Gordon Lightfoot Tribute 5/2/23

One of the most sobering things about writing a "Great Songs of the '70s" blog is the amount of tribute posts I've had to write over the past few years.

The list of '70s hitmakers who have passed away is getting longer and longer.

I guess it shouldn't be all that surprising, since they were in their heyday 45-55 years ago, but it's still sobering nonetheless.

So far in 2023, we've added several names to the heavenly roster, including Anita Pointer, Burt Bacharach, David Crosby, Jeff Beck, Harry Belafonte...and now, Gordon Lightfoot, who died on 5/1/23 at the age of 80.

For a comprehensive obituary, I defer to Reuters News magazine: https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/canadian-singer-songwriter-gordon-lightfoot-has-died-84-cbc-2023-05-02/

Since I started this blog more than 3 years ago, I've highlighted ALL of Gordon's Great Songs of the '70s,from "If You Could Read My Mind," to "Rainy Day People," to "Sundown," to "Carefree Highway," to "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald."

Today, however, I want to re-highlight a "Great Song" that was a hit in Gordon's native Canada, but only a minor hit in the US.

Here is my slightly edited post from 4/28/22:

Those of us who grew up in the Toledo, Ohio area had somewhat of a cultural advantage when it came to popular music. Because we lived about 55 miles from Windsor, Ontario, we were exposed to Canadian music from a very young age--thanks to radio station CKLW. For example: After Gordon's big Canadian/US hit "If You CouId Read My Mind" in 1970, he released a song called "Beautiful," that was exactly that: Beautiful. It went right to #1 on Canada's Adult Contemporary Chart, but for some reason, it peaked at just #30 on Billboard's Hot 100. Gordon always thought "Beautiful" was one of his best. In his words: "It's a song about love fulfilled. It's one of those songs I've played every night for over a quarter-century, and I don't get tired of it." "Beautiful" by Gordon Lightfoot: a "Great Song of 1972," whether you're Canadian...or not! Rest in Peace, Gordon. Thank you for the music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bPMe9dMFHEA