If You Could Read My Mind - Gordon Lightfoot | Andy & Alex FIRST TIME REACTION! 

This is one of the most beautiful songs ever written. "The hero would be me. But heroes often fail. But you won't read that book again because the ending's just too hard to take." "S" tier for me. You'll get there in about 20 years.

Absolute S tier song: Timeless, beautifully written, perfectly interpreted, impeccably sung. Masterpiece.

Bob Dylan didn't bother showing up to claim his *Nobel Prize* but he showed up for Gordon Lightfoot to induct Gordon into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. Dylan once said, "I can’t think of any Gordon Lightfoot song I don’t like. Every time I hear a song of his, it’s like I wish it would last forever." So...yeah. That's Gordon Lightfoot.

This was a respectful reaction, but I think this song is S tier. I don't think you really have lived with it long enough. It's a masterpiece.

The line “with chains upon my my feet” is the most profound, to me. So, even as a ghost, who could theoretically go anywhere, he’s still held back by the weight of the loss.

Bob Dylan said Gordon Lightfoot never wrote a bad song.

One of the greatest songs ever written, sung and produced. Timeless. I’m 65 and I still get chills when I hear it.

This is one of those songs that just hits harder the older you get and the more heartache you've experienced.

This song STILL gives me goosebumps and brings tears to my eyes .. its just SO amazing

The line “I don’t know where we went wrong, but the feeling’s gone and I just can’t get it back” kills every time. How anyone can hear that line and not tear up.

Gordon Lightfoot is a Canadian treasure. RIP.

There is no denying that melody. Savage lyrics as well. Genius level stuff by Mr. Lightfoot.

If this isn’t an S tier song, idk what is. Absolute masterpiece of songwriting and just a great arrangement and vocal delivery on top of it

I'm Canadian, heard this song all my life. Now after the end of a 33 year marriage it takes on a whole new meaning. Now it breaks me...

S tier for me because "yes" it got me through some pretty tough breakups. His soothing voice and lyrics just lets you cry it out!!. Still on my playlist like an old friend..

Great song! It has one of my favorite lyrics.. "and I will never be set free as long as I'm a ghost you can't see" Who hasn't felt invisible at some time in a relationship?

I think the "prisoner in chains" analogy is apt because a loveless relationship can feel like a prison, but sometimes one party in the relationship doesn't recognize that there's anything wrong, so the other person's suffering becomes invisible.

If this isn't an S tier, then there's no point in having the S category. One of the best songs ever. There is literally no one in our age group that doesn't know every word, every pause, every note of this song.

Rick Beato says this is the song that started it all for him. I can say that in 1973 Gordon Lightfoot was my hero and the reason I learned to sing, play guitar and write songs. S+ all the way.

He was a phenomenal storyteller. And that soothing voice was so unique. Thank you for playing this.

The ghost. Have you never loved someone who didn't return that emotion? To them you may as well be a ghost but you are chained to that person by your strong emotions.

It's a sad break up song. In one line he said he walks away "like a movie star who gets burned in a three way script...enter number two" One of the Best written songs of ALL Time. The lyrics are so deep and moving on all levels. A masterpiece.

I always took the ghost in chains to mean he felt stuck in his misery and unseen by his loved one. That’s a miserable feeling. Thanks for listening guys!

S-tier for me too. I'm 61, and this is one of the best songs i've ever heard, or reacted to. Even decades after first hearing this incredible song, I still well up with tears....

This is an S tier song all day long in my opinion. This song is about Gord’s divorce from his first wife and the part you don’t understand about the ghost and castle and chains is explained quite well here in this analysis from SongMeaning. FROM SONG MEANING: This song makes me cry when I hear it. It reminds me of when I was a kid, and couldn't understand it. And now that I'm older and have lived this song, it resonates so much with me. There's so much in this song that it's hard to break down. But here's how I see it. "If you could read my mind, love What a tale my thoughts could tell Just like an old time movie 'Bout a ghost from a wishing well In a castle dark, or a fortress strong With chains upon my feet, you know that ghost is me And I will never be set free As long as I'm a ghost that you can't see." This verse describes what is going on in the man’s mind, feeling trapped and invisible, not sure how to mend the relationship or make his feelings known. The figurative chains on his feet keep him from both expressing his feelings and from leaving … he feels powerless. He wishes she could read his mind -- hence the song title -- because that would be the only way for her to really see how he feels. The second verse, "If I could read your mind, love, what a tale your thoughts could tell Just like a paperback novel, the kind the drugstores sell When you reach the part where the heartaches come The hero would be me, but heroes often fail And you won't read that book again because the ending's just too hard to take." describes the woman's mind, like a romance novel or a fairy tale - dreaming of the knight in shining armor she hopes for her love to be. He realizes that she wanted for him to be the hero, the knight in shining armor … but he failed. And now she won’t come back to him because it is too painful and she already knows how it will turn out. "I'd walk away like a movie star who gets burned in a three way script, Enter number two A movie queen to play the scene Of bringing all the good things out in me But for now, love, let's be real I never thought I could act this way And I've got to say that I just don't get it I don't know where we went wrong but the feeling's gone And I just can't get it back." Here, he describes the end of the paperback novel and what was simultaneously occurring in his mind. His pride (as the movie star) makes him want to walk away rather than compromise or communicate. He thinks that there's some other woman out there who will bring out all the good things in him, and he won't have to work on the relationship or deal with arguments. In "escaping" from the relationship and the chains upon his feet, he is expecting to find the perfect relationship to take its place, but realizes this is unrealistic and can’t figure out why he thinks this way. The last verse, "If you could read my mind, love, what a tale my thoughts could tell Just like an old time movie, 'bout a ghost from a wishing well In a castle dark or a fortress strong with chains upon my feet But stories always end And if you read between the lines, you'll know that I'm just trying to understand The feelings that you lack I never thought I could feel this way and I've got to say that I just don't get it I don't know where we went wrong but the feeling's gone and I just can't get it back." Relationships, like stories, come to an end. He uses an interesting tactic to show the abrupt end - unlike the first verse where he finishes the thought, he interrupts the verse to say “but stories always end.” He can’t understand how she doesn’t care anymore, in the powerful line, " And if you read between the lines, you'll know that I'm just trying to understand the feelings that you lack." This is oh so representative of the lack of clear communication in so many relationships. We sit there, feeling so many things that we just can't express. And we wish that the other person could just read our mind and understand us. But our pride gets in the way. And we are silent. Then those feelings gradually fade and we can't understand where they went or how our relationship went wrong.

“You know that ghost is me” wow! He’s trapped with chains in a dungeon. He’s trapped in a relationship. So incredibly well done! Masterpiece for sure!

Bob Dylans favourite singer/songwriter was Gordon Lightfoot and he also inducted Gord into the Canadian songwriter hall of fame. Gord was a legend in the music industry. Thanks for sharing this great song.

"Because the ending's just took hard to take." - Gordon Lightfoot It's one of those lyrics those resonates over and over again.

Gordon Lightfoot...one of the greatest songwriters of our time. Period.

"I don't know where we went wrong... but the feeling's gone... and I just can't get it back." One of the greatest lines ever written.

Professor of Rock recently did a deep dive into the background to, and lyrics from this song…as they related directly to Gordon’s breakup. Rick Beato has also done two superb deep dives into the music/instrumentation. It’s a masterpiece…you will really understand the rest of the lyrics if you watch PoR’s lyric breakdown! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-WVb8njr_Djw.html

S tier. Hard to imagine a more perfect song. Emotional, phenomenal lyrics, beautiful strings in sync with the guitar and Gordon's soaring vocals.

A ghost haunts. It’s trapped in time without even being aware of it. It can’t move on. He feels like he haunts their relationship, is trapped and can’t move on. That’s how I interpret it anyway.

S Tier 70s classic. So many of his lyrics are poetry by themselves. To have these with music takes it to a whole another level.

His entire catalogue is phenomenal. Amazing lyricist and storyteller.

S tier for me. Even the roughest man, if he had heartbreak, will tear up to this.

My favorite of Gordon Lightfoot’s incredible catalog of hits!

Lightfoot wrote this song after his divorce from his first wife of several years. Expressed his sense of loss. He was formally musically trained from childhood though post high school.

This is an S for me all day long. It makes me cry every single time, it hits so hard.

S tier 🤩 - and about as great a lyric as there is about heartbreak. Alex, don’t be so quick to judge a lyric that you maybe don’t understand the first time thru 😘

RIP Gordon, such a beautiful voice and vibe.

S tier for me. Haunting,powerful lyrics and performance RIP

What a great song ❗️ (( I’m 62 years old - love your channel.📻😁))

In interviews he gave in recent years, including for a full length documentary, Lightfoot expressed regret for the way he acted during his first marriage, explaining how he had been too intense and emotional - and therefore unpredictable. He wrote this song in the wake of the failure of this first marriage. PS - Next, try Care Free Highway.

This song was 'covered' by over a one hundred well known artists. A popular song for decades. Mystery, romance, spiritual and more. Our Canadian treasure R I P

He builds this song up so well. Small crescendos and swells to match the emotions of the lyrics. Always loved this tune. What a legend! RIP Gordon.

As a rule, I'm not big on folk artists, but Gordon Lightfoot is profound to me.

This song gets better every time you hear it. I have probably heard it hundreds if not thousands of times over the years, and I have not tired of it.

My Dad, also Gordon, had several records by this great Canadian, so when I grew up in the the 1970's, the songs of Lightfoot were part of life. My Dad and I did see G'Gl. at a local theatre in our local Ohio, in 2017. Lightfoot still had a good voice, yet he was more physically frail, like my Dad was,...a fine concert. I really wanted for G.L. to get into the Rock Hall, in his lifetime, he was such a fine musician, and very respected. My Dad, Gordon has Dementia, now, and when Lightfoot died. a few months ago, my Dad cried.

The more you hear this song the more you really feel how beautiful and powerful it is. Musically and lyrically.

What a group of sensitive, articulate listeners in the comment section today! I agree with all. This is one of my all time favorite songs. Rest in Peace dear Gordon💔

he was such an amazing songwriter/performer. One of those people that transcend musical boundary lines and brings in fans from all walks of life.

The last time we saw as much in the way of public tributes and mourning in Canada for a musical artist was back in January 2020, when Neil Peart passed. Here's a clip from one of the news pieces that came out after Lightfoot's death at the start of May of this year: 'Dylan said that his fellow singer died “without ever having made a bad song,' and every time he listened to one of them, he 'wished it would last forever.' When the ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ singer recorded his album ‘John Wesley Harding’, he tried to emulate the sound of Lightfoot - without success, as he himself acknowledged to Rolling Stone in 1969. 'I thought if he could get that sound, I could. But we couldn’t get it,' Dylan lamented at the time. Lightfoot’s music has also been covered by Neil Young, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Grateful Dead, Barbra Streisand, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Eric Clapton - to name a few, and The Band great Robbie Robertson has called Lightfoot 'a cultural treasure of the Canadian nation.'"

"Ghost in a tower", in this song he's talking about a divorce. About living in the same house with someone that doesn't seem "to see" you anymore, it's super sad and it happens.

The guitar, the strings, the lyrics, the melody... 10/10. One of my favorites.

S tier guys. I'll be 70 Friday. Saw him do it live. The best, most intimate concert I've ever been to. Alex, aren't goose bumps A+ or S? I wanted to be him. The beautiful voice & guitar. Lyrics as well. A? Guess you had to be there to appreciate his place in music history.

C'mon, guys, don't downgrade a song just because you don't understand lyrics or because they don't resonate with you. That's YOUR problem, not the songwriter's.

Gordon Lightfoot and Drake lived on the same street in the Bridle Path in Toronto, and heard on the radio shortly after Gordon’s passing that he was the first one to visit Drake after building his mansion. Many generations apart but music brought them together

Another great classic by Canada’s finest. Gordon was one of the greatest songwriters of all time!

I’d recommend reading the lyrics and going back to it again. It’s S tier for me but I’m also 49. I wonder if this one may deepen over time for you.

To me, his use of long phrasing and cadence in the chorus brings forth the feeling of when you're unloading something that's been bothering you for a very long time. It's too late, the dam has broken, and it all comes flooding out at once, with barely time to breathe.

Alex, a wishing well is where you toss coins and make wishes for the future, so a ghost from a wishing well would be those wishes, those hopes and dreams, half-remembered, never to be fully realized. Loved your analogy about water in a coffee cup of sand. Lovely!

The strings still give me chills 35 years later !

Early Morning Rain is Lightfoot's first great song usually available in a 70's re-recording, a masterpiece about being hungover, exhausted and no place to go.

Such a touching song. So many childhood memories. Carefree Highway is one of my absolute faves. ❤️✌🏻

I've been familiar with this song since I was a kid in the 70's. My mom had Gord's Gold on vinyl. Only after I grew up and had failed relationships did I finally really understand this awesome song. I consider it on par with Sundown as far as Gordon's songwriting and lyrics go.

As so many have pointed out here, this is definitely an S tier song for me and many others. There are more than a couple of lines that get me in the heart every time and probably always will because of past relationships.

Should be an S. This song is so iconic and without doubt his finest song. I think as you listen to this again, you might agree.

This is lyrically one of the most beautiful breakup songs I've ever heard. I love how the narrator really can't describe his feeling, tries using movies, novels, all these types of fiction that he knows to get there, but they all fall short of the real thing. To be honest, I was thinking A&A had heard it. I voted for something else, but I'm glad you had this reaction and am looking forward to Chicago!!!

One of the most beautiful songs ever written....S-tier for me 💔💓💓💓

What about its melodic qualities and the guitar playing? They have a hauntingly sad essence that his voice just matches to perfection. I think this song goes beyond rational understanding, to the soul of an emotional loss. I think it's an s

The lyrics convey so clearly and poetically how deeply he understands what he nonetheless does not really understand. The song is a profound expression of that paradox.

One of the greatest songwriters/storytellers ever

My partner introduced me to this song, and I thought it was beautiful but sad. Now that he's an ex, it pulls my heart right out of my chest. "..but the feeling's gone, and I just can't get it back" absolutely breaks me, every time.

Gordon explains the ghost analogy in the next line, "I will never be set free as long as I'm a ghost that you can't see." When I first heard this song nearly 50 years ago, that line made me burst into tears, because I was deeply in love and deeply in the closet, and I not only couldn't tell the person, I absolutely didn't dare say or do ANYTHING that would make people suspect my sexual orientation. In those days and in that part of the country, you could get murdered, and no charges would be pressed. That line still makes me pinch my eyes and contort my brow, hearing it again. Glad you found it.

This is like...S...all day...all eras. What almost all songwriters hope to achieve.

One of the greatest ever written

For me, this has always been one of the most beautiful tunes of this era, so melodic, excellently composed musically, also so melancholy. I consider it on par with S&G "The Boxer", "Homeward Bound", "Scarborough Fair", Don McClean's masterpiece "Vincent", and even some of Bob Dylan's tunes.

I see SO many comments on here saying that you need to be older to truly appreciate this song. I was in high school when this song was released, and I loved it immediately. Did I need to be married and have a breakup to "get it"? No, I didn't. This became my favorite GL song, and one of my Top 10 favorite songs of all time. I would've given this song an "S" back in 1970-1971.

Such a beautiful and heartbreaking song. Gordon is the best at giving goosebumps.

The emotions that the string evoke are palpable.

I absolutely cannot listen to this song without shedding a few tears. The melody and GL’s incredible voice. 🥲

Story for so many..."I don't know where we went wrong, but the feeling's gone...and I just can't get it back!"

One of my top 10 for life. Gordon Lightfoot is one of the very best at expressing emotions in a song. Incredible writing & performance.

S Tier for sure. His haunting, deep words will hit you with future listenings and reflection. His epic true tale, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, should be your next song by Gordon then Carefree Highway and The Circle is Small.

Still brings me to tears. S tier all day.

When this came out in 1970 I was 12 years old. This song is way over my 12 year old brain. It wasn't until I hit my 40s that I could really relate and appreciate great music like this. Gordon Lightfoot is a treasure. "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" still give me chills no matter how many times I've listening to it.

For anyone who has ever had a frustrating relationship, Gord hits the nail on the head with this one. I was just a kid when it came out, so I couldn't understand the lyrics. But I knew enough about music even then to know that it was a beautiful song. I'm a big fan of songs with strings in them so of course, this one is perfect. The beautiful acoustic guitar just meshes so well with the strings and the sensitive lyrics. Gord has never put a foot wrong in my eyes. S tier for sure!

Lightfoot wrote this with several years left in the marriage to his first wife, Brita Ingegerd Olaisson, a marriage doomed by Gordon's habitual cheating with other women while he was touring, something he later talked about. When he wrote the song, alone in a home in Toronto because his wife didn't want to be with him, he was speaking from a place of pain but also a place that obscured him from the truth: he blamed her for their struggling marriage even though he had been the serial cheater. So he felt invisible to her -- that is why he refers to himself as a ghost, and one that is chained because their dying relationship would linger another couple of years before their divorce. He only gained insight on the truth years later and at the urging of their daughter. He then, at her request, changed a key lyric when he performed: "And if you read between the lines, You'd know that I'm just tryin' to understand. The feelin's that YOU lack." Gordon changed that to "The feelin's that WE lack."

Rick Beato does a great breakdown of this song. Well worth checking out. If there was an S+ tier, this would be in it.

Lightfoot wrote this song about the breakup of his first marriage. It is 100% authentic and truly heartfelt. I saw him live in concert (the first of six times over the years) right after he released this song. His live shows were always great. I agree with others who have rated this song S tier. One of the best from a songwriter with a vast catalogue of really great songs. RIP, Gordon.

The 60’s and 70’s produced the best songwriters! Great music with lyrics that paint a picture!

The Ghost allegory describes the anguish of enduring the agony of being imprisoned by the overwhelming longing for a lost love to whom you are invisible. Like many, this song became more beautiful and evocative to me many years after it came out. It is one of the most covered tunes, and I couldn't even begin to venture how many times, but countless big name artists covered this. I also know that it was #1 in Canada....I can see the A rating, but let's talk after a few more listens. If You Could Read My Mind is S tier for me now.

This song is almost the exemplar for all other singer-songwriter S-Tier songs.

An event involving this song demonstrates how much of a decent, standup guy Lightfoot was. The songwriters of Whitney Huston's "Greatest Love Of All" were sued for lifting 24 bars from "If You Could Read My Mind". Huston was up for a grammy that year and when Lightfoot learned the lawsuit was beginning to blow back on her personally and jeopardizing her shot at the grammy, he withdrew the lawsuit so her reputation and chances at the grammy weren't damaged. Lightfoot truly was a man of great character.

I think the "ghost" is about the feeling of being invisible to the person you love, trapped and no longer able to connect, but also unable to let go.

Gordon is my most favorite singer, songwriter, and guitar player. My favorite of his songs are not the commercial radio hits. Songs like "Circle of Steel", "Marie Christine" and "Summertime of Life". Live he was amazing. That's where his guitar was most amazing especially when he played his Gibson 12-string. All his songs are classics to me. Great reaction.

Watch Rick Beato's analysis of the string arrangement on this song. The instrumentation is absolutely perfect.

Another poetic song is "Diamonds and Rust" by Joan Baez. It's full of references to her one-time lover/friend/partner, Bob Dylan.

Rest in Peace Mr. Lightfoot.