Gordon Lightfoot - The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

[mslatts68]

these people are immortilized buy this song how can they ever be forgoton

[19BunnyBoo98]

My grandmaa loves thiss song. haha

she told me to look it up..

[mrcooncat]

I cannot listen to that song without thinking about the 29 lost souls on that fateful day back in 1975. What an awesome force of nature to rip that huge freighter in half and send it down over 500 feet almost instantly. Perhaps one of the best 'tribute songs' I've heard in my lifetime.

[feminine16335]

Love this

[davids4250]

song still gives me chills.

[blappinOncoppaz]

captivating



[zepfan1919]

Great Job!

[jacklazzell]

he looks like alex trebec

[MsCanadiancougar]

Moving, so very moving...May all the crew that perished RIP.

[niss1177]

Never get tired of this song

[Briansmean21]

Why is the same comment at the top?

[MotheFo16]

@Briansmean21 by the same person? lol

[MotheFo16]

@Briansmean21 and the same amount of thumbs up

[PoisonousAnchovie]

A CLASSIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!

[hubbards98]

Bob Dylan once called him the greatest songwriter of all times...Not bad for a Canadian Boy

[adfifield]

Can we ever get back to actual songwritting and talent instead of "flash" on mtv?

[Imissthepostoffice]

A fantastic song ~ and a fantastic history here by GL. I remember sitting in my neighborhood

bar when the ship went down ~ on the news ~ It would have been forgotten about very quickly

if it weren't for GL. And a most brilliant and honorable song it was to the men who perished and

to their families ~ one of GL's finest songs.

[jbdmed]

@MsRobinator123 HA! ya and they kept K D Lang too!!

[TheSweedishMoose]

Not much to it, but you'll never find a song more haunting and moving than this.

[porn4406]

45 people are heartless assholes who don't know music and a tragic tale when they here it.

[801archer]

Excellant song and i grew up with this music so i love it but this song has a great deal of meaning to it

[pla1945]

What a haunting song.

[namznej]

@ MsRobinator so true. Lol

[JRHDivision]

gay



[2mac22]

@JRHDivision its quite a sad song actually

[2mac22]

@2mac22 its defo not a happy song, its strange that you would think was?

[bitterballoffrogs]

Thanks, Gordon, we will remember.

[dawnmariepain]

@Sexybeast, Because something is old doesn't make it bad.

[sexybeast2425]

wow im only 13 and im lising 2 this

[DanTheSniper85]

@sexybeast2425 Im 12 and im listening to it

[MissMadHatter1991]

good ol' canadian music!

[freedomlifer3]

As a young man I had an honor in seeing him live In Indianapolis the Marrot, Unbelievable ...

[Dramacidal1]

HEY LUCIE.je ne peux pas toucher les femmes.i'm sorry.I'm weak

[TheCasey74]

Oh yeah, does that bring back memories!! Love that song, but loved SUNDOWN much better!! That one brings back memories, too.

[rmkellyny1]

What a mustache! Real ass tickler!

[SuzieQz1962]

i knew the cook that missed this trip... a sub was in his place... he couldn't get over the guilt of being sick when this fateful trip was made... God bless you, george burgner!

[brelfan]

He probably doesn't get enough credit for being a fine lyracist.

[ralphyization]

We saw him in the Sault last night! Mostly, because of this song. It happened in our area, and it was pretty profound. Even though, I was just a little kid at the time. It kind of made us realize, at a very young age, to respect the Lake!

[Larrymarx]

@ralphyization Nice reply ... Life is Precious! LM

[Larrymarx]

Gordon is AWESOME... Great writer :-) LM

[artisallthat]

I went to his concert years ago and when he sang this, everyone went quiet. It was just haunting.

[CDEAR21]

Have tickets to see him next month!!! :)

[911fever]

"Does anyone know where the Love of God goes when the the waves turn the minutes to hours?" INTENSE

[demosthenesalive]

Some songs ring through the ages, and this tragedy will likely never be forgotten. Thank you Gord. I'm proud that you're a fellow Canadian.

[cc6180]

Happy 73rd Gord

[Betsy440]

RIP the Mighty Fitz and her crew of 29. You will always be remembered.

[chisox100]

I love listening to this while up on trips in the UP

[covercorner28]

The drum work on this song is supurb. Adds so much. So does the synthisizer riff you hear in the album version. Just a subtle piece of ear candy you have to listen closely to pick up.

[chisox100]

@covercorner28 to me the drum work sounds almost like a native american drum beat which adds an eerie effect

[JayHawker751]

Great song, very haunting and well done. I listen to this tune every time I play Battleship.

[curbArlecchino]

This song is beautiful but more haunting. This was getting a lot of airplay when I was nine and I had nightmares of drowning in a shipwreck.

[superhumanhero2334]

May their souls find peace in all of our hearts

[66yatezy76]

At the age of 7 we would take trips up to lake erie when this song came out,it really connected me to the great lakes in a very powerful spiritual and haunting way and I would have a very close and heroic feeling of those brave men that went down in the desaster. 30 some years later I still feel that when I hear or watch anything about this on t.v. or read about it.!

[cuneeda1950]

Friends and I would dive and swim around a stockpile of lime-stones used for the construction of the break-wall in Conneaut, Ohio on Lake Erie. I remember the Edmund Fitzgerald slowly being maneuvered by tugboats into the dock probably no further than 100 yards away, As the sailors were all on deck waiting to dock, buddies and I would all do stunts and dives of the tops for them. Delivering iron ore for the steel mills in PA and OH. A haunting memory.

[Earthshaker513]

I love how the audiance remains silent during the song out of respect for the men. I wish that there would be more people like them in this world, rather than those who try to pretend that such a tragedy even happened.

[figgskzoo]

RIP to the 29

[tduffy2]

DakotaY24, we're here. We're just remembering..... The bell tolls 29 times for the souls lost.

[Soul74]

My dad worked on a freighter out of Lake Erie in the late 60s. This song came out when I was 2 years old and my dad would always tell me to be quiet when this song came on the radio because it was serious.

[xisting4me]

May their souls rest in the hands of God.

[DakotaY24]

Why aren't other people here to remember this night (11/10/11), 36 years ago.

[onecoolchris]

@DakotaY24 i totally remember what happened even though i wasnt born back then, but still its sad

[yalecheerleder]

HE KNOWS

[MorrigansStudio]

"Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?"

[zonkoj]

its too bad the ship ran aground and had structural failure...

[RealPauper]

@zonkoj it didn't run aground ... it was broken by the waves of Lake Superior.

[takenbysilence]

@zonkoj I actually went to the museum in the U.P. of Michigan where they hold the wreckage of the Edmund Fitzgerald. It wasn't so much as structural failure as it was that Lake Superior beats the holy bajeebuz out of ships. Especially that one. Even the METAL lifeboats were torn to shreds. It's a sight to behold.

[Vatch1966]

Thirty Six years Ago today...To The Edmund Fitzgerald and the 29 men who lost their lives that night.

[Lindafan21]

Hauntingly, beautiful song. RIP to the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

[1tcrjr]

blessings to the families...and cheers to gordon, i saw this tour in Pittsburgh, still a top 10 show!

[PcolaSteve4234]

To the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald and to the Lady herself. You were lost today, 36 years ago. You have not been forgotten.

[sandyis138]

"and bilbo and frodo and galdalf are here," haha, this reminds me of lord of the rings!

[mrbigkell]

"All that remains is the faces and names of the wives and the sons and the daughters."

About as profound a set of lyrics as there is in all of music.

[GeeWoody47]

@mrbigkell

Well spoken, sir. IMHO, Gordon Lightfoot is the best Canadian/American balladeer to come along in decades. With the possible exception of the late Stan Rogers.

[MMODoubter]

@mrbigkell Very true.

A great song. Always touching.

[TCA4570]

My Family worked in Shipyards.

I rememeber them trying to fit 1000 footers in the docks.

Not like a video game.

Do yu want to know how to make a wheel, or fit a boat?

Whichwheel?

Less than four days.

This isn't a joke.

That was a real bad spot to be in.

TC

[windstorm1000]

if they had put down some tobacco before they left, they might still be alive. have to honor the Spirit of the Lake whenever you travel on her.

[MsKarenrankin]

The Edmund Fitzgerald sank this day in 1975. RIP

[MrTommyboy1999]

@MsKarenrankin it sank on the 10th

[tggrsmommy]

I have always loved this song!

[74powers]

Awesome song and I bet this was a great show

[bgormstud1]

She was the biggest and baddest of her time on The Great Lakes. A mighty ship and crew lost on her maiden voyage. Wow how tragic and yet hearing the song makes it kind of sad, but poetic.

[bgormstud1]

Great song and timeless story that most of my generation don't even know. The song or the story. Come on generation x wake up !!

[jimmiejoe007]

Gordon did his research before writing this song. It is very accurate in describing what happened on that fateful night. And it's true that had the Edmund Fitzgerald made it to Whitefish Bay, only 15 miles away, the crew may have very well survived. This song is a great tribute to the 29 men who lost their lives that night.

[dsnm41]

as a person who love being on the water i respect those who died

[twinsboy48]

Casual Friday?

[terminator5791]

Same voice as on the Record! No voice recordings here!

[ddiiaa52]

This was a big hit in the 70's. haunting song.

[MrBillyhunchback]

Bobby Sands Copied the tune and made it i classic"I Wish I Was Back Home In Derry"

[gnatromanychel]

Gypsys rule!!!

[ErnsT12H1]

Awesome. Makes me think, it kinda gets on your nerves, not in a bad way, though. It is very haunting.

[kosh2001]

Thanks!!

[jrushmen]

Greatist folksinger of all time !

[gjm1953]

Absolutely one of my favorite folk songs. But, think about it. This song was, if I remember correctly, quite a hit when it came out. Was there ever a more unusual subject for a popular song? This was a true maritime tragedy, and years later we're still listening to Gordon sing about it. Like I said, one of my all-time faves, but sometimes I just think it's such an unlikely hit.

[laurieann769]

love this song, as it is a respectful tribute to the families of those lost in this tragedy'

[auburnwings]

If you think this is haunting, try listening to Tony Rice sing this song....Wow!!

[Maxid1]

I was just watching video of waves of lake Michigan pounding Chicago and this song started playing in my head.

[rustyjohndeer1]

TOO BAD MORE SONGS ARNT LIKE THIS

[LuLu4JESUS247]

MY DAUGHTERAND I SAW HIM SEVERAL TIME IN PHILA,PA AT THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC, HE WAS SENSATIONAL. WHEN HE SANG THIS SONG EVERYONE WENT NUTS!

[msdonnah1]

I love this song & it was really sad for all those families who lost loved ones. Now adays songs are all about violence,sex,drugs & dumb stuff, not as great as this song. In Duluth,Mn at the museum there they play this song & it always makes me sad for all those loses.

[blondie19651]

I was a freshman in high school wen this happnd,I was in total shock,something so close to home

[vcx9dfne]

This song was written by an adult for adults about a real event. It's not about politics, teenage angst, or sex.

Is it good poetry? It's better than most you'll find in a pop song. It is boring to those who think only of themselves or look only for novel stimulation.

[redsoxgene]

very unique voice

[christina123541]

I fell asleep at 4:38

[tommyknocker777]

Roger2288...Full apologies to you...thank you for your kind words!!! A true gentleman..You have risen to a higher conscious state!!!

[824Tank]

haunting...still as it was...30 years later

[satscout]

Read the Wikipedia article on the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sometime. It really puts the song in perspective. I was too young to understand when it actually happened (in November 1975 I had just turned 6). We were living in western Ohio though.

[terrifoo]

@dphares... this song was so special in the 1970

[dphares]

Not to make light of the seriousness of the video, but check out the guy in the front row with the Gilligan hat on! 1979 = Priceless!

[mmarcum06]

This is a great tribute song to those men that lost their lives and their families.

[tommyknocker777]

The dislikes of this song are from people who have not risen to a higher conscious level !!!

[tommyknocker777]

This roger2288 who disliked this video....he is the one with no soul !!! He didnt even know what the Titanic was !!!

[roger2288]

@tommyknocker777 i never disliked the video. i was chirping those who did. i love this song.

[hajhvodahc]

the dislikes are ignorant people that dont know what they are hating on.

[chrispmis]

What a great song; very haunting. Gordon Lightfoot is the man.

[GilliesMary]

It's not your anus is for sportsmen.

It's Island and Bays are for Sportsmen.

Make sure you know the lyrics before you rate a song. Great song by the way!

[Paulsinke]

"Crap, a live recording, there's no way I will be able to make out the awesome lyrics."

"WAIT! Don't click away, the audience is just sitting down and listening respectfully!"

[sewerrod]

what a buzzkill

[sewerrod]

yeah your ass is for sportsman

[sewerrod]

Hey Gordon, you ever heard of pearl harbor 

[dsnow1219]

@sewerrod What does Pearl Harbor have to do with the fitz?

[kat3dev]

As I said in another video of this song, Gordon Lightfoot does this song justice. After all these years, it still makes me sad to think of these men, what they must have been going through and the violence that ended their lives.

[brotherbenz22]

She would have been 54 years old this year, and 53 years ago she had her first voyage. Great song and may the 28 men and the Captain who were lost in this tragic accident Rest In Peace.

[skontch1]

why does everyone care so much about the assholes that hit the dislike button? they're just morons that want attention. this is a spectacular song. you know it, and i know it. that's all that matters..

[lrochelle48]

A great songwriter who captured both the tragedy and humanity of what was surely a difficult moment for all who were waiting when the news came through. I have always felt a kindred link to this song though I had never read a word about it nor had I known anyone who was affected by the event personally. Sometimes the right words come and the moment is remembered forever. What a beautiful tribute that remains.

[terrifoo]

Well. This was by big waves

[85Chrysler]

@terrifoo Do you mean a rogue wave? I remember when my Dad was at the hearings an Oceanographer said he thought the Fitz was hit by a rogue wave & he was asked to stay out of it because it sank in fresh water. The rest off them said there was no such thing as a rogue wave. The Oceanographer was redeemed many years later when a big ship got hit. The ship returned heavily damaged, this time there was photos of the wave hitting along the ship. So many lives have been saved from this tragic event.

[Intarsian]

I love this song and cover it on my channel. I posted a video response here. I used a Harmonica to try and compiment the song and not take away from it.

This is one awesome song to sing.

LOVE IT!!

[rubbersole79]

Why in the good Lords name would you click on a beloved classic, and then hit the dislike button?

Powertroll / tripping?

[rubbersole79]

Why in the good Lords name would you click on a beloved classic, and then hit the dislike button?

Powertroll-tripping?

[Rollie1961]

The gales of November came slashing....

[dreamfable]

Proceeds from "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" continue to benefit families of the 29 crew members on the 1975 wreck, and Lightfoot meets with family members of crew when touring takes him near them. At anniversaries and tributes, he sometimes attends and raises further funding.

[qaiileahbabe]

he may have made money off the song , but at least he remembered then 29 men and paid tribute to the tragedy

[85Chrysler]

@qaiileahbabe I don't know how old you are, or if you know the wants of the Family's of the Men that died that day. Well I let you know of a few. They don't want ANYONE to dive on the Fitz. They want the ship left alone. I just mean that there is more about how she went down than the crew, I do however love this line. "Now all that remains are the faces & the names of the wives & the sons & the daughters" It was well done. I love this song. For ME it was personal. We were steelworkers.

[qaiileahbabe]

@qaiileahbabe sorry if I insulted you 85Chrysler Im pretty old but I dont know much about the Fitz besides this song I studied Titanic the Andrea Gale and I love history my blessings to the wives the sons and the daughters ,but if not for Gordon lightfoots song Id not be in an history book looking up the hows and whys peace ,my family are oil field workers so were cousins in that respect God bless you

[85Chrysler]

@qaiileahbabe Hi, I saw that you mentioned the Andrea Gale. These tragic shipwrecks share the fact that nobody knows what really happened to both of them. Gordon wrote a ballad about what might have happened to the Fitz The Andrea Gale sinking also had something similar when it was made in a Movie. I had a user post this on my channel from 45 to 53 seconds He thought Gordon said "the big ship & crew were a bone to be chewed" He said it was in bad taste. Gordon says the big ship in "true"not crew

[777dasar]

i'm more confused that so many of you have focused on the dislikes more than by those 36.it's really very simple. some people have no taste...peace...

[85Chrysler]

I have seen Big Fitz going through the locks many times. If you think you have a bigger, better built, & more competent Captain then the Fitz then consider yourself lucky. I don't think you will find one. I myself think the dislikes might be that Gordon Lightfoot was a Canadian, or they didn't like anyone using one of the worst modern Maritime disasters as a way to make alot of money off those 29 Men. Robert Ballard still wishs he should have claimed Titanic. Many have made money off of Her too.

[jfkdjfd]

Gordon isn't a Michigan boy is he? I think he might be, but i could be entirely wrong.

[alanfaehamilton]

How can anyone dislike this song probably the best from Gordon.He has written and recorded some classics songs that have remained with me through the years.One of the best singer-songwriters ever and a credit to Canada!!

[marnold6879]

36 people are destined to to sleep in the ice water mansion

[hsilgnede]

RIP.

[rogart10]

This is how to write a song - a proper tale set to music. You can almost feel you're on deck in that storm. What a tragedy - god bless the memory of the crew.

[stealth694]

I have always loved this song.

If ever there was a memorial to sailors and seamen this is it.

[pittsburgh533]

One of the best guitar solo's of all time!

[PlanTonto]

Rest In Peace to the men who persished..

[glgale92]

Gordon is absolutely the best songteller of all time. He has no equal.....

[g0yTube]

Wanted to post, but the emotion has left me without words...

[Super2handsome]

a ture classic

[trmadigan]

im from detroit my grandfather was friends with the captain of this ship im not kidding or lying it is lake superior that he is talking about so cold so deep  i hate that great lake it scares me the ship was caught ina nasty storm in november snapped in half fromwhat i have been told and sank this still bothers me for some reason............

[TheLeolivingston]

He is a Union Brother...SIU. Great song, Great performer.

[Tater1951]

Just to clarify for some, the Edmund Fitzgerald sank Nov. 10, 1975 with 29 aboard. The Carl D. Bradley sank in Lake Michigan on Nov. 18, 1958 with 33 aboard.

[wildbillhdmax02]

@Tater1951 The Inkerman and Cerisoles Minesweepers are two French warships that vanished on their maiden voyage in a Great Lakes storm in Lake Superior sometime in mid-November 1918. No traces of the two vessels have ever been found. Seventy-six French sailors and two Canadian captains disappeared along with the Minesweepers. The Inkerman and Celisoles are the last naval warship vessels to disappear in the Great Lakes and are the largest loss of life on Lake Superior.

[cornhusker221]

If you don't like this phenomenal classic you deserve to choke on your Gaga CDs!

[ManTexDal]

I couldn't put it better myself cornhusker

[mariehansler]

@cornhusker221 Very well stated!! This is a TRUE classic.

[rhythm2007mc]

@cornhusker221 Its not just a classic, its a memorial ;)

[GremlinsAndGnomes]

Lake Superior is very dangerous.

[ToxicGuppy]

Raised on Gordon Lightfoot. He's the man.

[dogluver2398]

@ToxicGuppy tru dat

[hildman5]

i due recalled that time in 1958 edmund fitzgerald i was a young man then

[dubaiedge]

good for him, changing the lyric. my dad loved this song before he drank himself to death 5 years later. one of the only things i have a memory of making him happy. thanks, gordon.

[pbrucpaul]

This has a real Sailor Sea 'Chanty' sound to it. Only a Balladeer like Gordon Lightfoot can do this.

[dmg83]

Awesome!

[ecclestonlee]

Oh man, think before posting dude, he is still well alive

[mareckbamf]

I am NOT going to hold the mustache and hair against him. It's a great song.

[SoutharnBling]

I must say this song was one of his best, just not sure if I would say it was the top song that he sang. Shame that he died so young.

[uniquegl100]

@SoutharnBling Gordon Lightfoot is still alive.

[jimincairns]

@SoutharnBling He ain't dead yet.

[BobbieJeanS]

This is the Master Storyteller. You are transported into the tale when listening to his tunes. I will always love him for the man that he is, and all he has shown me musically. This is a song that I am proud to say that I was able to hear Gordon play live. History.

[Syzygy60]

the risk reward to be free is what it is 100%

[Syzygy60]

i've been on those lakes when they were calm,I always knew there r no guarantees,in life on land or water

[Syzygy60]

this is my Superman

[MrGoblin60]

Poetry set to music.

[daffydoug]

What a masterpiece! a superb example of Lightfoot's way with words!

[TheTuggerrype]

@ajenstini I'm with you. such a tragedy portrayed beautifully in a song...

[ajenstini]

No matter how many times I hear this,it STILL sends a shiver up my spine.