Ok,Ok -- Here it is. I'll do a quick one now because I have to run, but continue it later. Last night's concert in York was FANTASTIC! GL was up, his voice was clear and strong, that great understated sense of humor was there. Just a great show.
You all know the routine. One by one the band members come out and take there places and then out comes Gordon. Wearing all black and the boots he picked up his guitar, walked up the mike and without a word sang a beautiful 14 Karat Gold. Then right into the next song. (I'll post the set list later.) He did 12 songs before the break and twelve or so after with one encore and he came out one final time to take a bow.
He looked fantastic. Not too different from last year about this time when I saw him at the Birchmere. (I like to call his look tight and healthy.) The mustache is still there and I could see his eyes sparkle from my seat in the 12 row.
He really nailed a couple of songs. DOn't get me wrong there wasn't one that was not up there but a few were really something. I remember thinking after he did Restless that that song couldn't be done any better. Same with Never Too Close.
Some of the arrangements are slightly different then the recordings, to accomodate the changes in his voice, but even tho unexpected sometimes it added to the enjoyment of the song for me. CRT seemed to be a tad slower in tempo than we're used to on disc, but again, somehow it seemd to make it even more moving and majestic. CRT was not don for the encore, but was in the 2nd set, and when he finished I just shook my head at the energy and feeling that he so obviously put into it. (There were a fair number of radio Lightfoot fans there -- folks who really only know his big radio hits -- but after that concert I really believe he may have won some true converts.)
For the second set he came out in the familiar hawaiin print shirt and white tennis shoes. Big treats for me were hearing THe House you Live In and Cherokee Bend, the latter I don't think I have heard in concert in a while. DOn't let me forget Shadows. That one was just beautiful.
He didn't talk any more or less between songs than he has in the recent past. I know some poeple wish he would do more banter. My husband makes that comment every time we see him. Only about 4 or 5 songs get any commentary. I just tell him if he were up there yammering between songs about this or that or why I wrote this or that, then he would be Gordon Lightfoot.
I gotta go -- later tonight I will post the set list and try to decipher my notes on what he had to say. In closing it was a great, great show.
Later,
chris
OOOPS, Up in the second to last para. I meant to say "he wouldn't be Gordon Lightfoot", but you all probably figured that out right?
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"It took most of my time to do what never was done" -- GL
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