A representative of Gordon Lightfoot’s family has announced that the Canadian singer-songwriter has passed away at the age of 84. Gordon Lightfoot, best known for his folk-pop hits If You Could Read My Mind and The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, died on Monday evening at a Toronto hospital, according to his long-time publicist Victoria Lord. The cause of death is several health issues like Bell’s palsy, alcoholism, emphysema, and aneurysm which diagnosed in 2002.
Originally from Orillia, Ontario, Lightfoot gained fame in the early 1960s after relocating to Toronto, where he was inspired by the music of Bob Dylan and became part of the thriving Yorkville music scene. His debut album, Lightfoot!, released in 1965, marked the emergence of a new folk voice. By the end of the decade, he had transitioned to the pop scene and made his first appearance on the Billboard chart in 1971 with the release of If You Could Read My Mind.
Lightfoot’s talent for combining evocative lyrics with melodic compositions earned him five Grammy nominations and 17 Juno awards, the Canadian equivalent. His popularity peaked in the mid-1970s when both his single and album Sundown reached number one on the Billboard chart, a feat he achieved only once.
Despite enduring various health issues during his career, including Bell’s palsy, alcoholism, and a ruptured artery in his stomach that led to a six-week coma in 2002, Lightfoot remained an iconic figure in the music industry. In the 2019 documentary Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind, singer Geddy Lee referred to Lightfoot as “our poet laureate, he is our iconic singer-songwriter.”
Throughout his career, Lightfoot experienced various health issues, including Bell’s palsy, alcoholism, and a ruptured artery in his stomach that resulted in a six-week coma in 2002. Additionally, he was diagnosed with emphysema and suffered an aneurysm in 2002, as well as a stroke in 2006.
Gordon Lightfoot is a Canadian singer-songwriter who was born on November 17, 1938. He is well-known for his work in the folk, folk-rock, and country music genres and is regarded as one of Canada’s most significant artists. Lightfoot’s career started in his childhood when he performed on local radio and at regional music festivals. He later moved to Los Angeles to study at the Westlake College of Music before returning to Canada and working a variety of jobs in Toronto. In the 1960s, he became part of Toronto’s burgeoning folk scene and developed his songwriting, which led to his debut album, Lightfoot!, in 1966.
After earning accolades at home in the late 1960s, Lightfoot broke through internationally in the 1970s after signing with Warner Records in the U.S. His best-known songs include “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Beautiful,” “Sundown,” “Don Quixote,” “Carefree Highway,” “Rainy Day People,” and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.” Lightfoot continued to tour and make music despite the decline of folk in the late 1970s and ’80s. He conquered several illnesses, including a bout of Bell’s palsy and alcoholism.
In September 2002, Lightfoot suffered a ruptured artery in his stomach and was in a coma for six weeks. He recovered gamely and returned to the stage with a new album, Harmony, in 2004. Lightfoot suffered a minor stroke in 2006 but continued with a regimen of regular guitar practice and gym workouts aimed at keeping him in shape for the road. He took the premature report of his death in 2010 in stride and continued to tour and perform, including a high-profile Canadian Songwriters’ Hall of Fame concert with The Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie.
Tributes came fast across social media following the news of the death of Candian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot. Here are some tweets;
He sat on top of the mountain. He shared what he saw.
For so many around the world, they knew our stories because of him.
Rest in peace Gord. Golden forever.
Gordon Lightfoot 1938-2023pic.twitter.com/kEytbPIAK2 pic.twitter.com/dQNomQOHOp
— George Stroumboulopoulos 🐺 (@strombo) May 2, 2023
CBC’s Music Hop host Alex Trebek asking Gordon Lightfoot in 1963 about his writing and recording plans. pic.twitter.com/gDfHunXp3L
— Eric Alper 🎧 (@ThatEricAlper) May 2, 2023
Canadian music icon, Gordon Lightfoot, playing the BBC in 1972. Lightfoot passed away today at 84. pic.twitter.com/GeXGjVuRJJ
— Morgan Cameron Ross (@Morgan_C_Ross) May 2, 2023
Your poetry and melodies are an eternal inspiration. Rest in peace now, Gordon Lightfoot. pic.twitter.com/cF2g0emYey
— Chris Hadfield (@Cmdr_Hadfield) May 2, 2023
A couple of years back, Gordon Lightfoot sits cross legged on the floor as John Prine recalls when he first met his songwriting hero in a Toronto folk club in 1971. pic.twitter.com/aszJrCTMdF pic.twitter.com/APCgVASbYN
— George Stroumboulopoulos 🐺 (@strombo) May 2, 2023
