Congrats to Eric Lightfoot and his wife on the delivery of their baby girl - grandchild #5 for Gordon - !!
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http://www.cleveland.com/music/index...nd_fitzge.html
Gordon Lightfoot: 'Edmund Fitzgerald' singer-songwriter docks at Akron Civic Theatre
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Gordon Lightfoot's life right now is a comfortable old sweater that's not too loose, not too tight and worn in all the right spots.
At 76, the singer-songwriter best known for "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald'' is happy to spend most of his time with family in his native Canada, with the occasional tour like the one that will bring him to the Akron Civic Theatre on Sunday, March 22.
"I could be writing,'' he said in a call to his home near Toronto, "but my family situation eats up all my writing time.
"I produced a very extended family for myself,'' he said, with a lilt in his voice. "I've got a brand-new granddaughter - she's No. 5.''
Lightfoot said he and his band do seven or eight trips a year, with each trip averaging no more than 15 days at a time. To a youngster in the music field, that probably sounds like a holiday. But Lightfoot has paid his dues many times over.
"All my recording obligations ended a long time ago,'' he said. "All 20 albums I was to do were done, so now I concentrate on doing the shows.''
Lightfoot said he feels a responsibility to his audience to give them his best, and it's that kind of work ethic that has sustained a career that began in 1958. And while he still feels the urge to write new music, he's not quite ready to submit to the pressure.
"Every time you write an album, it's like writing a book, and at this tender age, is it still worth doing it?'' he asked, jokingly.
One of the things for which Lightfoot is known is his personal loyalty, both to the people who play with him - he's had the same band now for years - and to his fans. It's a personal choice he made long ago, and it's paid off in spades because it's a two-way street: he sticks with them and they stick with him.
Check out our complete list of upcoming concerts in Greater Cleveland.
In no case is that more evident than regarding what's arguably his biggest hit, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.'' He tries to meet with the families of the victims at every chance he gets.
"I'm in touch with them, and with the Ladies Committee in Madison, Wisconsin,'' he said. "I've played the song a couple of times at the Mariners Church [in Detroit], and I've met all kinds of people at the shows and at meet-and-greets.''
Lightfoot said he's been to many events related to the Fitzgerald, including the dedication of the ship's bell when it was recovered and put on view at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Lighthouse Point in Michigan.
"I figured I owed them a huge debt,'' said Lightfoot, who also funds a scholarship at the Great Lakes Maritime Academy in Traverse City, Michigan.
So you can bet on hearing the song at the Civic. But you'll also hear some of his other hits, like "If You Could Read My Mind,'' "Sundown'' and "Rainy Day People.'' But the show won't be limited to the hits. You'll also hear some of his personal favorites.
"We've got three or four of them,'' he said. "They're real good tunes, and its nice to get a chance to break them out and get them out onstage again. I enjoy doing that because it's like you're hearing a new song.''
One that fits just like a comfortable old sweater.
Grandchild # 5 has arrived!!
- Borderstone
