Hi, all,
Going back on these posts, I'll try and clear up a few of the questions you have. First of all, Catherine, you're right. Gord quit drinking in 1982. I saw him in concert that year at Concord Pavillion and he made an announcement that he had stopped drinking officially and had been sober (at that time) for six months. He got quite a cheer from the audience and seemed very pleased at the reaction. So, I don't think Elizabeth played a part in that because, as you said, she didn't come into the picture until several years later. (When you were mentioning how Gord likes to thank people on his album jackets, if you look, Elizabeth and Miles were not mentioned until the "Waiting For You" album which came out after a very long dry spell of no records from him at all. He seemed to have disappeared from the face of the earth.)
He stopped drinking before the "Salute" album came out. In fact, at the same time he made his announcement that he had stopped drinking (in Concord), he also made the announcement that his newest album "Salute" would be released shortly. (And he added wryly that he hoped "THIS album wouldn't be one of the best kept secrets in the country"). If you look on the back of "Salute", you will see that he was still giving thanks to Cathy (Coonley) and Eric.
So, I'm sure Elizabeth hadn't come along yet. Cathy tried very hard to get him to stop drinking and finally had to leave because she didn't want her son to be raised in that kind of environment. It was her leaving him that actually was his wake-up call and he did stop. But he was always good to Cathy and had Eric with him every weekend. They tried to get back together, but for some reason, it didn't happen. To this day, Gord and Cathy are still close and Eric has his own band (HIP-HOP of all things! -- lol). Gord, of course, helps him out. Rob, the woman you were talking about who laid down the law to him, was, I think Cathy.
But he DOES have a cottage in the north country (his inspiration for "Boathouse", by the way.), but he claimed just recently (in Santa Rosa) he bought that to "amuse his little family". And he had long quit drinking by then.
As for a wife who passed away, I'm pretty sure that's not true. Britta was his first wife. She never remarried. She was with him through the tough times when he was trying to break into the music business. She was from Sweden.
Dan, to answer your question, Gord was married to Britta (Olaisson) and they had two children, Fred and Ingrid. I haven't done the math, but they are grown now. Ingrid has children of her own, so Gord is a grandfather. He doesn't speak much about Fred. He has a son, Eric, who is eighteen. Cathy Coonley is Eric's mother. He is currently married to Elizabeth (Moon) and they have two children, Miles who is seven or eight and Meredith who is around five.
Now that I've put you all to sleep, I'll stop my motor mouth (or my motor fingers.)
Stay loose, eh?
LAMS
"Love and maple syrup go together like ..... well, you know!
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