Gordon Lightfoot Biography / Pictures

He is one of the first Canadian popular singers who achieved real stardom in his own country instead of moving to the USA.

Lightfoot was born in Orillia, Ontario, Canada.

He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1986 and in May 2003 was made a Companion of the Order of Canada, the country's highest honor.

Life

He moved to Los Angeles, California during the 1950s where he studied at Hollywood's Westlake College of Music. He returned to Canada by the 1960s and performed in coffee houses on the Toronto folk scene. In 1966, his debut album Lightfoot! was released. In the mid-1960s he was more known as a songwriter than for his own work, as his songs were recorded by artists such as Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley.

In 1971, on a bus bound for Calgary, Gordon met a lonely teenage girl named Grace on her way home from Toronto, and in 1972, the song "Alberta Bound" found its debut on the Don Quixote album.

He is one of the first Canadian popular singers who achieved real stardom in his own country instead of moving to the United States. In 1972 his song "If You Could Read My Mind" became a top ten hit. The song was originally featured on his 1970 album "Sit Down Young Stranger" which had not been selling that well. After the success of the song, the album on which it was originally featured was re-released under the new title "If You Could Read My Mind" to capitalize on the success of the song. In 1974, his classic single, "Sundown", went to No.1 on the American charts. Nearly two years later, Lightfoot had an unexpected hit with a song with the unlikeliest of subject matter. In late November, 1975, Lightfoot read a Newsweek magazine article about the Great Lakes ore carrier SS Edmund Fitzgerald sinking during a severe storm. Tragically, all of her 29 crew members were killed. His song, "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", most of the lyrics of which were taken from the article, reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard charts. Both songs continue to receive heavy airplay on many classic rock stations.

In the fall of 2002, Lightfoot suffered a near-fatal abdominal hemorrhage, which caused him to go into a comatose state for a short period of time. He later returned to the music business with the album Harmony and an appearance on Canadian Idol.

Lightfoot has received 15 Juno Awards and been nominated for 5 Grammy Awards. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1986, the Canadian Country Music Hall Of Fame in 2001, and in May 2003 was made a Companion of the Order of Canada, the country's highest honor. Lightfoot is also a member of the Order of Ontario, the highest honor in the province of Ontario.
 

Best-selling songs:

• The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald
• Canadian Railroad Trilogy
• If you could read my mind
• The first time ever I saw your face
• Me and Bobby McGee
• Rainy Day People
• Sundown
• Alberta Bound
• Bitter Green
• Cotton Jenny
• Did she mention my name
• I'm not supposed to care
• Ghost of Cape Horn
• Does your mother know
• The Pony Man
• In my fashion
• Shadows
• Protocol