Something is wrong!

Somethings not right, because no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to get into the album Harmony. None of the songs on there sound bad or anything, but I haven't fallen in love with any of them, which is unnatural, because by now I'd have fallen in love with at least one song. It was always so with the other new albums I purchased. There are only 4 reasons I can think of to explain this.

1. Only a week or so before I'd gotten the Back Here On Earth/Did She Mention My Name and the Salute albums. And with all the new songs I've been to busy to really give Harmony a listen.

2. Perhaps, for the 1st time ever, I'm just too young and too imateur to understand Gords music.

3. I'm not currently in love or having love problems anymore(because I'm out of school and don't have to attend the same class as that girl) and that albums deals with a lot about love. If it had been released a month earlier I probably wouldn't be having a problem getting into the album.

4. GL is simply losing his touch(and I know d*mn well this is not the case, because for one thing, he is Gordon Lightfoot, and another thing, all of you wouldn't like this album so much if he were, so this can't be it. Perhaps I'm just not used to this new type of writing style he uses on this album.

[brink]

So you have narrowed it down to three reasons.

[Brian 57]

Maybe it's because there aren't any "bird calls" (like your other topic about Salute)

I just think it's because your still ramping up to your prime and others of us find that Gord has matured with us.

[Cathy]

quote:Originally posted by DMD3:
Somethings not right, because no matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to get into the album Harmony. None of the songs on there sound bad or anything, but I haven't fallen in love with any of them, which is unnatural, because by now I'd have fallen in love with at least one song. It was always so with the other new albums I purchased. There are only 4 reasons I can think of to explain this.

1. Only a week or so before I'd gotten the Back Here On Earth/Did She Mention My Name and the Salute albums. And with all the new songs I've been to busy to really give Harmony a listen.

2. Perhaps, for the 1st time ever, I'm just too young and too imateur to understand Gords music.

3. I'm not currently in love or having love problems anymore(because I'm out of school and don't have to attend the same class as that girl) and that albums deals with a lot about love. If it had been released a month earlier I probably wouldn't be having a problem getting into the album.

4. GL is simply losing his touch(and I know d*mn well this is not the case, because for one thing, he is Gordon Lightfoot, and another thing, all of you wouldn't like this album so much if he were, so this can't be it. Perhaps I'm just not used to this new type of writing style he uses on this album.

Seeing you just bought two earlier albums, you are probably a bit overexposed to his music at this point. My suggestion would be to put Harmony away for awhile and enjoy Back Here On Earth and Salute for a month or so. Listen to them until you don't want to listen anymore. Then dig Harmony out. Shut off your lights, lie down on the bed and put headphones on, and just absorb the music without any distractions.

You are really in a different boat than the rest of us. We've been on the Gord journey for 30+ years. You've barely made your way out of the starting gate. You have some catching up to do, and that will take some time. Don't try to absorb all the music at once. Develope an appreciation for each CD, then move on to the next.
And for Gord's sake, learn how to play the guitar.
Cathy http://www.cathycowette.com

[Kilgore]

a

[Kilgore]

I have the same feeling about Harmony on first listen. I would not rate it as one of his better ones, but it's Lightfoot so the world is a better place with anything by Gord

I will give you credit for admitting not being in love with the new album. Personally, I love it, but I grew up listening to Gord and know his life story inside and out. The actual songwriting on this album is superb, maybe his best since East of Midnight. But the musical accompaniments, well, on several of the songs, they just don't have what it takes to jump out and grab you. Inspiration Lady, The End of All Time, and Flyin' Blind will jump out and grab a casual listener. And my favorite song on the album, The No Hotel, is only my favorite because I had heard it a couple of times in concert and he explained the background... I'm glad they included that on this album, because without that, I don't know that listeners would appreciate it as much. So what am I saying? Basically, it is a great album and incredibly well-written, but at the same time, a truly great album has to have a balance between strong lyrics and strong musical accompaniments... three or four of those songs on this album don't have that.

quote:Originally posted by Major Surgery Pending:
If you looking for someone to kick this little P***K in the A**E send him to me.

(All the other GL fans out there, please disregard this, I'm only talking to the Major)

I'm gonna f*ck you up, bad too. I never knew you were so interested in assisted suicide major, you obviously have nothing left, you've grown so old and bitter.

Bring it on, old man



[This message has been edited by DMD3 (edited May 31, 2004).]

[joveski]

i agree watchman! messages since to appear a few minutes from them

Your secret is out D. So go back to taking your medicine again and all those voices in your head will stop talking to you.


quote:Originally posted by joveski:
i agree watchman! messages since to appear a few minutes from them

[johnfowles]

quote:Originally posted by Cathy:
Seeing you just bought two earlier albums, you are probably a bit overexposed to his music at this point. My suggestion would be to put Harmony away for awhile and enjoy Back Here On Earth and Salute for a month or so. Listen to them until you don't want to listen anymore. Then dig Harmony out. Develope an appreciation for each CD, then move on to the next.

I think you might have hit the nail on its head Cathy. I recall thst in about 1974 after I got Sundown I felt rather saturated with Gord.I had listened by then to little else for a good seven years. from then on I started paying more attention to what was going on in other musical streams such as The Eagles Linda Rondstadt, Elton John and Fleetwood Mac to mention a few. and even though I went through the motions of eagerly seeking out each new GL release I tended just to copy to an audio cassette to play for a few days in the car then move on again. Hence the full appreciation of the later albums like EOM Salute etc had to wait until 1999 when with my initiation into the world of the internet and in particular the chat room and the issue of the songbook box-set I got strongly hooked again I am now therefore into my fifth year of almost total GL immersion. As far as Harmony is concerned I am quite sure that no new GL album has (certainly not since Don Quixote)appealed to me so completely right from the start. I did manage to restrain myself initially to only downloading Inspiration Lady from itunes. and I then made a one-track CD from it which found itself on repeat for very long periods which is probably why it is definitely my favo(u)rite track and way up there in my personal top ten still. So don't worry Duncan just keep enjoying your other recent acquisitions (have you got the Bear Family Lightfoot/The Way I Feel double CD yet By The Way)??
All the best young man

------------------
My Gordon Lightfoot webring
starts at
http://www.johnfowles.org.uk/lightfoot

[This message has been edited by johnfowles (edited June 02, 2004).]

I'm on a "Harmony" hiatus. I've haven't listened to the original recording of "The Wreck" for a long time because I listened to it way too often for way too long and got burnt out on it. Even when I waited months, it still didn't sound good. I haven't listened to it ever since August 2003, so maybe it will sound good again one day.

quote:Originally posted by TheWatchman:
DMD3 (Floorian, Major)

The writing from all three posters mentioned come from the same brain.

You should know "Wes Steele"

quote:Originally posted by Liggett:
You should know "Wes Steele"



You've got a thick skull Watchman. It's not me I tell you! The others on this site overestimate you when it comes to intelligence, but I know better. There's no such thing as a labotomy. Maybe you meant lobotomy?

My dads a cop and he's workin' nightshift . He's ranked Captain . So, looks like I'll half to read it on my own.

There are some women in the world who view men as prey, hence the phrase "like a raptor". That's pretty much the gist of it.


quote:Originally posted by AnotherKathryn:
I'm slowly warming up to "Harmony" but it was full-blown love at first listen to "Shadows" and "Dream Street Rose".

And I'm afraid I'll never understand "Make No Mistake About It." (if anyone else does
understand it please clue me in.)

[pirateNC]

Get over it. The man almost died...he was in a coma and when he came out he said 'lets finish this damn thing' (ok I'm paraphrasing). Gordon Lightfoot isn't going to be mainstream I'm sure he doesnt care but I'll tell you one thing, though his voice was wavery on a fewsongs Harmony is one of the better albums of the year.

[searam]

I agree, pirateNC. I think his voice is very good, especially considering that they were demo tracks. The critics that rag on him are probably "critics" because they have no talent! OK, enough of my rant!!!
Sean

[brink]

Kathryn, the tracks were recorded before he was sick.

quote:Originally posted by TheWatchman:
Gord's voice was so damn good during his prime that this is what everybody expects. Voices change as we age. Even the late great Johnny Cash's voice changed as he got older. Still, when you hear anything from these two men you know exactly who you are listening to.

Lightfoot's voice sounds great on Harmony. It's him, what else can you want?



That's true. I noticed Gords voice has gotten a little bit deeper since 'A Painter'.