Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist Gordon Meredith Lightfoot Jr. CC OOnt (November 17, 1938 – May 1, 2023) had international success with his folk, folk-rock, and country music. He is often cited as an influential figure in the development of the folk-pop genre in the 1960s and 1970s.
He was a legend in folk rock and has been called Canada’s best composer. Nicholas Jennings, Lightfoot’s biographer, wrote, “His name is synonymous with timeless songs about trains and shipwrecks, rivers and highways, lovers and loneliness.”
Lightfoot gained prominence in the 1960s thanks to songs like “For Lovin’ Me,” “Early Morning Rain,” “Steel Rail Blues,” “Ribbon of Darkness,” and “Black Day in July,” which was about the 1967 Detroit riot.
In 1962, his rendition of “(Remember Me) I’m the One” reached No. 3 on the Canadian singles chart, and by the 1970s, his music was being recognized and charting in other countries as well.
His songs “If You Could Read My Mind” (1970), “Sundown” (1974), “Carefree Highway” (1974), “Rainy Day People” (1975), and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” (1976) all peaked at number one on the US Hot 100 or Adult Contemporary (AC) chart, and he had many more top 40 successes.
What Was Gordon Lightfoot Net Worth at the Time of His Death?
Canadian singer, songwriter, and guitarist Gordon Lightfoot has a $40 million fortune. In the 1960s and 1970s, Gordon was at the forefront of the folk-pop movement. During those decades, he had a string of hits, including “Early Morning Rain,” “Ribbon of Darkness,” “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Sundown,” and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.” Lightfoot was honored by the Songwriters Hall of Fame with induction in 2012.
How Much Property Does Gordon Lightfoot Own?
Gordon’s home in North York, Toronto is among the city’s most affluent regions. His $4 million house was purchased by him in 1999. The current market value of the home is $15 million. Across the street is where rapper Drake has his enormous mansion.
Gordon Lightfoot Health Issues
Severe health problems have marred Lightfoot’s career and life. In 1972, he caught Bell’s palsy, temporarily immobilizing his face. After a concert in Orillia 30 years later, he experienced severe stomach pain.
He had to be airlifted to a hospital in Hamilton, Ontario to have emergency surgery for an abdominal aneurysm. Lightfoot was placed in a coma for six weeks, during which time he had a tracheotomy and several other procedures performed.
He stayed at home to keep recuperating. Lightfoot suffered a minor stroke during a performance in 2006, leaving him unable to use the middle and ring fingers on his right hand. His full rehabilitation took almost seven months, although he was back on stage nine days after his initial injury.
If you’re interested, you can read more articles about net worth. To learn more, click the following link:
- Lisa Marie Presley Net Worth: How Did She Lose Her Fortune?
- Jamie Lissow Net Worth 2023: How Much Money Does American Comedian Have?
How Did Gordon Lightfoot Start His Profession?
Lightfoot’s mother saw his potential as a performer at a young age and helped him hone his skills. He performed for the first time in front of an audience when he sang the Irish lullaby “Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ra” over the PA system in his fourth-grade classroom.
Lightfoot sang with the St. Paul’s United Church choir in Orillia, directed by Ray Williams. He was also a regular at regional music festivals and appeared in operettas and oratorios. Lightfoot played the piano and drums he taught himself as a teenager, performing in the Muskoka vacation area.
Lightfoot was an active performer at Orillia District Collegiate & Vocational Institute. He then uprooted to Los Angeles to pursue further education in jazz composition at the Westlake School of Music. To make ends meet, Lightfoot composed and produced commercial jingles.
The Singin’ Swingin’ Eight and the Gino Silvi Singers were two bands he joined upon returning to Canada in 1960. Lightfoot quickly became well-known in Toronto’s folk music coffee cafes.
Singles like “(Remember Me) I’m the One” and “Negotiations/It’s Too Late, He Wins,” both local hits in Toronto, helped bring him national exposure in 1962. Lightfoot then went to Europe, where he hosted the BBC show “Country and Western Show” for an entire year. Once back in Canada, he appeared at the Mariposa Folk Festival, where he first gained recognition as a songwriter.
