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imported_Next_Saturday · 05-14-2007, 09:41 AM

And another entry--sounds like GL has revised his former approach to Vegas:
http://www.corfid.com/vbb/showthread...461#post115461
January 14, 2007

GORDON LIGHTFOOT | CIRCLES
-
First of all, thanks to all of you who have written so far about which C&T songs you would like to hear us do in concert. It has been absolutely fascinating to both of us to read your comments and preferences. I was particularly heartened to find that so many of you would like to us to do songs I wrote, such as LOVE ME LIKE A BABY, HONEY COME LOVE ME, DEEP IN THE DARK, CIRCLES, BUTTERSCOTCH CASTLE, BABY YOU’VE STILL GOT IT, KEEPING OUR LOVE WARM, and others. I have been passing your requests on to Daryl, who is keeping a list of your most requested songs. And, of course, we would definitely do the hits... LOVE WILL KEEP US TOGETHER, SHOP AROUND, MUSKRAT LOVE, DO THAT TO ME ONE MORE TIME, etc.
-
We know that most audiences ALWAYS come to hear the artist’s hits. Which reminds me of the time Daryl and I went to see Gordon Lightfoot in concert in Las Vegas, of all places. Gordon, a Canadian, is a brilliant songwriter, and Daryl and I used to perform some of his songs when we worked at The Smokehouse in Encino, California in 1972-74. Some of my favorite songs by Gordon are IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND, BEAUTIFUL, and THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW YOUR FACE. Gordon also has a very distinctive voice, rather plaintive and melancholy.
-
It was VERY unusual to have a performer of Gordon’s “hipness” perform in Las Vegas at that time... it was in the late 1970s, I believe. Any venue in Vegas was considered “plastic” and “square” for pop artists then, so most of us avoided it like the plague, trying to stay away from the “stigma” of Vegas. It actually seems stupid to me now that we even concerned ourselves with stuff like that. However, Daryl and I were VERY surprised to learn that Gordon would be performing there. But we really wanted to see him in concert, so we booked our reservations, and were there in the audience along with all of his fans who had made the trek to Vegas to see him.
-
I don’t know how many of you have ever seen a classic Las Vegas show, but at that time the shows were very UP UP UP and moved right along at a fast and furious clip, stopping only now and then for the accasional ballad. The audience’s attention was never allowed to waiver for one second!
-
After we waited almost 45 minutes for Gordon’s show to begin (shows are NEVER late in Vegas... they want YOU out in the casino, gambling your money away for as long as possible), the showroom lights dimmed, and the announcer said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Gordon Lightfoot.” The audience responded with thunderous applause and excited anticipation. Gordon slowly strolled onstage, very casually dressed in jeans (absolutely NO Vegas glitz or glam), his eyes on his band, not even glancing at the audience. When he reached center stage, he TURNED HIS BACK TO THE AUDIENCE AND TUNED HIS GUITAR for what seemed like an eternity! All of us in the audience maintained a respectful but uncomfortable silence while the tuning was going on.
-
Finally, he turned to the audience, and started playing the intro to a tune none of us had ever heard before. It turned out to be from his just-released album, and, of course it was a very good song... as all of his are.... but it was unfamiliar to most of us. After the song was over, the audience applauded politely, expecting Gordon to then break into one of his hits. Instead, he played seven brand new songs from the new album, and he rarely spoke to the audience at all. By this time, people were grumbling and muttering to themselves, and some were leaving.
-
In my case, I had been wondering how Gordon would approach his Vegas concert, and if he would make any changes because of the venue. Well, he didn’t. He played it just like any of his concerts. And as a consequence, he lost his Vegas audience. He finally played several of his hits, but by that time all was lost. He never played Vegas again, and I don’t blame him. It wasn’t his style, and he didn’t NEED to play there. His concerts were always packed with music lovers... not necessarily gamblers!
-
Today it seems that EVERYBODY plays Vegas. The “stigma” is pretty much gone. It is just a convenient place for performing artists to reach a wide audience of people from all around the country and the world.

05-14-2007, 09:41 AM	#5
imported_Next_Saturday Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Posts: 443	And another entry--sounds like GL has revised his former approach to Vegas: http://www.corfid.com/vbb/showthread...461#post115461 January 14, 2007 GORDON LIGHTFOOT \| CIRCLES - First of all, thanks to all of you who have written so far about which C&T songs you would like to hear us do in concert. It has been absolutely fascinating to both of us to read your comments and preferences. I was particularly heartened to find that so many of you would like to us to do songs I wrote, such as LOVE ME LIKE A BABY, HONEY COME LOVE ME, DEEP IN THE DARK, CIRCLES, BUTTERSCOTCH CASTLE, BABY YOU’VE STILL GOT IT, KEEPING OUR LOVE WARM, and others. I have been passing your requests on to Daryl, who is keeping a list of your most requested songs. And, of course, we would definitely do the hits... LOVE WILL KEEP US TOGETHER, SHOP AROUND, MUSKRAT LOVE, DO THAT TO ME ONE MORE TIME, etc. - We know that most audiences ALWAYS come to hear the artist’s hits. Which reminds me of the time Daryl and I went to see Gordon Lightfoot in concert in Las Vegas, of all places. Gordon, a Canadian, is a brilliant songwriter, and Daryl and I used to perform some of his songs when we worked at The Smokehouse in Encino, California in 1972-74. Some of my favorite songs by Gordon are IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND, BEAUTIFUL, and THE FIRST TIME EVER I SAW YOUR FACE. Gordon also has a very distinctive voice, rather plaintive and melancholy. - It was VERY unusual to have a performer of Gordon’s “hipness” perform in Las Vegas at that time... it was in the late 1970s, I believe. Any venue in Vegas was considered “plastic” and “square” for pop artists then, so most of us avoided it like the plague, trying to stay away from the “stigma” of Vegas. It actually seems stupid to me now that we even concerned ourselves with stuff like that. However, Daryl and I were VERY surprised to learn that Gordon would be performing there. But we really wanted to see him in concert, so we booked our reservations, and were there in the audience along with all of his fans who had made the trek to Vegas to see him. - I don’t know how many of you have ever seen a classic Las Vegas show, but at that time the shows were very UP UP UP and moved right along at a fast and furious clip, stopping only now and then for the accasional ballad. The audience’s attention was never allowed to waiver for one second! - After we waited almost 45 minutes for Gordon’s show to begin (shows are NEVER late in Vegas... they want YOU out in the casino, gambling your money away for as long as possible), the showroom lights dimmed, and the announcer said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. Gordon Lightfoot.” The audience responded with thunderous applause and excited anticipation. Gordon slowly strolled onstage, very casually dressed in jeans (absolutely NO Vegas glitz or glam), his eyes on his band, not even glancing at the audience. When he reached center stage, he TURNED HIS BACK TO THE AUDIENCE AND TUNED HIS GUITAR for what seemed like an eternity! All of us in the audience maintained a respectful but uncomfortable silence while the tuning was going on. - Finally, he turned to the audience, and started playing the intro to a tune none of us had ever heard before. It turned out to be from his just-released album, and, of course it was a very good song... as all of his are.... but it was unfamiliar to most of us. After the song was over, the audience applauded politely, expecting Gordon to then break into one of his hits. Instead, he played seven brand new songs from the new album, and he rarely spoke to the audience at all. By this time, people were grumbling and muttering to themselves, and some were leaving. - In my case, I had been wondering how Gordon would approach his Vegas concert, and if he would make any changes because of the venue. Well, he didn’t. He played it just like any of his concerts. And as a consequence, he lost his Vegas audience. He finally played several of his hits, but by that time all was lost. He never played Vegas again, and I don’t blame him. It wasn’t his style, and he didn’t NEED to play there. His concerts were always packed with music lovers... not necessarily gamblers! - Today it seems that EVERYBODY plays Vegas. The “stigma” is pretty much gone. It is just a convenient place for performing artists to reach a wide audience of people from all around the country and the world.