Gordon Lightfoot tribute band to play one night at Arts CenterPosted: November 10th, 2009CONTACT: Tom Pink, 906-635-2315, tpink@lssu.edu; John Shibley, 635-2314, jshibley@lssu.edu
Whispers of the North
SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – It may be opening day of the firearms deer season, but you'll want to come in from camp early on Nov. 15 when Whispers of the North, a five-piece Gordon Lightfoot tribute band, performs a salute to the Canadian balladeer at the LSSU Arts Center. Performance time is 7 p.m.
An evening of "up-north" folk music is planned when by Mackinaw City guitarist Mike Fornes and his band of four backing musicians replicate the songs, styles and moods of the Canadian songwriter's best-known pieces. The band advises the audience to be ready for a visual, acoustic trip from the Great Lakes to the Canadian Rockies, through the pains of lost loves and haunting melodies.
"Gordon Lightfoot is a legend, and he has real significance as a writer of North American folk music,'' said Whispers' keyboardist George Krawczyk, director of music ministry at St. Mary-St. Charles Catholic Church in Cheboygan. "Much of what he has to say in songs resonates with us."
Fornes said the band tries to recreate its stage show as accurately as possible to Lightfoot's own, and that lead guitarist Todd Golnick, a detective/lieutenant with the Cadillac Police Dept. and Cheboygan trial attorney Joe Kwiatkowski spent time learning from Lightfoot's guitarist Terry Clements and drummer Barry Keane.
"We're trying to keep his music living on,'' Fornes said of Lightfoot, now 70."When we spoke to him about this, he seemed to really appreciate that we're so committed to accurately performing his music. He gave us his blessing."
Fornes promises that his audience will hear the best-known tunes from Lightfoot's catalogue and other songs typical of a Lightfoot concert. The play-list includes such standards as If You Could Read My Mind, Canadian Railroad Trilogy, Sundown, Carefree Highway, and Rainy Day People, plus, of course, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
"I think you have to play those big songs, especially the shipwreck song" Fornes added. "It happened less than 100 miles from here and anybody who has ever heard that song identifies it with storms they have seen on the lakes and what happened to those guys that horrible night. Yes, we'll certainly play it, but there will be some surprises too -- some great music Gord wrote that I think people will really enjoy."
The band – a mixture of eclectic musicians with backgrounds in blues, jazz, rock and sacred music -- has been assembled to portray the same roles as Lightfoot's own backing musicians, an element to the show that audiences find to be true to the original recordings. Lead guitarist Golnick will play the acoustic and electric melody lines that caused millions of radio listeners to hum along with Lightfoot's chart-topping hits of the 1970s and 1980s. Keyboard wizard Krawczyk supplies the orchestral sounds and piano music for the show's 25-song repertoire. Bassist John Riemer and drummer/percussionist Kwiatkowski have charge of the beat and special-effects score.
"From the authentic instruments to the classic sounds and the stage set, the audience will find a remarkable resemblance to a live concert by Gordon Lightfoot," Fornes said. "Full houses at theaters and other concert venues testify to the popularity of this tribute to the Canadian icon. It's a great show for couples, families and pop-culture enthusiasts of all ages."
Tickets for the concert are $15 for general admission and $7.50 for students and children. They are available online at www.lssu.edu/artscenter or by calling 906-635-2602. –LSSU--
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