How Gordon Lightfoot Captivated RADIO With THIS Tragic & Haunting 70s Epic | Professor of Rock

The haunting 70s saga of the 29 members who lost their lives, the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald. How Gordon Lightfoot wrote a masterpiece that brought peace to the family members. This story behind the song and the crew from the 1976 rock epic the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald lyric by lyric.

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Of the hundreds of songs Canada’s National treasure, Gordon Lightfoot has written through the decades, he is perhaps most proud of his classic work, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.” And it's easy to understand why. The song tells in dramatic fashion the true story of the bulk freighter, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, which sank on Lake Superior on November 10, 1975. The wreck claimed the lives of all 29 crew members and has been a source of speculation and mystery throughout the years.

The idea for the song began while Lightfoot was busy working on his album Summertime Dream. One night he happened to catch a report on the 11 o’clock news about the sinking of the Fitzgerald in a fierce storm. Lightfoot remembered the night well. The wind was even howling where he was in Toronto. Wondering what it must have been like on Lake Superior, it wasn’t long before he had a melody, which was something like the drone of an old Irish chantey.

Later as Lightfoot contemplated crafting the lyrics he discovered a Newsweek article called “The Cruelest Month.” Upon reading the opening line, he was quickly captivated. “According to the legend of the Chippewa tribe, the lake they once called Gitche Gumee ‘never gives up her dead.’” Lightfoot, who had been fascinated by ships his entire life and was also a sailor himself, immersed himself in research to learn all he could about the Fitzgerald’s fate. There was just something mystical about a ship sinking that touched him deeply.

Lightfoot’s musical memorial is truly one of the most haunting songs of the 1970s. To honor both Gordon Lightfoot and the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald, let’s take a closer look at lyrics of this incredible song and the story behind them… The first verse opens up with the aforementioned Chippewa legend about Lake Superior, which they called “Gitche Gumee,” never giving up her dead.

Lightfoot then paints a brief picture of the Edmund Fitzgerald, noting that it was carrying “a load of iron ore” weighing 26,000 tons. This load was actually taconite pellets, which are chunks of iron mixed with other ores. Though the load was technically over the ship’s official limit, this wasn’t the first time the Mighty Fitz had exceeded its capacity. The $7 million vessel was one of the largest ships on the Great Lakes, and had proven itself capable of weathering even the worst of storms.

The Fitzgerald departed at 2:20 pm on November 9, 1975 without concern. It was a sunny Sunday afternoon. Within 20 minutes, however, the National Weather Service issued a gale warning for the region. The storm was predicted to stay mostly landlocked and pass to the south of the Fitzgerald's route.

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