shows, especially here on corfid, so it was a real treat to finally get the chance to take one in! Walking through the lower level, looking at all of those photographs, was like looking at the wall of legends, a real who's who. Among them, of course, the man of the night himself, Gordon Lightfoot.

I thought his voice was in better shape than last year when I saw him in Kalamazoo. I especially enjoyed when he mentioned that some of his children and grandchildren were in the audience. "I've got grandchildren!" he laughed. His facial expressions are priceless. From the cheers that erupted I gathered his family members in attendance were sitting on the right hand side of the theater, somewhere to the right and behind you Char, is that about right? During the intermission they streamed right in front of where I was sitting on the way to the backstage door. They looked very excited to be there. Weren't we all?

I wonder what it was like for his daughter Ingrid, in attendance, to hear her father introduce "As Fine As Fine Can Be" stating he wrote it for her when she was 8 years old. Or what it was like for Meredith to hear him tell everyone he wrote "Waiting For You" for "your mother." He spoke directly to her from stage, as if she were the only one there. I thought it was a very cool moment.

This morning my friends and I reminisced about the show, his legacy, the importance of his songwriting to the music industry, the numerous artists he's influenced, his relevance still today, the fact that at 71 years old he still gets out there and does 70+ shows each year, and more. He's touched a lot of people through the years, from far and away, including a woman named Eva. Sitting next to me last night at dinner she told me that seeing Gordon Lightfoot was for her a 35 year dream come true. And she flew all the way from Germany to do just that! Even crossing the bridge from Canada to the US in Port Huron was fun. The border patrol officer asked me my purpose in Canada. "To see a concert" I replied. "Who was playing?" "Gordon Lightfoot at Massey Hall." He smiled a big smile and told me how much he loved "that song he wrote about the ship that sank--the Edmund Fitzgerald." I explained to him what Gordon told us last night, that he used the word Cleveland instead of Toledo to make the song rhyme. He laughed and waved me through saying "glad you enjoyed the show."

Who knows how much longer Gordon will be touring. As long as fans still want to see him and he's still able to do it and he enjoys it, then why not? The quality and integrity of his music more than make up for a few hushed words sung from stage these days.