Steve from Oelwein called in to suggest this one!
Gordon Lightfoot – The Wreck of the Edmind Fitzgerald
After reading the article about it in Newsweek 2 weeks after it happened, Gordon Lightfoot wrote what he calls his “finest work”.
The SS Edmund Fitzgerald went down in Lake Superior November 10, 1975. A terrible storm created high winds and huge waves that eventually breached the ship as it carried tons of iron ore pellets.
Lightfood used the story and part of the article to create one of his most intersting and most loved songs, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” He wrote and recorded the song a month after the tragic event, and it was released eight months later as a single and cut on his 1976 album, ‘Summertime Dream’.
Most everything was exactly as it happened, with some creative license to add to the drama of the story.
Because the sinking of the ship and the loss of life (all crew members perished), it was national news and fresh on everyone’s mind so the timing was perfect for Lightfoot’s tribute to come out.
It peaked at #2 on the Hot 100.
