Gordon Lightfoot Forums - View Single Post

TheWatchman · 03-06-2005, 10:38 AM

What I am saying is that getting a voice back into shape from not singing is entirely different then trying to fix a voice that has been affected by smoking for 4+ decades. A lot of damage is done in 40 years. Now add on singing for that same amount of time. And let's face it, Gord throughout the years has strained his voice to hit certain notes. This all takes a toll. Look at Rod Stewart and what he did to his voice because of all the years of straining to hit notes out of his range. Gord's was not nearly as obvious but nonetheless he strained his voice back then and does even moreso today. From Salute to Harmony the straining to hit certain notes is undeniable. This is not good for someone's voice.

It's irrelevant to compare a phone operators voice at a hospital to a professional singer such as Lightfoot.

More times than not, when smoking has affected someone's voice so dramatically as is the case with Lightfoot, the damage is done. We are not just talking about a deep gravely voice, we are talking about a thin, gravely voice. The gravely sound maybe can go away but the thin sound that we hear is evidence of permanent damage to his vocal chords. Some people when they smoke their voice get's deeper, but once too much damage has been done, the voice get's higher, such as the case with Lightfoot.

Here's an example. Mark Knopfler smoked for many, many years. If you follow Mark's career since the conception of Dire Straits until present day, it is the opposite of Lightfoot. During the early DS years, Mark's voice was somewhat deep, but more of an adolescent sound to it. I'm talking about back in the 70's. As he got older, his voice got even deeper. This is normal for most people but being that he smoked, he had a bit of a rasp mixed in with his voice naturally getting deeper. Since he quit smoking in 2000, his voice smoothed out a lot and is still is very deep. The exact opposite of Gordon. Maybe a lot has to do with the way they sing and how that can affect the voice too.

When SDYS came out, Gord's voice was phenominal. He started out with a deep, velvetly smooth voice that was one of the best ever, hands down. Throughout the years of abuse to that voice, it took it's toll and that's what we hear today.

Again, I enjoy Gord's voice as it is today more then any other musician out there. It's Lightfoot and he could make the phonebook sound interesting if he sang it. I agree with Laurel that he is a poet and the words are equally as important if not more than the sound of his voice. After all, it's the images that he's given us that keeps us listening to 20 year old LP's and enjoying them as much as when we first listened to them.

My opinion is that Gord when in his prime had a better voice then anyone and was in a league all to himself. To me his voice up until Salute was perfect in every way possible. There is no voice that I have ever heard that I like more. Okay, life happens and he lost some of it. What is left of that perfect voice is still far better then most others. All one has to do is attend one of his concerts. He sounds far better live then on any CD. I've seen him about 12 times in concert since WFY came out and always left wanting more.

[This message has been edited by TheWatchman (edited March 06, 2005).]

03-06-2005, 10:38 AM	#11
TheWatchman Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Columbia, Maryland Posts: 930	What I am saying is that getting a voice back into shape from not singing is entirely different then trying to fix a voice that has been affected by smoking for 4+ decades. A lot of damage is done in 40 years. Now add on singing for that same amount of time. And let's face it, Gord throughout the years has strained his voice to hit certain notes. This all takes a toll. Look at Rod Stewart and what he did to his voice because of all the years of straining to hit notes out of his range. Gord's was not nearly as obvious but nonetheless he strained his voice back then and does even moreso today. From Salute to Harmony the straining to hit certain notes is undeniable. This is not good for someone's voice. It's irrelevant to compare a phone operators voice at a hospital to a professional singer such as Lightfoot. More times than not, when smoking has affected someone's voice so dramatically as is the case with Lightfoot, the damage is done. We are not just talking about a deep gravely voice, we are talking about a thin, gravely voice. The gravely sound maybe can go away but the thin sound that we hear is evidence of permanent damage to his vocal chords. Some people when they smoke their voice get's deeper, but once too much damage has been done, the voice get's higher, such as the case with Lightfoot. Here's an example. Mark Knopfler smoked for many, many years. If you follow Mark's career since the conception of Dire Straits until present day, it is the opposite of Lightfoot. During the early DS years, Mark's voice was somewhat deep, but more of an adolescent sound to it. I'm talking about back in the 70's. As he got older, his voice got even deeper. This is normal for most people but being that he smoked, he had a bit of a rasp mixed in with his voice naturally getting deeper. Since he quit smoking in 2000, his voice smoothed out a lot and is still is very deep. The exact opposite of Gordon. Maybe a lot has to do with the way they sing and how that can affect the voice too. When SDYS came out, Gord's voice was phenominal. He started out with a deep, velvetly smooth voice that was one of the best ever, hands down. Throughout the years of abuse to that voice, it took it's toll and that's what we hear today. Again, I enjoy Gord's voice as it is today more then any other musician out there. It's Lightfoot and he could make the phonebook sound interesting if he sang it. I agree with Laurel that he is a poet and the words are equally as important if not more than the sound of his voice. After all, it's the images that he's given us that keeps us listening to 20 year old LP's and enjoying them as much as when we first listened to them. My opinion is that Gord when in his prime had a better voice then anyone and was in a league all to himself. To me his voice up until Salute was perfect in every way possible. There is no voice that I have ever heard that I like more. Okay, life happens and he lost some of it. What is left of that perfect voice is still far better then most others. All one has to do is attend one of his concerts. He sounds far better live then on any CD. I've seen him about 12 times in concert since WFY came out and always left wanting more. [This message has been edited by TheWatchman (edited March 06, 2005).]