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Old 01-26-2000, 04:54 PM   #1
Florian
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What is your favorite Lightfoot Song & Why?

(topic originated by Wes Steele)
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Old 01-27-2000, 10:59 AM   #2
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Now we get to pick our new favorite song! I'll start. My favorite song right now, today, at this moment is Only Love Would Know on Waiting for You. WFY is one of my favorite albums and this song is my favorite song on the album. It's sweet, its pretty, it's romantic, it's tender -- you get the picture, a great love song. AND I especially love the way his voice sounds in this song. I could listen to it all day.

chris

p.s. Glad the discussion board is back up and running. My only problem is that the picture of Gordon in the upper left hand corner of the screen is half blank. Anyone else seeing the same thing?

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"It took most of my time to do what never was done" -- GL
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Old 01-27-2000, 11:03 AM   #3
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Wouldn't you know it. When I was sent back to the board the picture was restored. As Gilda Radner used to say (was it as Lisa Lupner?).... Never mind.

chris

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"It took most of my time to do what never was done" -- GL
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Old 01-27-2000, 05:24 PM   #4
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"It's Worth Believ'n". I can't put the details in, but that song paralleled my life at that time. A relationship was ending and I was questioning myself. There even was a shore, sand, and all the doubts about myself, just like in the song, in this relationship.
I think it has a beautiful melody. I have never gotten tired of it.
Yes, it sounds like a sad song, but it has gotten me "over the hump" knowing that GL has seemed to have gone through the same thing that I went through.
The song is done rather well.

Thanks Florian for posting this again. When I have some more time I have another question to put out to all my friends. Miss you guys...will be back more often, soon.

Thanks again...Great Web Site Florian....

Wes,

"when you reach the part where the heartaches come, the hero would be me, but hero's often fail."

[This message has been edited by Wes Steele (edited January 27, 2000).]
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Old 01-27-2000, 10:14 PM   #5
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Too bad the previous posts to this topic were lost. There was an impressive list.

My favorite is Go My Way from Summer Side of Life. When I was 11, a musician friend of the family who was a huge GL fan sang this song and I was introduced to Gordon Lightfoot. I've been a fan for the past twenty + years and collected many of his albums (more recently, CDs)but it wasn't until a few years ago that I purchased Summer Side of Life and actually heard Gord sing the song that drew me to him.
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Old 02-09-2000, 08:56 PM   #6
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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.
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Old 02-09-2000, 10:34 PM   #7
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Good question. While I can't narrow the listing down to one favorite I'll list a few particulars.

If You Could Read My Mind-The first Lightfoot song I ever hear and one that remains in my consciousness.

Minstrel Of The Dawn-This one strikes a real emotional chord in me for some reason. Especially the lines "jangle and dangle as the old guitar sings" and "like me and you, he's trying to get into things more happy than blue". Which is one of the great things Gordon Lightfoot does, writing songs with universal themes that everyone can identify with.

Cold On The Shoulder-This is another one that hits me emotionally hard. Gordon sings about the innocence that is lost as we go through life.

Rainy Day People-A song about true friendship.

Sundown-One time I was in a relationship where I knew my girlfriend was deceiving me. I could relate very easily to this song at the time.

Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald-Heartwrenching, one of the greatest songs ever recorded. Period



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Look into his shiny eyes and if you see a ghost don't be surprised......Listen to the strings. That jangle and dangle while the old guitar sings.

The lake it is said never gives up her dead, when the gales of November come early.
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Old 02-15-2000, 12:38 AM   #8
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I've loved Gordon since a kid in the 70's. All of 'em; "If You could Read My Mind"; "Sundown"; "Carefree Highway" " The Wreck...".... it wasn't until I picked up Gord's Gold, and some of his others that I understood. Its easier for me to say that maybe, there are one or two that I'm not crazy about, instead of spending the day listing each one of my favorites.
Gordon!!!!See you in Keene, New Hampshire.
Paul from Rhode Island...
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Old 02-22-2000, 12:00 AM   #9
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Hello!
I would say "Softly" has been my fav. for a while. Although I'm not the cheatin' kind I can almost picture what she looks like. I can visualize the whole song as if it were real. I can almost see her lips in the shadows and that perfume.....Not many songs can yank you into a dreamworld. This one does it for me. The other one I like is "Beautiful" which I attempt to sing to my wife!
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Old 02-23-2000, 03:10 PM   #10
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like many of you, I have countless favorite GL songs. I think that my favorite album would have to be Sundown. There are many great songs that have real musical character. I'm talking about songs like Seven Island Suite, Is There Anyone Home, and The Watchmans Gone, among others. I also like Summer Side of Life. I love 'Miguel.' There all great!

"...But that was so long ago that I can scarcely feel the way I felt before, and if time could heal the wounds, then I would tear the threads away, that I might bleed some more..."

GL

[This message has been edited by potter (edited March 29, 2000).]
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Old 02-26-2000, 12:53 AM   #11
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Gordon Lightfoot has so many good tunes that I could never pick one but among my guitar playing friends Steel Rail Blues is pretty much on everybodys list. I mean the original version not the one on Gord's Gold. A lot of players like Alberta Bound also.I've always enjoyed Redwood Hill, Brave Mountaineers and 10 Degrees and Gettin Colder to play on guitar. I was very ill one winter and confined to bed for 10 days the only thing I could do was listen to a radio. I was 14 years old at the time . A local station played If You Could Read My Mind a couple of times a day and that was a time I looked forward to and I forgot about my pain for those few minutes when that song played. That was my inroduction to Gordon Lightfoot.Christian Island is another one of those songs that takes me away to another place and paints pictures in my mind so srongly that I feel transported to the place Gord is singing about and I'm onboard ship with him sailing down the western wind and liking the mood I'm in. Brave Mountaineers makes me feel like a young boy again and the scenes Gordon describes are very much like my own childhood. The run of great albulms from Summer Side Of Life,Don Q.,Old Dan's,and Sundown is so strong that few other singer-songwriters come close except fellow Canadiens Neil Young and Joni Mitchell and the great body of work Elton John put together in the 70's and Bob Dylans run in the 60's. Gordon Lightfoot is truly one of the greatest as singer,songwriter,performer and what a natural God given voice! I saw many concerts in the 70's at the Syria Mosque in Pittsburgh, Pa. but my favorite was 75 or 76 I can't remember for sure. I think it was the tour to promote Cold On The Shoulder and I witnessed something at Gord's show that I had never seen before. During any show the police or security guards would look bored out of their minds or dead serious about being the authority figures in charge. At that show I actually saw them listen and respond to Gordon Lightfoot like he was their grandson stopping by to sing a few tunes. They were just mesmerized by his performance as we all were. I remember telling my friends that it felt like we were all in this big living room and Gordon was giving a private concert to some old friends. I guess that's what it was. I remember a fan had done an oil painting on a huge canvass and presented to Gordon during the show. Also,Gordon brought his daughter out to sit on the piano bench with him while he sang Fine As Fine Can Be to her. It seemed like she was about 10 years old at the time but my memory might be off there. What I do remember is it was my favorite Syria Mosque show. They tore down the Mosque some years ago but they're not getting that show from me, I'm gonna carry that one with me till I'm tore down. It's the Same Old Loverman signing off for now. I could go on and on about the man and his music but so could you so I'll Go My Way.
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Old 02-26-2000, 02:07 PM   #12
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Kenton,
Can I just say that was a great post! I have the same memory of hearing IYCRMM and being transfixed and sort of coming of age in the 70s with Gordon Lightfoot and all that great music and the great concerts. I never saw him play the piano in concert. Maybe some day. Some of my favorite songs come off the Cold on the... album with the beutiful piano playing. Your post really took me back. Thanks.

chris

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"It took most of my time to do what never was done" -- GL
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Old 02-26-2000, 02:18 PM   #13
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My favorite Lightfoot song would be,"If you could read my mind" Because the mind is so deep and complex, yet it does have all of lifes answers. Yet we spend so much times asking silly questions and arguing over slight misunderstandings.It would be so much easier if we all knew exactly what was on the other persons mind.
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Old 02-26-2000, 03:24 PM   #14
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To the above post:

It would be no fun then....

Wes
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Old 03-02-2000, 12:15 AM   #15
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Don Quixtoe- if you've every actually read the enough of the book (I did the entire unabridged version) this song seems to capture a good portion of the overall mood of the entire book, its uncanny. The part about 'shouting across the ocean to the shore till he can shout no more' and 'in vain to search again' are the most obvious elements, but its a lot more than that.
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Old 03-02-2000, 12:15 AM   #16
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Don Quixtoe- if you've every actually read the enough of the book (I did the entire unabridged version) this song seems to capture a good portion of the overall mood of the entire book, its uncanny. The part about 'shouting across the ocean to the shore till he can shout no more' and 'in vain to search again' are the most obvious elements, but its a lot more than that.
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Old 03-02-2000, 02:46 AM   #17
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I have to go with NewRhythm on this one. I do every song in the catalog and Softly is by far the one that does it for me. He's right, from a mans' point of view your damn lucky if just once in your life you can experience this kind of a love or event. Thank God there are women in the world who have the kindness of heart to give a man this, even if it only happens once, he'll carry it with him the rest of his life.

Rob Wells

"Whispers the breeze in her passing..."
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Old 03-02-2000, 02:46 AM   #18
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I have to go with NewRhythm on this one. I do every song in the catalog and Softly is by far the one that does it for me. He's right, from a mans' point of view your damn lucky if just once in your life you can experience this kind of a love or event. Thank God there are women in the world who have the kindness of heart to give a man this, even if it only happens once, he'll carry it with him the rest of his life.

Rob Wells

"Whispers the breeze in her passing..."
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Old 03-05-2000, 10:36 PM   #19
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My favorite GL song is
Seven Island Suite.
He really hits the heart of matters
there.
Could listen to it over & over.
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Old 03-06-2000, 05:04 AM   #20
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WRECK OF EDMUND FITZGERALD.
I've always heard the song while growing up, just never really paid any mind to it. Then one night I was watching a documentary on PBS on the Fitzgerald, and Gord's song was playing throughout the documentary. I was really in tune to the ship and how the crew and captain felt while going through the ordeal. Gordon was able to capture that feeling and put it into words and rhyme with the right mix of twangle and jangle. Since that night, Gordon Lightfoot has been top on my list of favorite artist. I'm still learning about him and his music, but the more I learn, the more I relate, understand, and appreciate. Thanks for the opputunity.
P.S.
When or will Gord ever come south (New Orleans, Baton Rouge area)?
thanks - Earl
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Old 03-06-2000, 05:04 AM   #21
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WRECK OF EDMUND FITZGERALD.
I've always heard the song while growing up, just never really paid any mind to it. Then one night I was watching a documentary on PBS on the Fitzgerald, and Gord's song was playing throughout the documentary. I was really in tune to the ship and how the crew and captain felt while going through the ordeal. Gordon was able to capture that feeling and put it into words and rhyme with the right mix of twangle and jangle. Since that night, Gordon Lightfoot has been top on my list of favorite artist. I'm still learning about him and his music, but the more I learn, the more I relate, understand, and appreciate. Thanks for the opputunity.
P.S.
When or will Gord ever come south (New Orleans, Baton Rouge area)?
thanks - Earl
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Old 03-06-2000, 06:29 PM   #22
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Too many to mention them all but:
'Sit Down Young Stranger' by far the best out and out folk song.
'Redwood Hill' I think the best of the country style songs.
'Seven Island Suite' not sure which category this fits into but this is my overall favourite - for now anyway.
My favourite album must be 'Sundown' all great songs with much variety.
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Old 03-06-2000, 06:29 PM   #23
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Too many to mention them all but:
'Sit Down Young Stranger' by far the best out and out folk song.
'Redwood Hill' I think the best of the country style songs.
'Seven Island Suite' not sure which category this fits into but this is my overall favourite - for now anyway.
My favourite album must be 'Sundown' all great songs with much variety.
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Old 03-07-2000, 05:33 PM   #24
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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
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Old 03-07-2000, 05:33 PM   #25
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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
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