Product Description

Rarely do singers have the kind of voice that can touch your soul - gordon lightfoot is one of the rare ones. He is also one of popular musics most timeless songwriters. Studio: Image Entertainment Release Date: 01/29/2002 Run time: 87 minutes Rating: Nr

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21065 in DVD
• Brand: Image Entertainment
• Released on: 2002-01-29
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, Dolby, DTS Surround Sound, DVD, Live, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 87 minutes

Amazon.com
Live in Reno is a solid overview of an admirable career, even if this Gordon Lightfoot is not what he once was. The singer-songwriter, 61 when the 90-minute show was recorded in April 2000, looks gaunt, and his distinctive voice is on the frail side. Still, he has accumulated a remarkable catalog of material over the course of some four decades, and nearly all of the biggies are among the 22 songs performed here by Lightfoot and his four-piece band, from the early classics popularized by other artists ("For Lovin' Me," "Early Morning Rain") to his own best-known hits ("If You Could Read My Mind," "Sundown," "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"). There are no theatrics or flashy production values, just a group of middle-aged men playing their music--and playing it well. So even if it's not especially exciting, fans will be satisfied. --Sam Graham

Customer Reviews

Lightfoot Live - Need I Say More?
This is Lightfoot's first concert video, and is in fact his first officially released live recording since 1969. Recorded at the Pioneer Theater in Reno, Nevada on April 19, 2000, the video captures the warmth and intimacy of a Lightfoot concert, brought into your home for the first time.

The DVD contains 22 songs, almost the entire concert. Lightfoot performs all of his hits - songs that charted in the top 40 for him - as well as songs he wrote that were hits for others. And he includes some of his other great songs which, though never chart hits, are among the best songs ever written.

None of the hits are omitted, so you will hear If You Could Read My Mind, Sundown, Carefree Highway and Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald, among others. The other songs come from throughout his career, dating back to the early/mid 60s with Early Mornin' Rain and For Lovin' Me, to the title song from his latest original album, A Painter Passing Through.

Lightfoot is backed up by his band all of whom has been with him for at least 20 years, and the first two for 30 or more. They are: Terry Clements (lead guitar), Rick Haynes (bass), Barry Keane (drums and percussion) and Mike Heffernan (keyboards), and they are among the finest musicians around. The fact that they have recorded and toured with Lightfoot for so many years says volumes about them and about Lightfoot.

The full set list is: Don Quixote, I'll Prove My Love, House You Live In, Sundown, Carefree Highway, Restless, Blackberry Wine, For Lovin' Me/Did She Mention My Name (Medley), Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald, Waiting For You, Fading Away, Rainy Day People, Shadows, If You Could Read My Mind, A Painter Passing Through, Make Way For The Lady, Early Mornin' Rain, Baby Step Back, Song For A Winter's Night, Canadian Railroad Trilogy, Old Dan's Records, Cold On The Shoulder.

Amazing list of songs, isn't it?

(Note: I have not seen this North American release of the concert, but I have seen the UK DVD as well as the original videotape from the production company).

by Valerie Magee

Oh Canada, Thanks for the Memories Gordon
I'm in complete agreement with Sam Graham's editorial review above. It was Gordon's "gaunt looks" and "frail voice" that has become so visible in recent years that almost prevented me from watching this DVD. I wanted to remember Lightfoot as he was the first time I saw him in person at the Univ. of Irvine cafeteria in '68. Virtually unknown in California at the time, there was a small but enthusiastic crowd that evening for what was to be his first ever appearance in Orange County and to this day ranks as one of my all-time favorite concert experiences. I was sixteen at the time and since that Irvine concert I have become one of Gordon's staunchest fans with a total of 19 Lightfoot concerts attended and hoping for at least one more before I'm through. You might say Gordon and I have grown old together.

Overcoming my initial fears of watching a fading shadow of what once was, I purchased the DVD and hesitantly watched it one night after my wife and daughter went to bed. I wanted to judge the concert on my own without any input from the family. This was between Gordon and I. Now I can say that I'm happy with my decision. Whatever may have changed through the years, it's still Gordon Lightfoot! Surrounded by some of the same musicians who performed with him long ago in that first concert in '68, I soon forgot about how old and frail he looked and once again became absorbed in the music that has meant so much to me through the years.

Gordon Lightfoot's songs certainly haven't grown old. They still convey all the passion, introspection, regret and wonder of life that they always have. They always will.

Respect for a Legend
I've seen Gordon Lightfoot in concert, on average, once a year since 1972. I've also met him several times and even received a bit of advice from Lightfoot regarding my own career. I bought this DVD for posterity--out of "respect for a legend." The set is a stellar collection and example of the artist's best songwriting. True, Lightfoot doesn't have the voice he had 30 years ago, but he's still far more expressive than many of his peers. Lightfoot and his band still play with precision and clarity such that few bands would only hope to aspire to during a live concert. Meanwhile, their performance of "Old Dan's Records" is rousing, "Make Way for the Lady" bluesy and inspired, "Early Morning Rain" and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" completely authentic. Some of Lightfoot's newer songs, like "I'll Prove My Love," "Waiting for You," and "A Painter Passing Through," sound almost exactly like the studio recordings. Some reviewers have commented on how Lightfoot looks "frail" and "gaunt." Well, when he enters this Reno stage to start the show and, later, returns for his encore, Lightfoot has a noticeable spring in his step and appears totally youthful! With complete confidence, he and the band "nail" "Cold On the Shoulder" to end this DVD collection--something all fans should have for "posterity."