Lightfoot's songs, including "For Lovin' Me", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon of Darkness"—a number one hit on the U.S. country chart with Marty Robbins's cover in 1965—and "Black Day in July," about the 1967 Detroit riot, brought him wide recognition in the 1960s. Canadian chart success with his own recordings began in 1962 with the No. 3 hit "(Remember Me) I'm the One", followed by recognition and charting abroad in the 1970s. He topped the US Hot 100 or AC chart with the hits "If You Could Read My Mind" (1970), "Sundown" (1974); "Carefree Highway" (1974), "Rainy Day People" (1975), and "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" (1976), and had many other hits that appeared in the top 40.
Several of Lightfoot's albums achieved gold and multi-platinum status internationally. His songs have been recorded by renowned artists such as Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams Jr., The Kingston Trio, Jerry Lee Lewis, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Judy Collins, Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Herb Alpert, Harry Belafonte, Sarah McLachlan, Eric Clapton, John Mellencamp, Peter, Paul and Mary, Glen Campbell, The Grateful Dead, Nico, and Olivia Newton-John.
Robbie Robertson of the Band described Lightfoot as "a national treasure". Bob Dylan, also a Lightfoot fan, called him one of his favorite songwriters and, in an often-quoted tribute, Dylan observed that when he heard a Lightfoot song he wished "it would last forever". Lightfoot was a featured musical performer at the opening ceremonies of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games in Calgary, Alberta. He received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Trent University in Spring 1979 and was made a Companion of the Order of Canada in May 2003. In November 1997, the Governor General's Performing Arts Award, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts, was bestowed on Lightfoot. On February 6, 2012, Lightfoot was presented with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario. June of that year saw his induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. On June 6, 2015, Lightfoot received an honorary doctorate of music in his hometown of Orillia from Lakehead University.
As an individual, apart from various awards associated with his albums and singles, Gordon Lightfoot has received sixteen Juno Awards—for top folk singer in 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969,[67] 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1977, for top male vocalist in 1967, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1973, and as composer of the year in 1972 and 1976. He has received ASCAP awards for songwriting in 1971, 1974, 1976, and 1977, and has been nominated for five Grammy Awards. In 1974 Lightfoot's song "Sundown" was named pop record of the year by the Music Operators of America. In 1980 he was named Canadian male recording artist of the decade, for his work in the 1970s.
Lightfoot was chosen as the celebrity captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs for the NHL's 75th anniversary season in 1991–1992.
Lightfoot was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001. He was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame in 1998. In May 2003 he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada, the country's highest civilian honour. Lightfoot is a member of the Order of Ontario, the highest honour in the province of Ontario. In 1977, he received the Vanier Award from the Canadian Jaycees. In 2007 Canada Post honoured Lightfoot and three other Canadian music artists (Anne Murray, Paul Anka, and Joni Mitchell) with postage stamps highlighting their names and images. On June 24, 2012, Lightfoot was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in a New York City ceremony, along with Bob Seger.
Between 1986 and 1988, Lightfoot's friend Ken Danby (1940–2007), the realist painter, worked on a large (60 × 48 inches) portrait of Lightfoot dressed in the white suit he wore on the cover of the album East of Midnight. The picture was backlit by the sun, creating a visually iconic image of the singer.
On June 16, 2014, Lightfoot was awarded the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award by SOCAN at the 2014 SOCAN Awards in Toronto.
On October 23, 2015, Lightfoot was honoured with a 4-metre tall bronze sculpture in his hometown of Orillia, Ontario. The sculpture, called Golden Leaves—A Tribute to Gordon Lightfoot, features Lightfoot sitting cross-legged, playing an acoustic guitar underneath an arch of golden maple leaves. Many of the leaves depict scenes from Lightfoot's 1975 greatest hits album, Gord's Gold.
In 2017, he was awarded the Gold Medal of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society
He was the subject of Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni's 2019 documentary film Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind.
Gordon passed away on May 1st, 2023 at the age of 84.
Walls
Gordon Lightfoot Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To say that I've loved you well
I'm not ashamed
To let you know
I'm just a name that's all
Scratched upon your wall
You've used it well but what the hell
That's what walls are for
I'm not ashamed
To listen to the fast-fallin' rain
In the morning upon my window
I'm not afraid to cry
I'm not ashamed to try
To be your friend once again
'Cause that's what's friends are for
Friends are for sorting out the hang-ups that we hide
Walls are for shutting out the love we feel inside
I'm not ashamed no to talk it over once again
To rearrange my vocabulary
But I can't seem to find
Any words to change your mind
Because I left them all behind
And that's what words are for
Words are for explaining the mistakes we might have made
Names are for calling when there's nothing left to say
I'm not ashamed, no, to say that I've loved you well
I'm not ashamed, and yet I know
I'm just a name, that's all
Scratched upon your wall
You've used it well, but what the hell
That's what walls are for
I'm not ashamed of wearing out my old grey socks
Chasing you around the back woods
I'm not ashamed to darn
Nor to proud to find some yarn
To sew them up once again
'Cause that's what socks are for
In "Walls," Gordon Lightfoot expresses his affection for someone who has essentially used him as a mere notch on their wall. He is not embarrassed to proclaim his love and be vulnerable in front of this person, who has evidently not reciprocated his feelings. He is aware of the fact that he has been reduced to just another name etched on their wall, but he acknowledges that walls serve a purpose and are perhaps necessary to keep out love that might be too painful to face. He is capable of mustering up the courage to be friends and try to work out the issues that kept them apart because that is what friends are for. He understands that words may not always be enough, and often mistakes can be better explained through actions rather than empty promises. Finally, he concludes that he is not ashamed of his efforts - to love, to chase, to darn - because these acts stem from his deep affection for this person.
The tone of the song is one of bittersweet resignation, and Lightfoot's lyrics convey a deep sense of intimacy with the listener. The repeated refrain of "I'm not ashamed" emphasizes that the emotions expressed in the song are nothing to be looked down upon or kept hidden. Instead, they are to be celebrated for their honesty and vulnerability. At the same time, Lightfoot acknowledges the limitations of language and the difficulty of truly communicating all that he feels.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm not ashamed
To say that I've loved you well
I have no shame in expressing that I have cared for you immensely.
I'm not ashamed
To let you know
I am not embarrassed to make it clear to you.
I'm just a name that's all
Scratched upon your wall
You've used it well but what the hell
That's what walls are for
I am but a name written on a wall, a tool for you to use for your own needs, but that is what walls are intended for.
I'm not ashamed
To listen to the fast-fallin' rain
In the morning upon my window
I take no shame in listening to the sound of the rain as it falls quickly upon my window early in the morning.
I'm not afraid to cry
I'm not ashamed to try
To be your friend once again
'Cause that's what's friends are for
I am not scared to express my emotions and attempt to reconcile our friendship because that's what friends do.
Friends are for sorting out the hang-ups that we hide
Walls are for shutting out the love we feel inside
We utilize friends to work through our problems, while walls are set up to prevent ourselves from exposing our true feelings of love.
I'm not ashamed no to talk it over once again
To rearrange my vocabulary
But I can't seem to find
Any words to change your mind
Because I left them all behind
And that's what words are for
I'm not afraid to discuss it again and change my language, but unfortunately my vocabulary doesn't sway you because I exhausted everything already, and that's the purpose of communication.
Words are for explaining the mistakes we might have made
Names are for calling when there's nothing left to say
Words are utilized to clarify any misunderstandings, and names are intended to indicate that we've already said all that needs to be said.
I'm not ashamed, no, to say that I've loved you well
I'm not ashamed, and yet I know
I'm just a name, that's all
Scratched upon your wall
You've used it well, but what the hell
That's what walls are for
I'm not ashamed to express my affection for you, although I realize that I'm nothing more than a name on your wall that you use to fulfill your purposes, but that's the expected use of walls.
I'm not ashamed of wearing out my old grey socks
Chasing you around the back woods
I'm not ashamed to darn
Nor to proud to find some yarn
To sew them up once again
'Cause that's what socks are for
I'm not ashamed to wear out my old socks while attempting to chase you around in the forest, and I'm also not embarrassed to repair them with yarn, because that is what socks are expected to do.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: GORDON LIGHTFOOT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ben - Moderator
on Is There Anyone Home
We have now corrected this above
Glenn
on Is There Anyone Home
The note state that this song ("Is there anyone home?") was released in 1998 on the album "A Painter Passing Through". That is not correct, the song doesn't even appear on that album at all. The original release date was 1974 on "Sundown" album. Easily verified on Wikipedia or a hundred other websites.