Professor Of Rock has released the new video below, along with the following message:
"It’s quite possibly the most vulnerable song about a broken relationship of the rock era. The late Gordon Lightfoot wrote an absolutely gut-wrenching ballad where a man, who was once a hero, calls himself out as the culprit for a failed marriage, and pleads with his wife not for forgiveness, but for empathy. It’s the story of the 70s classic 'If You Could Read My Mind'. Years later, Gordon’s daughter pled with him to change the lyrics to this heart-wrenching ballad. We also tell the story of Gordon’s rise to fame and pay our respects to the singer/ songwriter who was one of Bob Dylan’s favourites. An institution. Mr. Gordon Lightfoot.... next on Professor Of Rock."
The final album from Gordon Lightfoot, who passed away on May 1, 2023, at age 84, simply entitled At Royal Albert Hall will be released on July 14 via Linus Entertainment, the Canadian independent label that released Lightfoot’s last studio album with his band, Harmony, in 2004.
Recorded live in concert in London England at the prestigious Royal Albert Hall on May 24, 2016, the double album set is an unembellished live mix of that night’s performance, without edits, overdubs, remixing, or re-sequencing. It captures every song performed in the order they were played, right down to the encore, by Gordon and his band - Rick Haynes on bass, Barry Keane on drums, Mike Heffernan on keys, and Carter Lancaster on guitar. It features Lightfoot’s best-known hits, and songs never previously appearing on a live album, including “The Watchman’s Gone”, “Sea Of Tranquility”, “Now And Then”, “All The Lovely Ladies”, “Drifters”, “Beautiful”, “Did She Mention My Name”, “Sweet Guinevere”, “Never Too Close”, “Don Quixote”, “Minstrel of the Dawn”, “I’d Rather Press On” and “Waiting For You”.
After 50 years of hit making and with international album sales well into the multi-millions, Gordon Lightfoot is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest singer-songwriters of all time. Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2012, his songs have been recorded by Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Eric Clapton, Barbra Streisand, and hundreds of others. His own recordings of “Early Morning Rain,” “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Carefree Highway”, “The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald” and “Sundown” are still among the most performed songs on radio in North America.
A lifetime spent performing live with his band, Gordon Lightfoot singled out London’s Royal Albert Hall as one of his favorite venues. In the final weeks prior to his passing on May 1, 2023, Gordon Lightfoot insisted that this live album be released as soon as possible, approving the cover artwork, and making it clear that no changes were to be made to the recording.
Pre-order the album here.
Tracklisting:
Disc One
"The Watchman's Gone"
"Sea Of Tranquility"
"Now And Then"
"All The Lovely Ladies"
"Drifters"
"A Painter Passing Through"
"Christian Island"
"Rainy Day People"
"Shadows"
"Beautiful"
"Carefree Highway"
"Did She Mention My Name"
"Ribbon Of Darkness"
"Sundown"
Disc Two
"Sweet Guinevere"
"The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald"
"Never Too Close"
"Don Quixote"
"Minstrel Of The Dawn"
"I'd Rather Press On"
"Let It Ride"
"If You Could Read My Mind"
"Restless"
"Baby Step Back"
"Early Morning Rain"
"Waiting For You"
