😭💔💔💔. I so loved his music; had listened to him since I was 4. Nearly every day, I'd play " If you could read my mind" and " The circle is small." I'm so so sad to hear this. 😢
Part of the most touching music I’ve known in my life. How proud you must be. Can you tell I grew up in Ontario?” I’m stuck here on the ground, as drunk and cold as I can be”
Bob Dylan said it best. .. when you hear a Gordon Lightfoot song you wish it would never end, that it would just keep on going. His soul is truly one of a kind, and i will never be able to express the impact he has had on myself and so many of us as an artist. I cannot imagine the world without him and feel that every successful artist out there today needs to study Gordon to bring back integrity to songwriting.
In 1968, I interviewed Gordon Lightfoot backstage at Place des Arts in Montreal when I was 16. He couldn't have been more generous and patient with a high school student trying to complete a project. And his show that night was sheer genius.
He was absolutely gorgeous back then, his voice, guitar playing, the song, his physical being. Sigh. I saw him last week at Wolf Trap in Vienna VA. He's frail now, but I am so blessed to have seen this legendary poet perform again. God bless you, Gordon Lightfoot.
I agree. I’d only seen album covers of him, so when my best friend and I saw him in concert in 1974 we practically fell into a swoon before he even sang. Somehow it fit with the gorgeous voice plus the poetic lyrics and beautiful music. If I’m honest I still have a bit of a crush on the man he was back then.
He wrote the songs,he wrote the lyrics ,he did the arrangements,etc,he played the instruments,...........and did the vocals. And all done perfectly,who else does that? I saw him several times in concert and it stands out in my mind now as it did then as purely the best music I have ever heard.
Thank you to everyone for such great comments. Gordon is a true Star and his band are truly magnificent. I am delighted that so many people love Gordon's music as much as I do. Cheers.
Lightfoot is as good as the best musicians in history … that’s it that’s all …. His music will live on forever all over the world …. Makes any Canadian feel proud …. Or any person in the world who has sentiment and compassion for life ….
Some artists are bigger than the songs they wrote and sang. Some of the special ones are more than the sum of their words and songs. And the rare ones are the soul and heartbeat of their country. Canada lost that person today. RIP Mr. Lightfoot, you served us well and you will never be forgotten. "When the green dark forest is too silent to be real."
0:00 Summer Side of Life 4:20 Saturday Clothes 7:50 Did She Mention my Name 11:30 Affair on 8th Avenue 15:15 If you could read my mind 20:56 Steel Rail Blues 23:59 Your Love's Return 28:06 Ten Degrees and Getting Colder 30:52 The Early Morning Rain
There are singers with voices that you can listen to for hours. Gordon Lightfoot is one of them. Many thanks for your stories through your songs. 💕🙏🏼. You are missed.
A brilliant performance by Gordon, the BBC did a fantastic job recording this amazing concert. In my opinion, Gordon is one of the greatest singer/songwriters of the 20th century. Thanks for posting this. As a senior citizen, I often see posts from others my age longing for the ‘old days’. Personally, I consider myself fortunate that I was around to hear Gordon in his prime. But I’m also happy to have lived long enough to enjoy 44 years of marriage to my beautiful wife, to watch my three sons grow up and marry, and to become a grandfather to two sweet young ladies. I don’t live in the past, but I do keep the fond memories in my heart ❤️.
In the early 60's he was known as Gordy Lightfoot. We, in Sault Ste. Marie, heard of him a lot sooner and would see him at the Polar Stadium for 2 dollars. Those were the days.
Gordon represented the joy and delight of Canada 50 years ago , in the youth of his long time followers, such a great artist, he had the courage to become and do what he was ordained to do…. to the great benefit of all. Will be remembered forever by so many. Thank you Gordon..
Saw Gordon lightfoot in Belfast 1974 was the first concert I was ever at. Since then I have been a dedicated follower. he was one of very few to play Belfast in those days meant so much to us back then, Thanks Gordon.
I saw him in 1974 in Utah. I was a young teen at the time, but it still is one of the greatest musical experiences of my life, and I’m a professional musician so should tell you how special that performance was and still is to me all of these years later.
nothing comes close to sitting by the campfire and listening to the greatest folk singer of all time- Gordon Lightfoot. His songs have resonated through the years and have never lost their beauty. Never will there be another like good old Gordon. Sing on my friend. Paul Fedele
That Kennedy video site blocked my post. The pope took the decision on Medjugorje away from the local bishops. The decision rests with the Vatican. Don't lecture me about "chains of command" until you study first. You don't know the facts.
I've been a Lightfoot fan for more decades than I care to admit. So many songs, every song I hear it's like "Oh that's my favourite Lightfoot song" until I hear the next on and it seems that it is my favourite and it goes on and on. Every song a favourite. His Ballad of the Yarmouth Castle with so much told from the perspective of the aging ship herself still bring tears to my eyes as does Home From The Forest. I got to see and hear him live, in concert, twice. What an amazing talent.
He was beyond brilliant. I've been a fan for many years. It's interesting to hear the Yarmouth Castle mentioned. As far as I know, that's kind of obscure. It's a really good song. He persevered for many years despite his poor health. Sure admired him for that, and will always miss him.
No one can match Gord's vocals as a young man in his prime. His brilliance as a songwriter is equally amazing. Love this video - seeing the tightness of the band, all young men with so much ahead of them. And Red Shea on lead guitar too...who can beat that? Thanks so much for posting this!
Rest In Peace, your music has been a large part of the soundtrack of my life. We were privledged to see you in around the time of this concert in a small college hall. It was the last stop on the tour so Gordon was a little more talkative and played a few extra songs. It felt like we were in his living room just hanging around. My wife passed last year after 50 years and I have found comfort listening to the old records we got when we first got married and bought our first real stereo system. Gordon was frequently playing in the background, good times.
I also appreciate that we all have different tastes, but the writing and musicianship here is just so superb. In my mind this music will certainly endure a long time. We are very lucky to have Gord as a Canadian.
It's absolutely impossible to feel anything but pure joy when I watch this performance. Sweet Jesus the talent happening here is ridiculous. Thank you to whoever posted this!
This is fantastic. The 70's was a great time for acoustic music, e.g., Gordon Lightfoot, John Denver, Jim Croce, Don McClean and others. GL could do it all, sing, play 12 string and especially write outstanding lyrics and music. One of kind. Thank you for posting it on YT.
This concert is SO beautiful, and Gord’s vocals are stunningly beautiful that it makes me tear up a little with nostalgia for these days of youth and joy! I saw him in concert and he was such a star and so talented, and he had a way of melting your heart and making you fall in love with him…. :).
LOVE you forever :::Love from Germany since 1978 when I listened to your beautiful songs and music....RIP and carry on on a carefree highway.....God bless you...
I met Gordon in the 90s at his concert in an art school south of San Jose, Calif. The entrance took us across the stage and he walked towards me and i towards him. We introduced ourselves and he hugged me and my wife. I've been a fan of his since the early 70's.
This is some of the best live footage of Lightfoot in existence. It showcases him in his artistic prime. Thank you to bensisko16 for these uploads. Rest in peace Red Shea and Terry Clements. Lightfoot was privileged to have worked with those two amazing guitarists.
@suzannemcmaken4648 NOT referring to the VOICE OF DYLAN!! BUT YOU WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND. GIMME A BREAK. ITS ALL THE 1,000 TUNES HE HAS WRITTEN...MANY OF WHICH are SUPERIOR in writing. Wake up, lil Susie. Gordon is totally in a class by himself...LIKE Dylan. Loved them both for Decades. Lastly...it's like comparing Apples to Oranges...period
I've been a Gordon Lightfoot fan since 1967. I just borrowed several CDs by him from the local public library here in Edmonton....his music is so refreshing.
Gordon was a reason I emigrated to Canada (from UK). I remember this concert on the BBC, and after the success of "If You Could Read my mind", I fell in love with his imagery of Canada (particularly Canadian Railroad Trilogy). When Gord's Gold was released in 1975, I was quick to buy it, and rekindled that desire. I visited for 3 weeks in 79, and made it my home in 1980! Thank you for everything Gord! RIP 😥
I grew up listening to this man,my mom use to play is music while we would run in bathing suit under the gutter of our house when it rain, and also on Sunday morning she would crank up the record player and wake us up real early. My mom pass just last July 22nd and trust me his songs now bring new meanings and especially good memories, Thank you my dear mom,one of her favorite was. The Pony Man. Thank you Mr Gordon
The absolute best live concert of Gordon Lightfoot ever seen- period- bar NONE!! Gord is the best who ever singer/songwriter/performer combo of all time!! No one else close. I'm privileged to have first met and seen this great talent in 1966 at the Riverboat Cafe in Toronto and have seen him in concert and talked with him many times since. He's also a really nice person. THANKS SO MUCH for posting!! :-) Jerre Haskew The Cumberland Trio
Gordon Lightfoot songs have been a mainstay of my playing and singing for decades. While other artists' stuff tended to come and go with me, his music just "sticks'. Great stories ,lyrics and melodies. And a song for any mood or event you might find yourself in....thanks Gordon, you are timeless.
My first grown-up concert. The first time we weren’t given to the concert by our parents you have to remember that there was a time when the driving age was 18 and parents were a lot more cautious then. This music is as important and beautiful and a lot of other adjectives that people have used on these pages. I got to see him once and he just stayed with me for over 50 years almost 60 I believe this troubadour has earned a much needed rest.❤
Thank You so very very much for posting this concert . I will never forget "falling in love" with Gordon so many years ago . A rainy night at a concert in Saratoga Springs NY . I was mesmerized by his music . Thank You Gordon for so many beautiful songs, there has never been anyone like you !
Gordon Lightfoot is an absolute treasure, perhaps the most talented musician in the modern world. Rest in Peace my friend, your contribution will live forever.
We went to about 20 concerts from 1970 on! Love at first sight. He was so beautiful. Summer Side of Life here explains the meaning of the song. I will love him and find him in Heaven. 🐴🎶🎶💔💔 When he smiles, the room lights up!!!
I don't know why.........in college I went to see him....never heard his music until then...if you could read my mind had just come out......but I was hooked!!!! not necessarily on that song.......all his songs!!! I love his music.....or his poetry....or his sound.......I don't know why but he still had EVERYTHING I needed.....I have (almost) all CD's and albums....his last had been pre-order, will be here in July...there is one song NOT included in my collection, its from a movie (Harty Tracy) called My Love for You...I have continued to love his music into my seventh decade.....Since his death I am still shocked how many Americans don't know his talent!!! I don't even have a favorite song.....honestly there isn't one song of his I don't love.....I have been lucky to see him several times in concert....20 years ago I got tickets to see him at UCONN and I took my 20ish son with me (having been forced to listen to G.L his whole life) on the drive there my son said I hope he plays "sea of tranquility"! I said that is only on one album...probably won't happen..........we were right in front at a cafe table....AND HE OPENED WITH SEA OF TRANQUILITY!!!!
This is a treasure! Pure GOLD to a Gordon Lightfoot fan. Gordon is the best ever, still performing at 72. Going to see him perform again in 3 weeks. Long live Gordon Lightfoot.
I met Grdon Lightfoot one evening in Waikiki back in the 1970s. He had given a concert that afternoon and was exploring Waikiki when he came upon my neighborhood, The Shady Lane Apartments. We talked about life while sitting outside my apartment. He was a nice person.
So poignant, so lovely. Summer Side of Life...One of the saddest and most profound songs ever written. Thank you for blessing us with your talent. RIP, Gordon Lightfoot.
Wow!! This concert video just blows me away. I have been a huge fan of Gordon since the early 1970's and just can't believe my ears. I saw him at Ravinia in Chicago in the mid 80's and it was the best concert of my life, sitting under the summer night sky with all of the stars out and singing along with just about every song he sang! Just a beautiful artist....
I just wanted to add that Red Shea is brilliant this night in performance. Gordon can play solo and be just as powerful as when he had his full band. This was a night when the entire band shined brightly.❤.I met Gordon in 1973 and he handed me a Fosters oil can at Tanglewood. I had just turned 23 and was awestruck at his performance.He was at the 'top of his game'.[And another fellow,that I'll bet many of you know,was just coming into national fame:Greg Brown! The circle is small.
His music and music books taught me to play guitar and helped shape my Life... how I wish he could be this age forever.. we have grown old together.. contemplative watching this
Gord is 73 now. He has dedicated over 50 of those years to his craft and his loving fans. Enjoy, respect him, pray for him and his health, and embrace his music while you still can because he may not be among us much longer.
it is hard to believe that so many of our favorites are aging. we expect ourselves to be 18 again and they are in their prime again. almost like time stood still. so very sad when we realize that in the next 10 yrs or so, we will lose so many. it broke my heart when i saw a recent pic of GL. thank God for youtube so we can go back and see and remember the goodtimes and the legends like GL
Loved this talented super star, all of his music!! Became a huge fan later in my life, when I had the time to listen! Sad I never got to see him in his prime, just happy his music lives on! RIP, Gordo!! 🥰😍😢
To elltoft.... These videos of Gordon Lightfoot, and your da Red Shea as well as his long time bass player brings back such great memories. My guitar style came straight from the Lightfoot.Shea styles. I was so saddened to hear of Red's passing. He was such a talent. I can sure understand your pride in watching and hearing this. Earl Brown
Wow, thanks for this great comment ! Its great to hear from another great GL fan like myself out there( and I know there are many out there of course). Makes it all worth while. Thanks again.
Watching Red Shea.... and Rick when they were young,,, you had to look twice.... I never ever had to look to hear Red Shea... probably the greatest guitarman to ever pic one up!
I saw this concert on BBC TV in the UK in 1972, and have been a fan ever since. Spent 20 years in Canada after that, and I suspect Gordon's impact helped colour my respect and appreciation for Canadian warmth and hospitality.
bensisko16, I have been a longtime Gord fan. This is a true story. When I was sitting in the Dentist's Chair in 1976 as a young boy I heard CAREFREE HIGHWAY and really liked it. It was about when I was 8 years old . I also remember hearing HOTEL CALIFORNIA by the Eagles and liked it as well. Gord's voice was so cool. So vibrant, so husky. Another great little tune by Gord, SATURDAY CLOTHES. Oh and maybe my alltime favorite Gord tune SHADOWS. thankyou.
GORDON LIGHTFOOT IN CONCERT - BBC - 1972 This program titled "Gordon Lightfoot In Concert" aired on January 22, 1972 at 11 PM. It was actually taped in the spring of 1971 before Summer Side Of Life was released. Accompanied by Red Shea and Rick Haynes.
@bigfurlan For me, there is no other player like Red Shea. He invents these riffs and fills, then plays them live, like it's nothing at all and never even looks at his guitar.
Thanks for sharing this with the rest of us Lightheads. Gord is by far and away my favorite singer/songwriter. It's great to hear the variations from the studio versions. I consider this to be among his best material ever.
Thank you so much for posting this concert. I haven't been so moved since the late sixties and early 70's when I would see them all live. As a young musicians my friends and I were mesmerized by the sound of this fantastic trio. John and then Rick on bass and especially Red's guitar work that blended so well with the Lightfoot strumming and picking simply amazed us. And that voice! That pure resonating tone that Gord had back then. How I wish it hadn't faded so over the years. Thanks again!!!
There is NO ONE evev close to the enormous talent of this man. I grew up listening to him; my sister who is 6 years older than me used to play him endlessly ((while at that age I was into Elvis) She has been fortunate enough to see him in concert 3 or 4 times. Regrettably I have not. I think and feel he is the genious and as big an inffl u ence of this music as Elvis or Michael Jackson were the giant geniouses of "their" music. He is agret poet, songwriter and singer I will NEVER stop listening to him. Thank you for putting this up for All of us to enjoy! Love, Peace & Joy to you Karen ^..^)
