It was there he met fellow musician Ronnie Hawkins. His first gig was at Fran’s Restaurant, a downtown family-owned diner that warmed to his folk sensibilities.
He pledged to move to Toronto to pursue his musical ambitions, taking any job available, including a position at a bank before landing a gig as a square dancer on CBC’s “Country Hoedown.” Life in Hollywood wasn’t a good fit, however, and it wasn’t long before Lightfoot returned to Canada. At age 13, the soprano won a talent contest at the Kiwanis Music Festival, held at Toronto’s Massey Hall. He began singing in his church choir and dreamed of becoming a jazz musician. While Lightfoot’s parents recognized his musical talents early, he didn’t set out to become a renowned balladeer. “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” for instance, is a haunting tribute to the 29 men who died in the 1975 sinking of the ship in Lake Superior during a storm. “It’s not country, not folk, not rock,” he said in a 2000 interview. Lightfoot’s music had a style all its own. “I take situations and write poems about them.” “I simply write the songs about where I am and where I’m from,” he once said. “Canadian Railroad Trilogy” depicted the construction of the railway. Most of his songs are deeply autobiographical with lyrics that probe his own experiences in a frank manner and explore issues surrounding the Canadian national identity.
King Charles III takes day off after busy coronation weekend
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