Songbook

Where to begin? This has to be one of the most extraordinary boxed sets ever.It is four CDs covering his entire career; 88 songs in total, including 18 that are rare or previously unreleased. As the title implies, The Gordon Lightfoot Songbook 1962-1998 contains only Lightfoot originals: the songs he considers his best. The two rare songs are both from 1962 and were previously released only on singles and on a rare LP called Early Lightfoot. They are Remember Me (I'm The One) and It's Too Late, He Wins. There are extensive liner notes with a long piece by Nicholas Jennings, author of Before The Gold Rush (about Canadian music), and lots of comments and notes on the songs from Lightfoot himself. And there are many photos as well, including several never published before.Songbook contains all of Lightfoot's big chart hits (If You Could Read My Mind, Sundown, Carefree Highway and Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald), all of his great songs that were chart hits for others or are simply well-known (Ribbon Of Darkness, Early Mornin' Rain, For Lovin' Me, Alberta Bound), selected songs from the four albums that have not (yet!) been released on CD (17 of them, of which 14 are not available on any other CD including classics like Hi'Way Songs and In My Fashion), dozens of other truly magnificent songs from throughout his career (Canadian Railroad Trilogy, Song For A Winter's Night, Sit Down Young Stranger, Rainy Day People), two songs from before he signed with United Artists (Remember Me (I'm The One) and It's Too Late, He Wins), and 16 songs that were never released before. This has to be a "must buy" for anyone who has ever thought "I should buy some Lightfoot music", and also for everyone who has already taken home one or more of his albums.All of the songs that were previously released were taken from original albums. That means that none of the recordings are re-recordings from either Gord's Gold album. So, in every case, you are hearing Lightfoot's original interpretation of the song. And, the two Gord's Gold collections don't totally duplicate what is here, so a true fan would enjoy having both.Every song is a Lightfoot original; that is, all the songs were written by him. That means that a few wonderful covers that you may have enjoyed aren't here. But the choice was made to stick to original songs and, with a catalog like his, there are still too many to fit on four CDs.These are the songs that Lightfoot considers his very best. But, there is at least one shocking surprise, at least to me, and that is the omission of Minstrel Of The Dawn. Investigation suggests that Lightfoot didn't like the recording of the song for some reason; not that he doesn't rate the song among his best. And, if you've written and recorded as much quality material as he has, you would certainly be entitled to a judgment like that.And, of course, there are a few other favorites of mine that are not here, but that would be true of anyone. In any collection like this, choices must be made, and considerations like the total time per CD, and the number of songs per original album, would probably introduce other constraints of which we aren't aware. The point is that of 70 songs (the ones that are not rare or previously unreleased), I see only a very few others that I would have included on my list. The collection contains more than 90% of what I personally would have chosen. That is great! No two people would ever agree on their top 70 songs by any artist.The two songs from 1962 will be a real treat for any long time fan. They are not in the Lightfoot style, as we all know and love it. But they are sweet songs and the voice! Well, enough said. They were written and recorded just before his singing and songwriting had evolved to what is now referred to as "Lightfoot style."And the new songs, 16 of them, will surprise and delight. How many times have you bought a collection with "previously unreleased" tracks, only to find out when you got home that there was a good reason that the songs weren't released before: the songs weren't very good, or very different from that artist's other songs. But wait until you hear the songs here! Every one of them is a really good song, and some are truly magnificent. In fact, I can't believe that songs like these have sat in the vaults so long and I only hope that the price of a boxed set doesn't keep people from hearing them. (Does Rhino ever issue singles? If not, there's no time like the present to start).One of the real jewels among these new songs is Too Much To Lose, a delightful country song which was actually mistakenly released on some 8 tracks and cassettes of the Old Dan's Records album. Since there was this mistaken release (and recall, of course), some copies of the song have been out there and a number of Lightfoot fans have heard it - and loved it - before. I happen to think that the song contains one of his most brilliant and poignant metaphors:"Forgiving is to lovers as trusting is to fools"Chills, anyone? In the liner notes, Lightfoot has this to say about Too Much To Lose:"It was up for a Paul Newman movie, Cool Hand Luke, but they didn't want it. I guess after that I didn't want it either. It's one of the coolest songs we got out of the vault."Absolutely.Another magnificent song is is Forgive Me Lord. I had the privilege of hearing this song in concert many times starting in the early 1980s. I remember looking for it when Salute came out, and again when East Of Midnight came out, being disappointed both times. It remained the one Lightfoot song that I knew I loved but that I thought I would never hear again. Thank you Rhino. (And thank you Gordon, for bringing it back to your concerts in 1999).I will leave it to each of you to savor the treasures among the other previously unreleased songs, but I have to comment on a few that became instant favorites of mine. First, the two songs at the end of disc 1: Mama Said and Station Master. Mama Said is a delightful tune about his mother's influence on his music career; this song can't fail to bring a smile to your face. Station Master is Lightfoot's most Dylan-like song, as he says in the liner notes. It's a nice mixture of two songwriting geniuses with Lightfoot's unique singing style thrown into the mix (no pun intended).Then there is Heaven Don't Deserve Me, recorded the day before Too Much To Lose and in a similar style. Other favorites of mine are Stone Cold Sober, Borderstone and Keepin' On Yearning.The other previously unreleased songs on this collection are: A Message To The Wind, You'll Still Be Needing Me, Betty Called Me In, Canary Yellow Canoe, Never Say Trust Me, Why Should I Feel Blue, Always On The Bright Side and Lifeline. Again, it is hard to believe that such exceptional songs have never been available before.June 15 has arrived!C1999 by Valerie Magee

A reissue of his 1999 Anthology with about 16 unreleased gems (and at the time) from the vault, this set acts as a wonderful summary of Lightfoot’s career up to that time.The mastering is good for the set (though it could be better-Bill Inglot is great at tracking down source tapes but he masters a bit )n the bright side) for some tracks. The packaging isn’t really a box set but a 4 CD tray. Mine, like many others, arrived busted up (I’m sure packaging had something to do with on Amazon’s behalf) but I’m not returning it as it is currently out of stock.The generous booklet also has comments for each song by the late Gord as well as an introduction by Gord and an essay on his career.I do wish that they had also included the re-recordings from “Gord’s Gold” as well as they do differ a bit from the original United Artists recordings and/or a live show but this is pretty darn good.Each disc is filled to the brim with excellent material. Highly recommended if you can find it.

What's not to love about this legend!

This is a great comp of his prime years. All his most well-known songs are here as well as some deeper tracks. If you're looking for one Lightfoot release this is it.

Other reviewers have substantial notes on the various songs here. Even arrived with the case intact which is a bonus these days.

It’s Gordan!

Dear Gordon Lightfoot.I wish you were still here to write more beautiful music.A Grateful Fan

Expanded my Gordon Lightfoot music collection. Many songs I had not heard before and I have been a fan since the 1970s!

I always knew Gordon Lightfoot was rated as one of Canada’s best along with Anne Murray, Joni Mitchell, Buffy St Marie, Neil Young and Leonard Cohen. Lightfoot has a strong melodic voice and this is an excellent collection of his works

Fantastic compilation.All the Best songs plus a Comprehensive Booklet.Great thanks.

Great group of 4 CDs plus a small handbook with personal insights by Gordon Lightfoot into each dong he wrote! There are also some unissued songs on the CDs. Bonus!

Of all the great singer-songwriters to emerge from the sixties Folk Revival, Gordon Lightfoot is simultaneously one of the finest, and paradoxically the most under-rated. This collection - a superb career retrospective consisting of 4CDs, up to the release date - 1999, shows the many fine attributes of this veteran performer and writer. From his early folkie days, when his talent was recognised by none other than Bob Dylan (he ended up being managed for a spell by Dylan's manager, Albert Grossman), through to the international breakthrough with the achingly beautiful ballad, 'if You Could Read My Mind', and on through the cool, laid back 'Sundown', and the sea shanty 'The Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald', Lightfoot wraps his warm, slightly world-weary baritone around distinctive, memorable melodies, and there are few, if any, moments when there is no magic present. He can even turn his adroit compositional hand to children's songs, like 'The Pony Man', which is sweet without being sickly, and yet touching enough to bring a little of a tear to a grown-up's eye; there's that rolling sense of the melancholy through his best stuff - and there's a ton of it here. It's almost too much - but the variety, the smart way he sneaks in an odd, out-of-left-field chord change, and always lovely arrangements and instrumental skill - this is acoustic minstrelsy of the finest quality. I saw him on tour in May 2016, and at the age of seventy-seven, though his voice has more than the odd sign of wear and tear, he has lost none of his power to put across deceptively simple, yet genuinely profound and moving songs when most of us would be reaching for a comfy chair and nice slippers. Gordon Lightfoot is a True Great, up there with the Dylans and The Paul Simons of this world. Dig deep into this set - the rewards will be rich and lasting.

I recently had the dubious pleasure of seeing Gordon live for the very first time: dubious as his voice is sadly but a husk of its former greatness, and only stagecraft, humility and a fine backing band saved him from real embarrassment. How I wish I'd seen him forty odd years ago in his pomp, when the wonderful 'If you could read my mind' ran headlong into my fully formed mid-teens melancholia and left an impression that lasts to this day.He was a major exception to my normal diet of guitar based prog/ underground music, and I lost touch with him almost entirely soon after, only thinking to search him out on YouTube a couple of years back; I guess there can't be many reading this who haven't seen his early 70s BBC In Concert footage, but it really does tell you everything about the man's rare combination of vocal perfection and ability to knock off unforgettable tunes almost at will.There are 88 songs on this collection and an extraordinary percentage of them are brilliant. Yes, the odd song could be described as filler, but even then they're well crafted and likeable. I won't name individual tracks, partly because I'm still getting to know many of them, but I can say with certainty that I'll still be listening to this in as many years time as I'm alloted; the only reason I'm giving it five stars is because there's no six option. Not cheap, but incredible value.