The Times from San Mateo, California • Page 69

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As Barnum once said, no publicity is bad publicity." Onstage, after ripping into the one publication for the "womanless" nonsense, he commended The New York Times for "an objective review" of his show the night before. The crush of people backstage between sets--despite the myth that backstage passes are difficult to get--had made it impossible for Lightfoot and the other musicians to tune up properly for the second half of that show. "The Times said we were rotten," he told his audience, "and it had a point--we were lousy." Still and all, by George, as Lightfoot likes to there are other things in life besides women and publicity.There are airplanes, for example, and boats. Public speculation that "Early Morning Rain" (about being at an airport and being too impoverished to buy a ticket for home) was written by an airplane nut is dead on target. 'T do a lot of private flying," he said.

"Lease a small jet." He ticks off the names of airplanes the way other people talk about cars. "Saves me about 20 nights a year of staying in hotel rooms, and I hate hotel rooms." He has put his long-term romance with the sea into a few songs too. (Said an acquaintance who runs a sloop: "When I heard 'Christian with that line, 'I call her Silverheels and she tells me how she I said that guy's got to sail to understand how a boat does "I love sailing," Lightfoot said, "and I'll be getting my own boat very shortly. I'm also a canoeist. Since the movie everybody's asking me about thai--'What happens on those canoe trips The kidding stops when Lightfoot talks about his work.

"Doing your job" is a phrase he uses with respect. Whereas many of Lightfoot's contemporaries are in one way or another updated versions of James Dean--rebels from the American middle class who portray themselves as using their talents for various good causes--Lightfoot is more the old-fashioned craftsman when it comes to melodies and the old-fashioned poet when it comes to words. He's a literary figure who subordinates politics and other temporal or quick- changing aspects of life to his pursuit of art. For example, in this age of troubadours essaying on the evils of big business, Lightfoot says of his relation- ship with Reprise, his record label: "I like working within the company structure, actually; 1 find it advantageous. I had one thing to show them when they signed me up, and that was a track record.

They knew I could produce, and that must be important. They've treated me well." He has recorded well over a hundred of his own songs in the last dozen or so years, many of them classy and some of them classics. Indeed, few can match his track record, as new followers attracted by "Sundown" found out for themselves. "My favorites among my albums," he says, "are 'Did She Mention My and 'Old Dan's Records' and The only one I really hated was the first one which embraces the certified classic "Early Morning It had some good songs on it, but I wasn't used to recording and it's all kind of unprofessional. In fact, I thought it was very amateurish-sounding.

People who like it must like to hear me suffer." Professionalism, craftsmanship, mastery of the trade's tools--these things preoccupy Gordon Lightfoot, who (un- "The only album I really hated was the first one. People who like it must like to hear me suffer." like many folk singers) took the trouble to learn to sight-read music years ago, writes out all his melodies and even has a stint of orchestral arranging behind him. Lightfoot has a passion for writing songs aboard vehicles. Nowadays, these are mostly planes, but several years ago he went on a work binge aboard British rail, turning out a sheaf of poems and songs while the English countryside--just about all of it- flashed by his compartment. He says he'd still like to work aboard the slower-paced, more leisurely trains-just as he'd like, someday, to have a smoother, less-exciting home and social life.

The song "Lazy Mornin'," in the album "Old Dan's Records," goes on at such length about the joys of a fresh pot of coffee, a woman in the kitchen and a barbecue grill to light come suppertime, that many assumed Lightfoot meant it as a satire of suburbia. But no. "That's what I would like for it to be like it's ever possible," he said. His voice trailed off. But presently he hopped up and mixed another drink.

"First, though," he said. "I've gotta find out what happened to my date tonight." 18 I FAMILY WEEKLY, June 22, 19'5.