Gordon Lightfoot Solo CD and Vinyl LP
- Oh So Sweet (3:07)
- E-Motion
- Better Off
- Return Into Dust
- Do You Walk, Do You Talk
- Just a Little Bit
- Easy Flo (2:58)
- Dreamdrift
- The Laughter We Seek
- Why Not Give It a Try (3:20)
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(January 30, 2020/Update March 20th)
Last week, Gordon Lightfoot gave us a gift: he announced a new album, called "Gordon Lightfoot Solo." And that is exactly what it is.
Nine of the songs come from two CDs of songs he had recorded back in 2001 - 2002 and which he had forgotten. He discovered them when cleaning his office, listened to them, and decided to make an album with just him and his guitar, removing other instruments that had been added. The 10th song, "Easy Flo," was written and recorded more recently.
All of the tracks were recorded, mixed and mastered by Bob Doidge and Amy King at Grant Aveneue Studio in Hamlton, Ontario where he has recorded since the mid-1990s.
The album charted on Billboard in both the US and Canada; it reached #39 on the US chart and #90 on the Canadian chart.
Gordon said of Solo, "I thought my fans would be interested in hearing what songs sound like when first written."
The album was released on March 20th and is now shipping in all formats (CD, vinyl LP and MP3). It is also released to streaming sites, so if that is how you listen go to your favorite streaming service.
Two songs were released as singles on many streaming sites and also at YouTube. "Oh So Sweet," the first song, is a beautiful finger-picking song; vintage Lightfoot. As they say on TV news shows, "take a listen.". A second single, "Why Not Give It a Try" was released a few weeks later. You can listen here.
Read my review below.
Gordon Lightfoot "Solo" - Review
(March 19, 2020)
This new album of 10 songs, with just Gordon on the tracks, is a wonderful gift to his fans. After years of expressing doubt that he would release another album, he discovered recordings from 2001 and early 2002; recordings he had forgotten after his Fall 2002 health crisis. He selected 9 of those recordings and added another song written and recorded more recently.
While he considered adding full arrangements with his band, he decided in the end to release the songs just as they were, with only the normal post-recording work done for an album release. As he puts it, "I thought my fans would be interested in hearing what songs sound like when first written."
The collection of songs are as usual a mix of strummed and fingerpicked tunes, played on both 6 string and 12 string guitars, and displaying Gordon's unmistakable touch. I am a permanent beginner on guitar, and on all subjects related to music, but I realized early on that Gordon's sound is unique and even a non-musician like me can literally recognize his playing even on songs we have never heard him play. One of the wonderful features of this recording is the chance to distinctly hear that; from his fingerpicking patterns to the force of his strumming.
Every one of the songs tells a story, as all his songs do, and every melody is unique. Several of the songs stood out immediately as my favorites including the first single, "Oh So Sweet," "Return Into Dust," "Dreamdrift" (where the ghost makes yet another appearance), and the more recently written, "Easy Flo," a song dedicated to his wife, Kim, and recorded early in 2020.
We fans are very lucky to have this new album to add to our collections.
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