Thanks for the replies, I hope to hear a lot more on this. sandyo, I'm from your neck of the woods, I was born in Connecticut, I lived near Boston for a year, and I go to school near Albany, NY. Your story about getting hooked on GL is exactly like mine, and like you, his music will be with me the rest of my life. And Frank V (that's a capital "V"), you are right that the music crosses all boundaries and can be loved by all.
The thought just occurred to me that it's not that hard for non-Canadians to relate to some of the Canadian things that Gord sings about. Take for instance all the songs that speak of the Canadian countryside. Sure, Canada has its own unique landscape, but in general we all have similar sights to see in our countries. So we can well imagine "resting in the shade of a maple tree...saying a prayer to the blue ______ sky" wherever your blue sky might be.
But take a song that is rich in Canadian heritage. The quintessential example is CRT. Now I can relate quite a bit and when I listen to it, a flood of imagery comes to mind. I don't know a thing about it except for the lyrics of that song (which are quite comprehensive, I've read), but the experience was probably a lot like the building of the American transcontinental railroad and others.
What I really want to know is do Canadian fans feel that others are simply at a disadvantage in really taking all of it to heart? Now please don't get offended by that, I don't mean to imply that Canadians would be arrogant about GL being Canadian. In fact, I think I can safely say that Canadians are among the nicest and most modest (but still proud, of course, as they should be) people in the world. So please continue to contribute to this discussion.
Chris
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"...life is only therapy, real expensive and no guarantees."
- GB
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