Gordon Lightfoot, Canadian Folk Singer-Songwriter, Dies at 84
variety.comChris Morris Music ReporterSinger-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot, the Canadian folk music laureate who crossed over to major pop fame in the U.S.
during the ‘70s, died Monday evening at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto. He was 84 years old. Lightfoot’s death was confirmed by his longtime agent, Victoria Lord.Lightfoot rose to prominence in the mid-‘60s, penning such folk standards as “Early Morning Rain” (a major hit for the Canadian folk duo Ian and Sylvia Tyson), “For Loving Me” and “Ribbon of Darkness,” as well as the ambitious “Canadian Railroad Trilogy,” a sort of Northern equivalent to Mickey Newbury’s “American Trilogy.”While he was acclaimed at home and served as an inspiration for such younger Canada-bred performers as Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, success in America eluded him until he signed with Warner Bros.’ Reprise imprint (which released Young and Mitchell’s breakthrough recordings).
His 1970 Reprise debut “Sit Down Young Stranger” contained the No. 5 U.S. hit “If You Could Read My Mind,” a heavily orchestrated ballad; renamed after its hit, the LP rose to No.
12 in America.Though Lightfoot remained a bigger star at home (where he logged three consecutive No. 1 albums in 1972-74), he maintained a high profile stateside throughout the ‘70s.
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