Canadian folk singer Lightfoot dies at 84
Gordon Lightfoot, the Canadian folk singer-songwriter known for his rich baritone voice, unpretentious demeanor and poetic lyrics that evoke the country’s sweeping landscapes, died in Toronto on Monday, his publicist confirmed. He was 84.
The cause of death was not immediately available. In April, Lightfoot canceled all his tour dates for the year because of health issues. He is survived by his wife, Kim Hasse, six children and several grandchildren.
Lightfoot was hailed as a folk legend for music that documented Canadian history and culture while garnering a devoted international following, and his work has been likened to poetry. His 1970 ballad “If You Could Read My Mind” was his breakout hit, and he had further success with the likes of “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” and “Carefree Highway.”
“If there was a Mount Rushmore in Canada, Gordon would be on it,” compatriot and fellow musician Tom Cochrane said in a 2019 documentary, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., while Rush singer Geddy Lee called him “our poet laureate.”
His contributions to Canadian culture have been recognized with honorary degrees, a guitar made in his name and even a postage stamp.
Lightfoot’s songs have been covered by the likes of Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Peter, Paul and Mary. He was nominated for four Grammys and had four top10 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1970s — “Sundown” reached No. 1.
But Lightfoot, who once called himself a “cosmopolitan hick,” wasn’t wooed by fame. He had a penchant for blue jeans and fringed jackets, a shyness that was sometimes interpreted as arrogance and a discomfort with the spotlight.
For part of his career, he struggled with alcoholism and poured himself into work at the expense of his personal relationships. He sobered up in the 1980s and was married three times over the course of his life.
As his peers took a more confessional approach to songwriting, Lightfoot had a reputation for keeping his feelings to himself. Producer Milton Okun called him “curiously understated” in a 1968 book, while The New York Times praised his “warm voice” three years earlier but suggested he improve his stage persona.
Lightfoot said he aspired to set up an intimate, “coffee house atmosphere at center stage.”
He was born in rural Ontario, and his mother spotted his musical talents when he was a child and encouraged him to perform. In high school, he sang in barbershop quartets and taught himself folk guitar. At Westlake College of Music in Los Angeles, Lightfoot studied composition and orchestration and developed an affinity for jazz.
His early musical pursuits took him to England; Detroit, where he stayed with Joni and Chuck Mitchell; and back and forth to his native Canada, where he toured coffeehouses and bars. He described hearing Dylan’s music as a turning point in his career: “I started getting some identity into my own songwriting,” he said.
Lightfoot’s international breakthrough came in 1970 with “If You Could Read My Mind,” an unlikely hit from his fifth album that was originally included on the flip side of its first single. From there, much of what he released went on the radio. “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” which tells the dramatic story of a shipwreck on Lake Superior, proved another unexpected favorite in 1976.
He sang about war, the Detroit riot of 1967, whale hunting and pollution — though he denied he was a protest singer.
Lightfoot nearly died after a stomach aneurysm in 2002, but he recovered and continued touring and writing songs into his 80s.
“I just want to retain my youthful outlook in everything — not grow old, congeal,” he told The Washington Post in 1974. “Stay curious, questioning.”