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Cincinnati.Com » The Enquirer » Entertainment » Gordon Lightfoot steps out again
Last Updated: 5:49 am | Friday, March 14, 2008
Gordon Lightfoot steps out again
After overcoming a disastrous illness, he's back on tour
BY PAUL CLARK |
PCLARK@ENQUIRER.COM
Gordon Lightfoot left heavy footprints on the pop charts during the 1970s with such hits as “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Rainy Day People,” “Carefree Highway” and “Sundown.” We caught up with the singer-songwriter, now 69, in conjunction with his April 4 appearance at the Aronoff.
Your most recent album, “Harmony,” came out four years ago, but it was something of a departure for you.
That album was an afterthought. I had an illness and did it independently.
I read that you were in a coma for several weeks.
That was at the beginning, but the illness kept me down for two years.
It was an abdominal problem?
It was a burst artery which caused an abdominal hemorrhage. The leak came from the aorta.
How are you feeling these days?
Good. They totally rearranged my entire lower section. The album turned out well. They’re rough tracks, though they’re really fresh.
Do you have a record deal now?
I don’t want a record deal. My last one ended in 1998. I’d had a record deal since 1965, 31 years when I just ate and slept songwriting, on deadline throughout. I did 19 original albums – the 20th was the independent one.
Any plans to do more recording?
No, not really. We’re having a wonderful time doing shows, 50-60 shows all over North America. We’re doing 10 shows in 12 days on the tour that includes Cincinnati. We have three more tours coming up this year. Between them we charge our batteries, look after our families and our responsibilities.
Of all the artists who have covered your songs, which covers do you like most?
There are seven or eight who stand out. Elvis, Barbra Streisand, Dylan; Peter, Paul and Mary. The Kingston Trio, even. They did a version of “Early Morning Rain.”
What singers or songwriters do you think you’ve influenced?
There are a few who’ve said I’ve influenced them, but probably no one luminous.
You started out in jazz; what led you into folk singing?
I got interested during the big folk revival. The folk boom was under way about 1960, ’61. I started playing guitar when I was 15. My big influences were Pete Seeger, the Weavers and a lesser-known guy named Bob Gibson.
What sort of mix will you have in your Cincinnati show?
We do (the hit songs) but I don’t have to lay that on too thick. People expect to hear them. We usually try to field a couple of requests.
Humorists have parodied and otherwise poked fun at “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” with Dave Barry among those who’ve called it one of the worst songs of all time. What’s your reaction?
You can tell them that at least it’s in chronological order. I did my research.
Any projects in the works other than the tours?
There’s an Imax movie coming out in May, “Mysteries of the Great Lakes.” “Edmund Fitzgerald” is on it.
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IMAX has this at their site for Sept.2008
http://www.imax.com/ImaxWeb/filmDeta...D=code__.__482