FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Toronto, ON, November 10, 2008 – Beloved singer-songwriter, Gordon Lightfoot will begin his 5th decade of touring with a Spring 2009 Tour that touches down in Nanaimo on April 8th and 9th, 2009 followed closely by appearances in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay and ending on April 18th in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.  Lightfoot, who celebrates his 70th birthday later this month shows no signs of slowing down. He is widely considered to be a modern day troubadour, whose time-defying style and legendary hits have made him one of Canada’s most anticipated live performers. Holiday shoppers looking for the perfect gift for the music lover on their list will take note that Lightfoot tickets go on-sale on Friday, November 14, 2008 for all venues.  Please see full tour details below.

The first stop on Lightfoot’s Spring 2009 tour is via a special invitation to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of Nanaimo’s famed Port Theatre.  These celebratory concerts will mark Lightfoot’s first appearance in this intimate venue.  On April 10th and 11th Lightfoot performs at the Centre for Performing Arts in Vancouver; on April 13th in the Jack Singer Concert Hall at Calgary’s Epcor Centre; in Edmonton’s North Jubilee Auditorium on April 14th; the MTS Centre – RBC Theatre in Winnipeg on April 16th, the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium on April 17th; and finally on April 18th at the Essar Centre in Sault St. Marie.

Born November 17, 1938 in Orillia, Ontario Gordon Lightfoot studied at Los Angeles’ Westlake College of Music. He returned to Canada in the early 1960s and began performing at the “Riverboat” during Toronto's fabled folk scene. In 1966, his debut album Lightfoot! was released. Tracks such as  For Lovin' Me, Early Mornin' Rain, Steel Rail Blues and Ribbon of Darkness brought him international recognition as a songwriter. Cover versions of his songs were recorded by artists such as Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley, until 1971 when his own version of If You Could Read My Mind became a Top Ten hit. In 1974, his classic single, Sundown, went to No.1 on the American charts, followed two years later by The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, inspired by a Newsweek magazine article; it reached No. 2 on the U.S. Billboard charts. By the 1990s he was mostly touring, giving just fifty concerts a year by 1998, mainly in North America, while he released two albums in the period. In 2004, he released his 20th album Harmony, and appeared as a featured guest on Canadian Idol.
Mr. Lightfoot has won 15 Juno Awards and been nominated for 5 Grammy Awards. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 1986 and the Canadian Country Music Hall Of Fame in 2001. In May 2003 was made a Companion of the Order of Canada and is also a member of the Order of Ontario, and in 2004 was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. A full tour schedule follows.