The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

A rendition of one of my favorite songs, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot. I know its suppose to be done a 12 string but being that I dont have one I adjusted it for a 6 string. This song was written by Gordon Lightfoot as a dedication to the SS Edmund Fitzgerald's shipwreck. Thanks for watching!

Dedication: To all the men and their family's who suffered that horrible day...November 10, 1975

Lyrics:

The legend lives on from the chippewa on down
Of the big lake they called "Gitche Gumee"
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty.
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the "Gales of November" came early.

The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most
With a crew and good captain well seasoned
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ship's bell rang
Could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?

The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the captain did too,
T'was the witch of November come stealin'.
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the Gales of November came slashin'.
When afternoon came it was freezin' rain
In the face of a hurricane west wind.

When suppertime came, the old cook came on deck sayin'.
"Fellas, it's too rough to feed ya."
At Seven P.M. a main hatchway caved in', he said
"Fellas, it's been good t'know ya"
The captain wired in he had water comin' in
And the good ship and crew was in peril.
And later that night when 'is lights went outta sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

Does any one know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searches all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her.
They might have split up or they might have capsized;
May have broke deep and took water.
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the rooms of her ice-water mansion.
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams;
The islands and bays are for sportsmen.
And farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her,
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the Gales of November remembered.

In a musty old hall in Detroit they all prayed,
In the "Maritime Sailors' Cathedral."
The church bell chimed till it rang twenty-nine times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call "Gitche Gumee".
"Superior", they said, "never gives up her dead
When the 'Gales of November' come early!"

Category:

Music

Tags:

• wreck
• of
• the
• edmund
• fitzgerald
• Wreck
• Edmund
• Fitzgerald
• acoustic
• guitar
• singing
• song
• gordon
• lightfoot

[TunesNorth]

Good job on this song, very well done.

I live close to Whitefish Point, you would fit right in up here.

5 *****s!

[KSMonaghanMusic]

Thank you very much!!!

[ejbgunny]

not too hard to play, but can be a challenge to sing...you did great bro.

[KSMonaghanMusic]

Thank you!!!

[zorky101]

such a nice song isnt it? at first it was hard for me to listen to cuz its so sad :(

but now im listening to all sorts of covers lol. but ya.... very nice ;)

[KSMonaghanMusic]

Yea its an amazing song. There is so much emotion in the words it was difficult for me to sing it the whole way through when I was first learning it. I come from a long line of sailors so this song means a lot to me...thx :)

[champagnehyu]

Ya know bro, I still pop this on once and a while to have a listen. Great cover.

-Jason S

[bigoletubagoo]

not bad kid, thanks

[cnarna1]

Good Job Man!! Love this song and u did great!

[Beatle105]

Great song to noodle out during some garage studio down time! Awesome singer-songwriter music. If ya'll play in Tx i'd come out.

[champagnehyu]

Yeahhhhhhhhhhh Monaghan! Killer job bro. Hope you're doing good dood. Keep it real!

-J Saud.