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Victoria Lord, longtime publicist for Canadian folk music icon Gordon Lightfoot, whose moving and poetic songs have etched Canada’s music scene, has died at the age of 84.
Lightfoot died Monday night at a Toronto hospital, Lord said.cause of death not immediately available
Born in Orillia, Ontario, Lightfoot is known as Canada’s folk troubadour for his soulful music and moving lyrics.in songs like Canadian Railway Trilogy and The Wreck of Edmund Fitzgerald, He explores the history, geography and culture of the country.
“He’s our poet laureate, he’s our iconic singer-songwriter,” Rush singer Geddy Lee said in a 2019 documentary Gordon Lightfoot: If you could read my mind.
“If there was a Mount Rushmore in Canada, Gordon would be on it,” Tom Cochrane said in the same documentary.
“Gordon’s songs are works of art, every bit as relevant as classic poetry,” Cochran said in honor of Lightfoot at the 2003 Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame Gala.
“But more importantly, Gordon Lightfoot led the way, and he showed us that … you can stay true to your roots. You can draw on your domestic and national influences, and you can build those inspirations into the fabric of your work in the midst of, and still be, international success.”
From Teenage Promise to Folk Fame
A childhood performer on local radio and at regional music festivals, Lightfoot wrote his first song, hula hoop songIn 1955, when I was still in high school.
“A lot of the images in my songs come from this country,” the singer-songwriter said of Orillia in a 1967 interview with CBC-TV telescope.
“I’ve been to a lot of places and seen some nice countries. I don’t think there’s any place that will stay with me or impress me like the country of Muskoka…it’s the country I grew up in “
Gordon Lightfoot talks about the Canadian Shield and how images in his songs are taken from around Orillia.
After high school, Lightfoot moved to Los Angeles to study at the Westlake Conservatory of Music. He returned to Canada in 1959 and worked in various jobs in Toronto.He’s a chorus player, a dancer for CBC country hoe Folk singer on Two Tones with Terry Whelan.
In the 1960s, Lightfoot became part of Toronto’s burgeoning folk scene, inspired by the music of Bob Dylan. He developed songwriting and began working on his debut album. Light feet! Appeared in 1966.
Meanwhile, Lightfoot kicked off a highly anticipated annual concert booth at Toronto’s Massey Hall. Introduced in 1967, it happened annually until the mid-80s, then dropped to roughly every 18 months. In 2005, Lightfoot revived the Massey Hall event as an annual tradition.
International recognition
After winning domestic acclaim in the late 1960s, the Canadian troubadour made an international breakthrough when he signed with Warner Records America in the 1970s and made waves early that decade with the release of his single if you can read my heartis now a civil standard.
Over the next six years, Lightfoot followed suit, writing many of his most famous songs, such as beautiful, Sunset, Don Quixote, carefree road, rainy day and The wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Some of the songs were written after his first marriage ended in a years-long, volatile relationship with Cathy Smith, who was later convicted of supplying drugs to John Belushi after his death from an overdose.
“In this relationship, you feel the danger,” Lightfoot said in 2019. if you can read my heart.
Gordon Lightfoot talks to Vancouver teens about not writing songs about Canada — per se.
Lightfoot hit the road in the 1970s, touring the United States from Alaska to Hawaii and playing in a series of European concerts including Amsterdam, Munich, Frankfurt, the Montreux Festival in Switzerland and at the Royal Albert Music in London A sold out show.
Despite the decline of folk music in the late 1970s and 1980s, Lightfoot continued to create his unique music, although he also dabbled in acting, appearing in films harry tracy With Bruce Dern and Helen Shaver.
In 1987, the revered songwriter made headlines when he sued Michael Masser greatest loveThe song became a hit when it was recorded by Whitney Houston.
Lightfoot Claims Masser’s Song Steals 24 Bars of Melody if you can read my heart. The case was settled out of court and Masser issued a public apology.
steadfast performer
During his long career, Lightfoot battled multiple ailments, including a bout of Bell’s palsy, and alcoholism early in his acting career. He recovered from drug addiction in the 1980s.
The nation was on tenterhooks in September 2002 when news broke that Lightfoot had been airlifted to the hospital with severe stomach pains as he was preparing to take the stage for a concert in Orillia. The singer suffered a ruptured gastric artery, had to undergo several rounds of surgery, and was in a coma for six weeks.
After three months in the hospital, Lightfoot bravely embraced his recovery, vowing to finish a new studio album and return to the stage.he released an album harmonious In 2004, he returned to perform at the Mariposa Music Festival in the same year.
Young Gordon Lightfoot talks with Music Hop host Alex Trebek about his writing and recording plans.
Although he suffered a minor stroke in 2006 that left him temporarily unable to use some fingers on his left hand, he maintains regular guitar and gym workouts to keep him in shape for the road.
He took reports of his untimely death in stride in 2010, followed by a high-profile Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame concert with The Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie, while maintaining his own touring schedule.
inspiration to many musicians
Many Canadian musicians have cited Lightfoot as an inspiration, from Downie to classical guitarist Liona Boyd.
In addition to early adopters such as folk singers Ian and Sylvia Tyson and Peter, Paul and Mary, a number of artists have recorded Lightfoot’s music, including his idol Bob Dylan. Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Petula Clark, Stompin’ Tom Connors, Lisa Minelli, Barbra Streisand, Sarah McLachlan and Annie Murray. The rheostat also did his job.
“I’ve never heard a cover of a song that I didn’t like,” Lightfoot told the Arkansas Democratic Gazette in 2008.
“Of course, I hear some weird versions every once in a while, but they always seem to do a good job. I’m surprised that people like my songs enough to want to record them, and it motivates me and makes me want to work harder. Work.”
Canadian music legend Gordon Lightfoot talks to Ian Hanomansing about his music, his legacy and some of the darker personal aspects of his five years in the music industry part.
Lightfoot has received a series of accolades for his contributions to Canadian music and culture. There are cover albums, honorary degrees, postage stamps and even a guitar bearing his name. He received the Governor-General’s Award for the Performing Arts in 1997 and in 2003 was awarded the highest rank of Companion of Canada.
A multiple Grammy Award nominee, Lightfoot has won over 15 Juno Awards and has been inducted into many Halls of Fame, including the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. Bob Dylan officiated at the ceremony.
“I know he’s won the award before, but he never accepted it because he wanted me to come up and present it to him,” Dylan quipped at the 1986 Juno Awards gala. “He’s a rare talent.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada had lost “one of our greatest singer-songwriters.
Trudeau tweeted that Lightfoot “captured the spirit of our country in his music — and in doing so, he helped shape Canada’s soundscape.”
We’ve lost one of our greatest singer-songwriters. Gordon Lightfoot has captured the spirit of our country in his music – and in doing so, he has helped shape Canada’s soundscape. May his music continue to inspire generations to come and may his legacy live on forever. For his family,…
——@Justin Trudeau
A consummate entertainer, Lightfoot doggedly refused to give up performing live. In 2015 he visited the UK for the first time in 35 years and was in Ottawa two years later for Canada’s 150th anniversary celebrations.
he released solo In 2020, he’s twiddling a collection of studio recordings from several years in his vault. In 2010, he vowed to continue performing 70 shows a year “because I love doing it.”
Lightfoot is survived by his wife Kim, six children – Fred, Ingrid, Galen, Eric, Miles and Meredith – and several grandchildren.
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