Summertime Dream is Canadian singer Gordon Lightfoot’s twelfth original album, released on the Reprise Records label in 1976. It peaked at #1 on the Canadian RPM national album chart, and #12 on the US Billboard pop chart.[1]Summertime Dream is Canadian singer Gordon Lightfoot’s twelfth original album, released on the Reprise Records label in 1976. It peaked at #1 on the Canadian RPM national album chart, and #12 on the US Billboard pop chart.
The album marked Lightfoot’s commercial zenith in a remarkable period of popularity which began with the 1970 hit, “If You Could Read My Mind”. He would never again achieve the same level of commercial success.
The album shot to popularity on the back of the haunting ballad, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”, which told the story of the final hours of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald which had sunk on Lake Superior in November 1975. The song remains popular to this day and has been credited with making the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald the most famous maritime incident in the history of the Great Lakes.
“The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” reached #1 in Canada on November 20, 1976. In the US, it peaked at #2 on the pop chart and #50 on the country chart while “Race Among the Ruins” peaked at #65 on the pop chart. (by wikipedia)
With Summertime Dream, Gordon Lightfoot produced one of his finest albums, and wrapped up a six-year period of popularity that he would not recapture. Propelled by his second biggest hit, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” Summertime Dream summed up the sound that had served Lightfoot so well in his post-“If You Could Read My Mind” days. This distinctive sound featured Lightfoot’s strummed six- or 12-string guitar complemented by Terry Clements’ electric guitar lines and Pee Wee Charles’ pedal steel guitar accents. The material here is excellent, and the singer’s voice is at its strongest. Mixing upbeat songs like “Race Among the Ruins,” “I’d Do It Again,” and the title track with beautiful ballads such as “I’m Not Supposed to Care” and “Spanish Moss,” Lightfoot and his band deliver a tasty smorgasbord of intelligent, grown-up music. As for “Edmund Fitzgerald,” its continued popularity more than 20 years after its release attests to the power of a well-told tale and a tasty guitar lick. (by Jim Newsome)
In other words: What a great singer/songwriter !
Personnel:
Pee Wee Charles (pedal steel guitar)
Terry Clements (guitar)
Rick Haynes (bass)
Barry Keane (drums, percussion)
Gordon Lightfoot – vocals, guitar, piano)
Gene Martynec (synthesizer)
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Jim Gordon (drums on “The House You Live In”
Tracklist:
01. Race Among The Ruins 3.18
02. The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald 6.29
03. I’m Not Supposed To Care 3.29
04. I’d Do It Again 3.12
05. Never Too Close 3.02
06. Protocol 4.01
07. The House You Live In 2.52
08. Summertime Dream 2.28
09. Spanish Moss 3.49
10. Too Many Clues In This Room 4.49
All songs written by Gordon Lightfoot
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