Gordon Lightfoot Book, Music and More!

Gordon Lightfoot is notoriously shy. The man who wrote such classic songs as “Sundown, “Early Morning Rain” and most famously “If You Could Read My Mind” has always kept his personal life private, preferring to let his music speak for him. Now, for the first time in his long and celebrated career, the legendary artist has allowed a comprehensive biography to be published that takes readers deep inside his world, into his fascinating back story and the influences and relationships that inspired and shaped his most popular songs. Lightfoot granted Nicholas Jennings unprecedented access to him through long and extensive interviews. It was a trust earned over many years. Besides interviews, he s...

The march by Nazis, white supremacists, Ku Klux Klansmen and garden-variety racists in Charlottesville, Virginia last Saturday and the resulting violence that left one counter-protester dead is a deeply disturbing sign of just how much fascists in America have felt empowered by Donald Trump. As Globe and Mail columnist John Ibittson wrote: “[Trump] is the man who launched his campaign for president by accusing Mexican immigrants of ‘bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.’ This is the man who wanted to ban all Muslims from entering the country. This is the man who wants to build a wall. And this is the man who, on Saturday, refused to condemn white supremacists, blaming inst...

May 9, 2017. Toronto, Canada  Penguin Canada Publisher Nicole Winstanley and Publishing Director Diane Turbide are proud to announce the forthcoming publication of LIGHTFOOT by Nicholas Jennings. The book will be published under the Viking Canada imprint on September 26, 2017; the deal was negotiated by agent Jackie Kaiser of Westwood Creative Artists. "We're thrilled to be publishing what will be the definitive biography of one of Canada's best singer-songwriters," says Turbide. "Nick Jennings has had a long-standing relationship with Gordon Lightfoot, and his book enlarges our understanding of how an inspired songwriter works. I think it's going to d...

From Amazon: Lightfoot by Nicholas Jennings - Published by Penguin Random House Canada. The definitive biography of Canada's most beloved singer-songwriter, a legendary musician who helped define the folk-pop era.      From the tender ballad of "Beautiful" to the historical lament of "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" to the plaintive political plea of "Black Day in July," Gordon Lightfoot's songs have inspired and enchanted fans for more than fifty years. Beloved by a devoted Canadian audience, Lightfoot's work has been performed and admired by musicians from around the world, including Joni Mitchell, Nico, Ronnie Hawkins and Robbie Robertson. Nobel Prize-winner Bob Dy...

The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul has always mined personal issues for her best work. This is the r&b diva known for such deeply confessional numbers as “Not Gon’ Cry” and “No More Drama.” For her 13th studio album, Blige had the biggest real-life drama to draw from: divorce from her longtime manager-husband Martin “Kendu” Isaacs. She doesn’t pull her punches, attacking him for his infidelity in the scathing “Set Me Free.” “How could you believe I wouldn’t fight back,” she tells him on “Telling the Truth,” a club number produced by Canada’s Kaytranada. But most of the album is more positive, with warm numbers like “Indestructible” and “Survivor.” “I’ve been broken for a long time,” she sings on ...

It’s been nearly a quarter of a century since Sheryl Crow launched her career with Tuesday Night Music, a rock-pop album that included such infectious songs as “All I Wanna Do.” She went on to record another seven albums, which cumulatively sold over 35 million copies worldwide. Now Crow has reunited with Jeff Trott, who co-wrote early hits “If It Makes You Happy” and “My Favorite Mistake.” The reunion pays dividends, returning the “Everyday is a Winding Road” singer to her ’90s rock-queen glory. Songs like “Roller Skate,” “Rest of Me” and exuberant title track are all instantly likeable. There’s also a darker edge to some material, reflecting Crow’s concern with the state of the world. “Hal...

The seven-time Grammy winner has done his best to deny that he’s still fixated on Katy Perry. “I wouldn’t say it started as a breakup record,” says Mayer, whose relationship with Perry ended in 2015. Yet most of the songs on this 12-cut compilation, which includes two four-track EPs released earlier this year plus four unreleased tracks, are full of longing. Asked point blank if one new number, the shimmering “Still Feel Like Your Man” was about Perry, Mayer answered “who else would I be thinking about?” The songs, mostly rock and blues ballads with a solitary country track, “Roll It on Home,” range from lovelorn (“You’re Gonna Live Forever in Me”) to heartbroken (“Never on the Day You Leave...

He’s one of music’s most unlikely stars. An unassuming redhead from tiny Hebden Bridge in northern England, Ed Sheeran has a knack for crafting infectious pop songs in a variety of styles. The 26-year-old’s ambitious third album follows the mathematical titles of his previous bestselling releases, Plus and Multiply, but outdoes them both with better songs and more diverse sounds. Along with the chart-topping singles “Shape of You” and “Castle on the Hill,” the album has catchy ballads like “Perfect” and feelgood anthems of hope including “What Do I Know.” Strong rhythms drive sunny songs such as the Latin-tinged “Barcelona” and the West African-flavored “Bibia Be Ye Ye.” And Sheeran’s affini...

Her parents are scientists and at one time Charlotte planned to become a doctor. There were other influences. Growing up in Montreal, she took singing lessons. With her striking looks, Charlotte also fell into modeling and signed with Elite Model Management in Paris. But it was her second place showing on Quebec TV’s popular La Voix (a French version of The Voice) that sealed Charlotte’s future in music. She began performing in intimate clubs and recorded Big Boy, a six-song EP that showcased her seductive voice and minimalist, jazz-tinged style. Language is no barrier. “I write a lot more in English, even though French is my first language,” she says. Now touring widely and finishing up her...

It’s been a long, wonderful and sometimes challenging ride for Nelly Furtado since the multiple Grammy-winning singer arrived on the wings of her first hit, “I’m Like a Bird.” Her career has seen her top the charts numerous times with subsequent hits like “Promiscuous” and “Maneater,” while selling over 16 million records worldwide. Along the way, the native of Victoria, B.C. formed her own company, had a daughter, Nevis, recorded a Grammy-winning Spanish language album and devoted herself to her favorite charity, Free the People. But after her 2012 album, The Spirit Indestructible, Nelly wanted off the rollercoaster and took a five-year break. Now she’s back with a new album, The Ride, and ...