Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind (2019)

Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind: Directed by Martha Kehoe, Joan Tosoni. With Gordon Lightfoot, Geddy Lee, Sarah McLachlan, Alec Baldwin. The iconic Canadian musician, Gordon Lightfoot, reflects on his life and career.

“I discovered Gordonu0026#39;s music when living in Canada years ago. His music quickly became a big part of this Australianu0026#39;s education in all things u0026quot;Canadau0026quot;. My love and appreciation for his work was only enhanced further by Gordonu0026#39;s amazing response to my question in a reddit AMA session in 2014. All this without me knowing (at the time) that my Mum had seen him in concert (1974) during his only ever Australian tour!u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNeedless to say, this was one of my most ever anticipated documentaries. It didnu0026#39;t disappoint. I found myself smiling throughout as the tales behind various Lightfoot songs were shared, and Gord took us on a journey into his world, complete with childhood in small town Orillia. I read Nicholas Jenningsu0026#39; Lightfoot a couple of years ago, and found this documentary made the perfect companion piece. It was great to see Jenningsu0026#39; contributions here too.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe archive footage was fantastic to see and really transported me back in time to 1960s and 70s Toronto. I smiled as I recognised various places from Gordonu0026#39;s work and places I had been myself.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThis documentary is as much a tribute and appreciation to Gordon Lightfoot as it is actual piece about him. There are a lot of talking heads here (Bad Religion singer Greg Graffin was one of the most surprising and insightful) and many mentions of cover songs by other artists. I would have preferred more of Gordon himself and even more in-depth discussion of Gordonu0026#39;s work. Perhaps features a little too much of how he has influenced countless other artists, as opposed to focusing on Gordu0026#39;s impressive catalogue and life.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere are enough performances here to please any Gord fan. This documentary is distinctively Canadian, just like the man himself. There is a refreshing self-awareness portrayed by Gord when reflecting on his life and mistakes. I could have easily watched 5 hours of this – he has certainly had a career and life that is interesting enough to fill even more. Definitely recommend to all Gordon Lightfoot fans and anyone that identifies as a Canadian.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eNow to go spin my Lightfoot records!”