Albany NY review
 

http://blog.timesunion.com/localarts...e-51912/23262/

Gordon Lightfoot at the Palace Theatre, 5/19/12

May 20, 2012 at 12:39 am by Greg Haymes
By GREG HAYMES

ALBANY – Standing in the spotlight at the Palace Theatre on Saturday night, Canadian troubadour Gordon Lightfoot spun his magnificent musical tales of shipwrecks and trains and love won and lost. But his most poignant performance of the evening came midway through the first of his two 50-minute sets when he sang “A Painter Passing Through,” a heartwrenching, nostalgic tale of fame that is all in the past.

“Once upon a time, once a upon a day,” he sang. “When I was in my prime, once along the way. If you want to know an answer, I can’t turn your life around, for I am just a painter passing through the underground.”

It was a moment of wonderfully wistful reflection of past and rapidly fading glories.

Even Lightfoot’s most devoted fans – and it certainly seemed as though quite a number of them were in attendance on Saturday – have to admit that his voice is the proverbial shadow of its former self. It has been for quite a while now, but the fans still keep coming out. And Lightfoot graciously obliges them, doing the best that he can. He booming baritone has been reduced to little more than a hoarse whisper. At the Palace, he strained to hit the high notes. Sometimes – most notably on “Shadows” and “Cotton Jenny” – he didn’t quite make it. But more often than not, he somehow managed to weave his magic.

The jazzy blues of “Make Way for the Lady” sounded more than a bit out of place amid Lightfoot’s vintage folk faves. And new guitarist Carter Lancaster - replacing Terry Clements, who died last year after four decades as Lightfoot’s six-string right-hand man – faithfully recreated the recorded guitar leads, but only rarely seemed to step out and make them his own.

The truth of the matter is that it isn’t the guitar solos or even Lightfoot’s voice that carried the show. Rather it was Lightfoot’s simply magnificent songwriting. It’s easy to forget just how many fabulous songs he’s written over the course of his long career. Opening with the one-two punch of “Did She Mention My Name” and “Carefree Highway,” Lightfoot and his unobtrusive four-piece backing band worked their way through the first set, and although there

were a few rough patches vocally, Lightfoot nailed nuggets like “Let It Ride,” the lush “Beautiful,” the snaking blues-tinged sing-along “Sundown” and the epic set-closer ”Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”

And Lightfoot came back for the second set with a renewed strength, and he took command of such gems as “Early Morning Rain,” “The Minstrel of the Dawn,” ”If You Could Read My Mind” and the show-closing classic “Canadian Railroad Trilogy.”

Next month, Gordon Lightfoot will be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and after listening to him at the Palace, you can only wonder why it took so long.

Gordon Lightfoot

When: 8 p.m. Saturday

Where: The Palace Theatre, 19 Clinton Ave., Albany

Musical highlights: “A Painter Passing Through,” “Canadian Railroad Trilogy,” “Restless”

Length: Two 50 minute sets; no opening act

Re: Albany NY review
 

I just got back from another great Lightfoot weekend! Gord said several times that it had been 10 years since he'd been at the Palace Theater, but I find that almost impossible to believe! I know I've been to that theater twice before, but was shocked to hear it had been 10 years.
I find the Palace doesn't have the intimacy that some other theater have, mostly because the orchestra pit is not used, almost like a moat in front of the stage! It is the grandest theater I had been in in the last 4 shows though. It was evident right from the begining, that the sound was great. I could hear every little ping, and note, and I was pleased. I thought the sound the night before in Northampton to be a bit lacking.
The crowd was ready to have fun, and were encouraged to sing along by the president who did the introduction. Yikes! People did, but at the appropriate times, and it was nice.
Gord stepped out right on time and started with:
Did She Mention my Name
Carefree Highway
Sea of Tranquility
Never Too Close
14 Karat Gold
A Painter Passing Through
Let it Ride
Rainy Day People
Shadows
Beautiful
The Watchman's Gone
Ribbon of Darkness
Sundown
Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Intermission

Sweet Gunivere
Cotton Jenney
Early Morning Rain
Restless
Home From the Forest
Waiting for You
at this point Gord started singing Sweet Bessy from Pike!
The Minstrel of the Dawn
Make Way for the Lady
If You Could Read My Mind he recieved a standing ovation after this. What am I going to follow this up with?
Don Quixote
Baby Step Back
Canadian Railroad Trilogy
Encore
In My Fashion

This was my 120 concert! It was good to see Mark Mason, who I first met at a GL concert many years ago. We got to spend some time together, and shared some new jokes!

Re: Albany NY review
 

it's terrific to hear this from someone who has heard so many Gord concerts live...glad you're enjoying/enjoyed your latest Gord binge and thanks for sharing some of it with us:) cheers, Jenney