#2 CHat with CHar - Mr. Lightfoot called AGAIN !

[mandomyk]

Thanks Char this is truely a gift to all Cofidians
-The Chat and your writing abilities
Thanks again.

[charlene]

I recorded the conversation with a digital recorder...I could never take notes that fast! Or ever remember any of it from memory!
lol

[buzzard]

Hey Char,

Let me echo the thanks for all your time & efforts with this. Very cool to read. I'm glad to hear he's got Massey in May 2011 on the radar.

Brian

[nvtmusic]

Hi ,
Thanks for taking the time to post your conversation
-appreciate it !
mike

[formerlylavender]

I enjoyed reading the interview, Char. Thanks for posting it in such detail. A summary just wouldn't have been the same. I was surprised by the "oh shit" too.

[imported_Next_Saturday]

Thanks Char, always enjoyable!

[Bill]

Wonderful interview Char!

I wish he would give a little more insight on live recordings and perhaps any new material he's hinted at in some interviews.

He and Kris are my favorites of the old guard. My favorites of the new era are Jakob Dylan and Colbie Callette

Dylan's "Seeing Things" is best album to me since John Prine's "Lost Dogs & Mixed Blessings", and before that "Summertime Dream".

Nice interview I find his positive attitude, motivation to be inspiring. Even though I had some clue of what he possibly had to contend with to play guitar again (and just 4 years ago...still relatively recent past), the details that he shared...all that hard work and perseverance...WOW!

[Gitchigumee]

Char I can see why he likes doing interviews with you, you ask the most awesome questions, and it is very obvious that you know what you're talking about, unlike some "regular" reporters who keep asking him the same old questions over and over and over again.

And I bet it felt good to (once again) say "I love you." I blurted it out myself, the one time I met him after a concert, and I'll be forever thankful for the chance to express my love and especially my thanks.

Thank you again Char, you are THE MOST deserving person in the world to be given this opportunity not once, but twice, and Gord is smart enough to realize it.

[DellroyGM]

Fantastic, Char - just fantastic. It is good to hear from the man himself once again.
Good job!

[Melissa]

Char -
It's really great that you got to do this! I know how much you must have enjoyed it. Thanks for letting us have all the scoop. Perhaps this will become an annual event. Let's hope so.....
Very interesting reading. Lots of good info. So happy to know that Gord is having a good time. It's wonderful to know that he's enjoying it as much as we are.

Melissa

[MiltonGLFan]

Hi Char. Todd from Miton, Great job !! You asked allot of great questions not normally asked by regular media. Very Nice.

[charlene]

from your lips to Gord's ears Melissa! right now we're running at one every 3 years!
annually would be ok with me..maybe in person next time!
lol
I'm glad everyone who has posted has enjoyed it.
Welcome to Todd from Milton!

[Sydney Steve]

I have a feeling from his tone that retirement is not in the picture any time soon. It seemed to be as much about the future as the past. This gives some of us a ray of light yet....

[Borderstone]

Wonderful! Wonderful!! Oh! ...and did I say .....WONDERFUL??

Great to hear from him on so many things. I can't believe he sang "I'll Tag Along". That's my favorite from EOM. (I prefer acoustic versions I've heard though).

Nary a clue about a new studio CD aye?

Great job Charlene!!

[charlene]

I imagine the only new CD will be one with LIVE concert footage - he had a few extra songs when making HARMONY so perhaps there may be a couple of those thrown in.
he says 'eventually'...

[RM]

Re-reading the interview, I was puzzled by this exchange :
--------------------------------------------------------
CW-it was wonderful to see Ronnie Hawkins in Peterborough. He’s looking good and you did Home From The Forest. When was the last time you did that in concert?
GL-well we knew he was coming to the show and we worked on it a bit at rehearsal and got it into shape in the dates leading up to it. We did it live one night at one of the other dates to see how it worked. It still needs some work. One of the reasons I never sang it very much is it had some ambiguity in the structure and arrangement which I had to get ironed out which really was never done. We’ll be able to use that one, probably rotate that one into the show.
-----------------------------------------------------------

Does anyone have any idea of what Lightfoot meant by 'ambiguity in the structure and arrangement' ? It sounded fine to me.

[johnfowles]

Originally Posted by RM

Does anyone have any idea of what Lightfoot meant by 'ambiguity in the structure and arrangement' ? It sounded fine to me.

I wondered about that too Ron
as the original on the great second album "The Way I Feel" always soounded fine to me.But
"The Perfectionist" obviously found fault somewhere and as this gem was a victim of the selection process for the songbook box set Gord did not have an opportunity to explain in his detailed track listing in the booklet
Links to the full textual content of that booklet as archived by the internet achive's wayback machine are shown in an old thread at:-
http://www.corfid.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=15319
In that thread I reported that in August 2004 after Rhino had rewritten their songbook web page it was still possible to open the original pages and the tracklist web page link was at that time:-
http://www.rhino.com/features/liners/75802lin5.html
but it has now been deleted
Fortunately the Wayback Machine has several archived sets and one is at the snappily contrived and easy to remember short i.e "not long" link
http://www.songbook.notlong.com
from which the track list text is at:-
http://web.archive.org/web/20030317182521/www.rhino.com/features/tracks/75802trx.lasso
so Ron will you be in Phoenix on October 25th??

[charlene]

I don't know what it means...I was going to ask but we moved on in the converstion. I'm glad he fixed whatever he thought was ambiguous and he's going to put it in the rotation once in a while..It was a real treat to hear it.

Maybe some musicians know what it means.

[jj]

not sure if he meant it was ambiguous lyrically or composition-wise

i don't know what an ambiguous composition/song structure looks like...unless he means it's repetitive (ie. multi-versed and without chorus or bridge, etc)...that never stopped him from playing the Wreck

he has mentioned he stopped playing protest songs long ago...does he mean the songs lyrical message might be open to many interpretations, with one being too political for his liking? i have always liked the shuffle tempo...it's a very touching song but i've never gone too deep into the lyrics ...so, what is it about AND did he change some lyrics during these last performances?

btw, for the Quiz folks, no one has named the 5 tunes he has added in the last 18 months (including myself)

[charlene]

Gord's daughter Ingrid offered this: I interpret the "long forgotten Soldier" as lonley, forgotten "Man", who has lost his way...due to his addiction. The "forest" is a beautiful place initially, "where the wild flowers did bloom" but the man takes the wrong path in his life and the forest becomes a dark, sinister place. Again, my own interpretation...
Melody

not sure what 5 songs they are-I'll have to check the set lists..

[Same Old Loverman]

Thanks for the interview Char! I'm glad you asked him if he had thought any more about the possibility of an autobiography...at least he didn't say no- never. So there's still some hope. Also great to see that he's keeping the concerts fresh with songs like "Home from the Forest." I really love those four (actually five counting Sunday Concert) UA albums, and worried that Gordon had forgotten them- I guess he hasn't!

[MaryO]

OMG! Many many thanks to Char and GORD! Fabulous! meo

[Melissa]

Hmmm, JJ ------
Trying to think of the 5 songs added in the last 18 months......
OK,
Did She Mention My Name
If Children Had Wings
Fine As Fine Can Be
Ringneck Loon
and, of course,
Home From the Forest

How'd I do??????

Melissa

[Melissa]

Oops,
Six!
Me and Bobby McGee


Melissa