It went down 17 miles from Whitefish Bay…so the line that says “the searchers all say they’d made Whitefish Bay if they put 15 more miles behind her.” And when they say “Superior they said never gives up her dead”… The water at the bottom of Lake Superior is about 38 degrees…Normally, when someone drowns bacteria will end up bloating the body and it will rise to the surface - when the temperatures are below 40 degrees there’s no bacteria…therefore, all 29 people are still down at the bottom of Lake Superior since November of 1975
@@skunkmonster1because of the passing of GORDON.... Permission was given from the families.... To this day, any royalty money generated from this song goes to a fund for all family members.
One of my favorite songs, my friends and I play it and song whenever we have a get together. Our local small town Ohio bar has had this on the jukebox since it came out. Went thru multiple jukeboxes but this always had to be on it.
“Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?” is just about the most tragically beautiful lyric I’ve ever heard.
The most poetic way of describing despair I've ever heard. One of my father's ship mates told a story of the cook lashing a huge kettle to the stove in order to at least have hot soup available while riding out a hurricane. It was a very small ship.. He never said how they kept it on the bowls.
Because of everything Gordon did for the families and his efforts to keep the story of the ship's loss alive, the families and the historical society had his name officially added as the 30th member of the crew. Gordon Lightfoot was a wonderful man whose memory deserves every honor it receives.
My father worked on the boats as a cook for many years.....including the Fitz.... I've been aboard her a few times myself.... We knew many of the men personally...... Rest in Peace.... Michael Armagost- 37- Third Mate- Iron River, Wisconsin Fred Beetcher- 56- Porter- Superior, Wisconsin Thomas Bentsen- 23- Oiler- St. Joseph, Michigan Edward Bindon -47- First Asst. Engineer- Fairport Harbor, Ohio Thomas Borgeson -41- Maintenance Man- Duluth, Minnesota Oliver Champeau- 41-Third Asst. Engineer- Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin Nolan Church -55 -Porter -Silver Bay, Minnesota Ransom Cundy- 53- Watchman- Superior, Wisconsin Thomas Edwards-50- Second Asst. Engineer- Oregon, Ohio Russell Haskell -40- Second Asst. Engineer- Millbury, Ohio George Holl -60- Chief Engineer- Cabot, Pennsylvania Bruce Hudson- 22- Deck Hand -North Olmsted, Ohio Allen Kalmon -43- Second Cook- Washburn, Wisconsin Gordon MacLellan- 30- Wiper- Clearwater, Florida Joseph Mazes- 59- Special Maintenance Man -Ashland, Wisconsin John McCarthy -62-First Mate -Bay Village, Ohio Ernest McSorley -63 -Captain -Toledo, Ohio Eugene O'Brien- 50- Wheelsman -Toledo, Ohio Karl Peckol -20- Watchman -Ashtabula, Ohio John Poviach -59- Wheelsman- Bradenton, Florida James Pratt -44- Second Mate- Lakewood, Ohio Robert Rafferty -62 -Steward -Toledo, Ohio Paul Riippa -22 -Deck Hand -Ashtabula, Ohio John Simmons -63 -Wheelsman -Ashland, Wisconsin William Spengler -59- Watchman- Toledo, Ohio Mark Thomas -21- Deck Hand- Richmond Heights, Ohio Ralph Walton -58- Oiler- Fremont, Ohio David Weiss -22 -Cadet -Agoura, California Blaine Wilhelm -52- Oiler- Moquah, Wisconsin
That bell in the chapel was brought up by my late friend. That is the Fitz's original bell in the chapel. A copy was cast and brought back down to replace on the ship. A can of beer was also left on the wheelhouse console.
I live on the shore of Lake Superior, I worked in the local iron mines that produce the ore that is shipped in ore boats like the Fitz. She was caught in a massive November storm and she tried fighting the huge waves to find refuge in Whitefish Bay, but went down in 530 feet of water with all 29 crew members. I was still in high school and this song came out soon after - there isn't a Yooper (a native of Upper Peninsula of Michigan) that doesn't know the story and we can all receit the words of this tribute song. Gordon Lightfoot is a master storyteller.
I was born in Ontonagon -- never lived there, but been there a few times for family reunions. My Mom is a Yooper, my Dad A Tennessee Native) was in the Navy stationed in San Diego, but in Vietnam during my birth, so Mom had me up there where her family could help. I grew up in SoCal, and knew this story since birth. 😊❤
Wasn't born in the Great White North, but I grew up there (post 1975). Just south of Duluth. Annual school trips to the maritime museum at the mouth of the St Louis river into Lake Superior. The song, the museum exhibit dedicated to the Edmund Fitzgerald, we knew this from our earliest memories. My mom had seen Lightfoot in concert in Superior, WI when she was a teen, but that was way before this song came out. But it hit when it did come out, and it still hits. Watching that lake and watching those ships and hearing those stories for years and years, not just in a museum, but on the radio. This one still gets me, to this day.
The song refers to the bell in Detroit's Mariners' Church ringing 29 times each year for the 29 souls lost on the Edmund Fitzgerald. Gordon Lightfoot passed away on May 1, 2023. The church added one more ring of the bell to 30 rings in honor of Gordon Lightfoot and his contribution to the memory of the Edmond Fitzgerald and the sailors lost. As always, an excellent reaction on your part!!
As a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, I would like to make a small clarification. In the Anishinaabe language (which is the proper name for our People) Lake Superior is in fact called Gichigami, not Gitche Gumee. It means "great water" or "huge water."
We need to get back to this...in many areas. The original language matters. Up and down the East coast, and all the way across the current U.S. Being a Texan of indigenous heritage, I feel like the origin of our lands has been suborned, if not lost completely...yet it is integral to who we are, all conflicts aside. The heritage of our country is being erased
Condolences for your loss. When reactors react to this song, they always pick the lyric video. I try to suggest the video done in a documentary style that has the newscast, home films/pictures of the ship and crew, and the radio traffic of the "Arthur M. Anderson". ua-cam.com/video/hgI8bta-7aw/v-deo.htmlsi=viYHN4w7kg2yrIbM
The loss of the Edmund Fitzgerald was a shock to all of us in "the Lakehead" aka Thunder Bay and filled us with grief. I hope this song keeps the memory of your great uncle alive.
FYI, Gordon Lightfoot asked permission of all the family members who lost their loved ones on the Fitzgetald to release this song. When they heard the song, they all agreed it was a worthy tribute. 😢
And he gave all the family members the money , profit of this song to the 29 family's... Donated every dime. And each dime continues to go the family's of the dead. Gordon had such a true soul of humanity RIP GORDON
My dear, I loved your reaction. I'm 67 yrs old and still cry when I listen to this song. So powerful and sad and a fine tribute to those sailors. RIP 29 plus 1.
Thank you for your comments. Her reaction was so pure and candid. I just loved it. I still cry when I hear this song. Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. Canada and the USA are so fortunate to have them. Makes me even more proud to live in a country of democracy. We are indeed so fortunate!
Saw him in Ottawa a couple times. Yeah this is one of the songs that gets me every time. And even older when I saw him the way he sings this, just so much emotion in it
I was working aboard a tramp steamer in the North Atlantic when the Edmund Fitzgerald went down. Our radio operator came to the bridge and told the watch officer who then told the rest of us. A year or so later I was in Auburn Alabama at a Gordorn Lightfoot concert and heard this song for the first time. I still cry when I hear it.
The waters of Lake Superior are so cold at the bottom that bodies don’t float to the top because the bacteria that causes that can’t grow. That’s why he says “never gives up her dead”. To this day it’s impossible for me to listen to this song with out tearing up. 😢 Gordon paints such a clear picture of what happened. It almost feels like you knew the crew. Both be a beautiful yet haunting song at the same time.
While he paints a clear picture, he had to revise the song after a number of years. He had described the hatch giving in, which had been the prevailing theory, but the family of the crewman responsible for the hatch had always disputed it. When the Fitz's wreckage was found, the hatch was secure and the ship was broken elsewhere. To reflect this, Lightfoot revised the lyrics. He also revised the description of the sailor's cathedral as a 'musty' old hall - the hall was regularly used and so was not musty, so he changed that description as well: no hard feelings on either side.
When Gordon died, The Maritime Sailors Cathedral in Detroit, rang its bell 29 times for the crew of the Edmond Fitzgerald, and once more for Gordon Lightfoot.
I had the good fortune to see Gordon Lightfoot in concert in LA towards the end of his career, a true poet and musician. I shed more than a few tears every time I hear this song.
@@mikebradshaw6484 - That is not accurate. Tradition of ringing the bell 29 times started to commemorate the men of the Fitzgerald. Then in the earl 2000s the expanded the ceremony to honor all sailors lost on the lakes but still rang it 29 times. Last year, to honor them (and Gordong Lightfoot passing away) they rang it 30 times.
My husband is a man's man and I remember looking in the back seat as we were driving on vacation and seeing the tears roll down his face as we listened to this song with our son. It is a tragically sad song beautifully told and sung by one of Canada's finest singers. I love Gordon Lightfoot. The song truly breaks my heart as it does my husbands as well. I love to hear this song but it is hard to hear at the same time due to the loss suffered by so many families who lost their husbands, fathers, sons and brothers. May God have mercy on them all. The hardest part for me was hearing the cook tell them he couldn't feed them. It was like men on death row not getting their last meal. Hard not to cry hearing this song.
I am a retired US Navy Sailor and although a different sea, every Sailor knows that they are always rolling the dice when they go to sea. Wonderful tribute to those men.
Thank you for your service, and you're 100% right. The Great Lakes are quite different from the oceans. Much less large rolling waves, much more frequent medium hard hitting waves that can fuck you up just as hard but in a different way. I grew up in Michigan right off of Lake Huron, and know a lot of people who make their trade out on the Lakes, either as fishermen or out on Lakers like the Edmund Fitzgerald. My Dad was a Coastie who grew up in Detroit but served on both ocean coasts. You have to go out, but you don't have to come back.
@@nr63kish Life long Michigander here. My In-Laws live on Sugar Island in the Saint Mary's River, just out side of the Lochs. I've ridden the ferrie to the island in rough seas before. Not fun. I was als on a charter fishing boat that got caught in a nasty squall in the 90s, on Lake Huron. One minute it was beautiful, sunny, the next, we thought we were witnessing Cthulu rising from the depths. I have far more respect for the power of the Great Lakes, than I do for the oceans. Oceans can be scary, the Great Lakes are a beautiful nightmare.
Storms can be bigger & more powerful on the ocean. But you can see them coming & if need be, avoid them. On the Great Lakes, things happen faster & due to the tight confines, you're going to get hit by that storm. Ideally, you can get to some sheltered waters.
Gordon is considered to be Canada's greatest folk singer/songwriter. This song is based on a true story, and, as I am to understand, all of the proceeds were donated, in perpetuity, to the families of the crew.
Anyone who has tried to write a song... wow. This is not just a song. He is telling the story of people who died in a terrible storm. The responsibility is huge and then the difficulty in conveying everything that happened and making it all fit into a 3 minute song. This is pure song-writing genius.
Dear Britt, as a near 56 year old who grew up listening to this and a number of other songs you have reacted to, it is a real pleasure seeing your excitement in learning these musicals masterpieces and the stories behind them.
I remember seeing a cartoon the day after he died Gordon was at the gates of heaven, and he was told, “come in, Mr. Lightfoot, there are 29 souls here waiting to welcome you.” ❤️❤️❤️
See now I’m just crying. We had a famous author here in Atlanta and the paper published a cartoon at the gate with his dog running out to greet him. Lewis something. One book is Shoot Low Boys They’re Riding Shetland Ponies. 😂 Don’t Bend Over in the Garden Granny You Know Them Taters Got Eyes. 😂😂😂
Gordon was disappointed with the scant media coverage so he wrote this as a tribute to the 29 men who died. Lake Superior is like an ocean in its size. It's the world's largest freshwater lake by surface area - 31,700 square miles (82,100 square kilometres), or roughly the size of Maine - and holds 10 percent of the world's surface fresh water. (By volume, it's the third largest, behind Lake Baikal in Siberia and Lake Tanganyika in eastern Africa.) Lake Superior's 3 quadrillion gallons are enough to cover both North and South America under a foot of water.
@@DavidSmith-pg1ob The surface of Lake Superior is about 600 feet above sea level, the highest elevation of the Great Lakes. But the deepest point in the lake, 1300 feet below, is lower than the deepest point in the rest of the Great Lakes even with the 167 foot drop of Niagara Falls between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Lake Superior alone holds more fresh water than the other four Great Lakes combined.
To come into this song with no background, and sketchy on details, you did an amazing job breaking it down and your willingness to explore it further will fill in all those gaps. Great job.
Gordon is Canadian from the Great Lakes region and this sinking was a huge story.. he researched it extensively and it moved him to write this song - he gave All of his royalties to the families of the perished.. you’d love his songs like sundown
This song is based on a true event. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was a freighter carrying a full cargo of iron ore pellets that sank during a storm with hurricane force winds on Lake Superior on November 10, 1975, with a loss of the entire crew of 29 men. I had just graduated from high school that year. Back then, they didn't have the weather reporting that we do today. It was a very sad day indeed.
I was 10 years old at the time of the mighty Fitz sinking. I can remember my dad taking us out to the lake and watching the big ships coming by. The Fitz was a massive ship and I cried when she sank.
Chippewa is a native American tribe. It's said Gitche gumme is the name for Lake Superior in their language. You got the message about staying off the great lakes in November just right. I lived on Lake Michigan the day of that storm. I saw waves roll over the beach and down the street
Large lakes can be worse than the ocean during a storm. I’ve lost family members on Lake Winnipeg, which is the 8th largest lake in the world and is only 3/10 the size of Superior.
The song was not only Gordon Lightfoot's tribute to everyday working men who put their lives on the line for their families, but also his powerful reaction to the minimal coverage the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald got from the media. All the profits from the song went to the families.
I don't know how you could say there was four media coverage or maybe that was Nationwide I lived in Cleveland at the time this happened it was on the news every day for months
@@williamlukacik4648 I was 11 years old at the time in Chicago and never heard a word about this until the song came on the radio. I wasn't sure until I was older that it was even a real wreck. I was paying attention to the news at the time. The EF went down in 1975, and I was very familiar with the news of the prior two yeas, the OPEC oil embargo. So it was not like I was some (totally) dumb kid. As a member of the blue collar class tho, this song really hit hard. I knew it had to do with steel production and risky work, which was made more clear as I got to college age and did a project on the SE side, the 10th Ward, where there were many steel workers and their families. I learned that steel production involved crazy large shipments of iron ore and coal, etc. Later, during my career, I toured US Steel, an "integrated" steel mill. That is, they took raw materials at one end and rolled out coils of steel at the other. I never toured another steel mill, but I suppose from the terminology, non-integrated mills would take close to finished product. Still dangerous work. The workers are wearing basically flame suits, almost like space suits, near some of the equipment. Back to the song, the tight vocals and rhythm, the sort of emphatic pronunciation that evokes a mariner telling a tale, this is a mood piece and a fitting elegy. We should remember that these tragedies happen all the time as part of the sacrifice to produce the comforts of our lives. Videos abound, one of which showed a huge sip breaking in two midship. What is crazy is that you might expect that on the open ocean, but a few miles from shore in a lake? We should remember that Lake Superior is the deepest of the Great Lakes. I think that means it gets the biggest waves, but I am prepared to be corrected. I do know that the lake is so deep that 30 years ago I read about a bespoke trend before we had a name for that. Wood that was being transported from Michigan through L. Superior had been lost a century before; so many ships had gone down. This was desirable old growth hardwood. It was found to have been preserved by the lack of oxygen and the coldness at the bottom of that deep lake. So there was a market to retrieve it for high-end furniture or whatever. Kind of gross, imo. I felt it should be left as a grave marker or perhaps shown in a museum.
My father was a Great Lakes wreck diver. I grew up learning all about the hundreds and hundreds wrecks all over the lakes. This song was played constantly and it always brings tears to my eyes.
Given the nature of the Great lakes, and Lakers in general, this tended to be more of a shared tragedy than an American tragedy. It could have just as easily have been the Canadian ship and everybody who works the lakes knew that.
I love the music which is haunti8ng. The Chippewa were a tribe of American Indians who lived in the area and Gitchigumi was their name for Lake Superior. And Lightfoot is definitely a poet.
Retired from the Navy in '94...listen to this ballad every Nov. 10th and still cry my ass off today...happened upon this reaction video and can't thank @brittreacts enough for sharing this with UA-cam nation...she is adorable and seemed very sincere ❤
The Great Lakes are basically huge inland seas, more than lakes. “ Gave Early” means that they came early. The ship was an iron ore carrier. Steel is made from iron ore.
I work at the steel mill the Edmond Fitzgerald was destined for. If you did not sail the iron ore over the Great Lakes during the winter months then car manufacturing and appliance manufacturing would cease and prices would escalate to unattainable levels for the consumer. God bless the men and women who have to treck this journey and may they always be safe.
@@Ilikeryche I'm pretty sure that China mines its own ore. I don't think it would be economically feasible to ship iron ore down the Mississippi on barges, then off-load it onto ocean-going vessels, send it through the Caribbean and then across the Atlantic ocean, through the Mediterranean, down the Suez Canal, and across the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea. But I *could* be wrong It's a really short trip (only about 19,000 miles - taking about 9 weeks)
This happened when I was a teen in high school. I live in Michigan. I can't not cry every single time I listen to it. Gordon was a genius wordsmith and his tribute to the lost crew and ship is unparalleled. Also the mournful instrument sounds.
"We are holding our own" -- the last communication from the Edmund Fitzgerald's Captain Mcsorley when queried by the Arthur M. Andersen how they were doing. 10 minutes later, she suddenly disappeared from sight and from radar of the Andersen (who was only a few miles behind her trying to guide her in the storm because their radar masts had been damaged). It was quick and catastrophic, whatever happened. You can find pictures of her broke in 2 at the bottom of the lake., 533 feet down.
This is a song about the loss of at the time the largest lake boat in Canada. These ships were called lakers or lake boats, they carried bulk cargo such as grain, coal or iron ore. I personally travelled through the lakes to Chicago on a British ship carrying grain, and we were one of the first ships to enter the lakes after the winter of 1973 . Before we even entered the lakes we hit a huge iceberg in the St Lawrence seaway which caused us to limp into Montreal for repairs. Even so the Lloyds register of London reported my ship as lost at sea for three days, my parents thought I was lost. As a teenager at the time I have to say when I heard we were traversing the Great Lakes I really didn’t know what to expect. Imagine my dismay when sailing across these lakes, when you don’t see any land for 2 ,3 or 4 days because they are so big and consequently have a whole climatic/weather system of their own which can be brutal. RIP the crew of the many ships that have perished in those bitterly cold waters. ❤
Britt I strongly suggest you and the husband take a vacation to the Michigan coast areas to see the lakes for yourself. They are truly majestic. These aren't the lakes you go to the beach and swim in. You can't see the shoreline on the other side. They are really inland seas, the vestiges of the last ice age. The water is cold till July in the lower ones and it never gets warm in Superior. You don't go boating on them unless you know what you are doing. They are forces of nature demanding respect. But that are beautiful and awesome inspiring. There's magnificent fishing and wondrous sand dunes.You can collect fossilized stones right off the beach. Ernest Hemingway absolutely loved this area. His family had a summer home in Northern Michigan and he wrote his first stories there before WW1. You can do guided tours of the home and areas he traversed. Finally because of the lakes Michigan has more coastline than Florida.
I never said what nationality the EFitz was.I merely referred to the fact that they were all referred to as “lakeboats “ or “Canadian lakeboats” or “Lakers”. They all have a unique look designed around the fact they had to traverse the locks of the Welland canal and others on the lakes.There are many other reasons these ships>…….and I say ships because they were not boats. The design of these ships were narrower and longer. They typically had the bridge at the bow of the ship and they had a second superstructure at the rear of the ship .. I remember the first time I ever saw one of these ships I was confused because all my life previous had thought that ships had all the superstructure for accommodation and navigation at the rear of the ship. The ship that I was on was a conventional bulk carrier with all the superstructure to the rear, my beautiful memories of that trip were passing through the bay of a thousand islands, and eventually arriving at Chicago . All those bridges opening up for us to slide through, magical memories .❤️
Fair enough. I’m somewhat familiar with these boats, because I have done repair work on several of them. I even got the chance to ride on one (the Lee A Tregurtha needed an emergency repair while they sailed). So, I know some stuff, heard some stories, I’ve just never heard them referred to as Canadian lake boats.
Nobody could tell a story in a song like the late great Gordon Lightfoot. This is one of the most hauntingly beautiful sad songs of all time. Once you hear this song you will never forget it. Whoever recommended this song to you...I tip my hat to them. When the singer Gordon Lightfoot passed away the cathedral in Detroit which is mentioned in this song rang their bell 30 times, once for each of the men lost with the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald and once for Mr Lightfoot. Cheers from Ottawa, Canada🍁
Please accept my congratulations for having the courage to push yourself to the end of a heart-breaking song about a truly sorrowful event. This is the first time that I have viewed on of your videos, but it shan't be the last. Your honestly and compassion moved me. Thank you.
Britt your community is giving you top songs to react to. This one and Sundown are 2 of my favorites. This is my favorite melancholy song. It has legs enough but nothing I can't handle. Watching you react transfered your emotions through the screen and gave this thing all new life and sadness. Knowing the the 29 times was coming and you didn't was like watching a kid go out into traffic but you can't call them back. Brace for emotional impact. Greatest reaction vid yet. TY. 🙏🏾❤️
Here in Australia when the "Wreck of the Edmond Fitzgerald" was played on radio I was shocked then learnt that Gordon's song was based on a true story even more shocked. Every time I see someone react to it, I get 😢
Young lady, I am glad you covered this fantastic song. You just learned a tragic history lesson of our country. I too wish they would teach things like this from our American History. Thank you for this and thank you for being a believer. I trust that your dive into this, post production, brought you insight.
When Gordon heard this in the news it barely got any recognition. So Gordon, having such a kind heart, wrote this to bring it the attention it deserved. What a kind soul. I feel for those families still.
The newspaper article he read about the sinking was only a few lines and couldn’t even be bothered to spell the ship’s name right. Gordon made it so the sinking would never be forgotten. It’s unfortunate how many other shipwrecks didn’t get that level of respect and care.
In case you are confused, Chippewa are the natives that live near the Great Lakes, and Gichi-gami, pronounced gitchi-gami or kitchi-gami in different dialects, means 'big sea'-'gichi' meaning big and 'gami' meaning liquid. It can also mean the ocean. Zhiiwitaagani-gichigami, meaning 'Saltwater/Bitterwater sea,' was the name given by the natives who speak that language and the different dialects of the language, to be exact Nayaano-nibiimaang Gichigamiin means the 'Five Freshwater Seas.' Anishinaabewi-gichigami is Lake Superior, meaning 'Anishinaabe’s Sea.' Ininwewi-gichigami is Lake Michigan, meaning 'Illinois’ Sea.' Lake Huron has two names: Naadowewi-gichigami and Gichi-aazhoogami-gichigami, meaning 'Iroquois’ Sea' and 'Great Crosswaters Sea' respectively. Lake Erie goes by two names: Naadowewi-gichigami and Aanikegamaa-gichigami, meaning 'Neutral’s Sea' and 'Chain of Lakes Sea' respectively. Lake Ontario also has two names: Niigaani-gichigami and Gichi-zaaga’igan, meaning 'Leading Sea' and 'Big Lake' respectively.
The Chippewa are one of the bands living around Superior. In our area at the north-west end of Superior there are Ojibwa and Cree. I'm glad you pointed out that there are different dialects ......Miigwech.
@@ve3snw I know, but the point specifically mentioned the Chippewas and the name of the lake. So, I made it clear what he was talking about. If he had sung and mentioned the other bands, I would have specified what he was referring to when mentioning them but he didn’t mention them.
As a child living across from Detroit Michigan in WIndsor ontario Canada. My dad pointed out the Edmund Fitzgerald saying it was the largest ship on the Great lakes . Gordon Lightfoot went to the church a few times to hear the bells chime 29 times. With the verse that says in a musty old hall.. One of the mothers gave him heck saying it wasn't musty. So he later changed to the words to Rustic old hall. Every year you can hear the bells chime from the Detroit river. and it was really cool hearing them chime 30 times last year. One for Mr Lightfoot.
Gale is a very strong wind - this is why Dorothy *Gale* is the main character of The Wizard of Oz. Yes, the Mighty Fitz was a Great Lakes freighter - she was the largest ship to have sailed the Great Lakes, and is the largest ship to sink there. She also set 6 records for hauling freight across the Lakes. She sank in a very bad storm with near-hurricane level winds and waves 35 feet high, only 15 (nautical, 17 non-nautical) miles away from a bay that would have sheltered her from the storm. When Gordon wrote the song, they hadn't found where the Mighty Fitz's wreckage. They have since then.
Largest to sail when launched, by todays' standards she'd be too small to be profitable. Still the largest wrecked though. 729ft long vs the current queen of the Lakes is the MV Paul R. Tregurtha at 1013.5ft.
Definitely not the biggest anymore, but many ships of that era and size are still sailing the lakes. I assume they're profitable. The Arthur M. Anderson was with the Fitz when she went down and is already loading in Minnesota for her first trip of '24.
They salvaged the ship's bell, but families of the men wanted the rest if the Fitz left undisturbed as a grave site. You cannot dive the wreck at all anymore, it was only done the once in order to recover the bell
Part of the reason the song has it's unique sound is that it is written in the AAB rhyming scheme. (example: "The ship was the pride (A) of the American side (A) (next line) Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin (B)"). It gives it a "sea chantey" sound and incidentally it is the highest rated song ever to use the AAB scheme.
I've lost 2 family members on ships that sank on the Great Lakes. On 11/18/1958 the ship SS Carl D. Bradley went down in a storm on Lake Michigan and of the 35 on board, 33 lost their lives (my Uncle being one of them). And the SS Henry Steinbrenner on 5/10/1953 sank on Lake Superior and 17 were lost (Another uncle). The Great Lakes are an unforgiving mistress when the weather turns bad.
That's so sad. I've heard of the Bradley, but not the Steinbrenner. I'll look that up. It's important to remember all those who were lost on the lakes.
How sad and tragic. So sorry for your loss. Thankful you have family brave enough to do the hard jobs that keeps this great nation turning......you have my gratitude.
I'm so glad that you saw the poetic meaning in the best line in this song. "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours"
Beautiful line. My take on this is that in times of unbearable stress, it is difficult, if not impossible, to calm oneself with comforting thoughts of God or family or friends. The mental torture makes each minute feel like an hour.
On November 10th, 1975, [49] years ago. The Edmund Fitzgerald sinks in Lake Superior. The biggest of the Great Lakes. Twenty-Nine men lost their lives never to be recovered. " Lake Superior never gives up her dead"-Gorden Lighfoot. The Chippewas are an Indian tribe. They called Lake Superior (Gitche Gumee).
I was a young lady when this song came out. I didn't until it. So I asked. Now I cry every time I hear it. I'm 66 now. And I'm still crying.. it's an emotional thing to listen to Gordon's music.
I was so sad to hear of Gordon Lightfoot's passing away recently. Loved his music. One of the best songwriters & storytellers. He was a Canadian legend. This song is a beautiful tribute & is based on a true story & the lyrics tell the sad tale of the sinking of the ship & loss of lives in 1975. Gordon Lightfoot has had many hits through his long career such as "If You Could Read My Mind", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon Of Darkness", "Carefree Highway", "Rainy Day People", "Cotton Jenny", "Black Day In July", "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" etc.
This is without doubt the best reaction to this song I've ever seen! You really paid attention to the lyrics to follow the story, and I loved how you picked up on the drums mimicing the sound of the storm. Best of all was when you talked about the lyric, "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?" Girl, I was having church right along with you! Gordon Lightfoot wrote a brilliant tribute to honor the tragic loss of November 10, 1975. I think he would have appreciated the respect given in your reaction.
I was in Duluth 2 times and both was about December. Waves is like Sup was looking mean on the first time and iced over the second. Knowing the Coastguard has ice beakers there. I never went close to that cold water!.... I knew unless you have the artic red big fluffy suits the water sucks the heat and life out of you fast. So the minutes being in waters would react like being in hours = death...
Born in Michigan in 1968, I remember when the Edmund Fitzgerald sank. Of course I also remember when this song came out. My Dad was once a sailor on a railcar ferry across Lake Michigan...this song never fails to give me the willies. The Fitz got caught by surprise. Weather forecasting has come SO far since then. ...and yes, the Great Lakes are some of the deadliest waters in the world. There are uncounted ships and people that have been swallowed up by them never to be seen again.
Which ferry? I've been across Lake Michigan on the _Badger_ twice, and remember watching all three ferries _(Badger,_ _Spartan,_ and _City of Midland 41,_ IIRC) that were operating in the early '80s. We'd camp at Ludington State Park for a week or so, and often went to get ice cream in downtown Ludington and watch the ferries come in and out.
14:10 The line "from the Chippewa on down" refers to the Ojibwe Native American tribe that lived along the shores of Lake Superior and called it "Gichigami" which got morphed into "Gitche Gumee" by later white explorers and settlers.
So many of us who will listen to this throughout our lives and no matter who is hearing this song for the first time...we listen along and cry. Quietly cry for the crew as if they were our family.
So true. I always cry when I listen to this song. My sister lived up in Duluth and I'd always head down to the harbor where the lake freighters were coming and going. Lake Superior's like an ocean but frigidly cold. This song is a poetic masterpiece.
The U.S. Navy has ships that patrol the great lakes, including training cruises. Whenever they pass over the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, there is a ceremony observed to honor those fallen sailors. The ship's bell of the Edmund Fitzgerald was retrieved, and replaced with a replica, for use in museums or education, but never a for-profit use.
Hi Britt, I think you do a great job with your reactions. I live in a suburb of Detroit. I'm a Vietnam vet and had the privilege to be part of the military honor guard for the ceremony he mentions at the Mariners Church which is near the tunnel to Canada from Detroit. I love music and saw Gorden Lightfoot in concert in Detroit, great show.
Yes, it was the Great Lakes! Lake Superior to be exact. I'm from Michigan and when this happened I just held my baby boy and rocked him for hours! Great reaction young lady! The Great Lakes are very dangerous, as much or more so than any ocean, because it is unexpected! They have rip currents and gigantic waves, also storms form over them out of nothing! You should look this up but I'll tell you Lake Gitche Gumee is the Indian name for Lake Superior. Thank you for reacting to this! Have an awesome day!
The reference saying ".The searchers all say they'd made Whitefish Bay if they'd put fifteen more miles behind her". refers to the waters at the eastern side of Lake Superior. If they would have made those waters they would have been safe as the waters there are surrounded closer by land and those calmer waters the ship would easy weather. There is a Shipwreck Museum up on Whitefish Point the closest point of land to the site of wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. It contain many relics from the ship including the ship's bell. They replaced the bell on the ship itself with the names of all the crew who went down with the ship. It is very difficult to reach the wreck as it lies in very deep waters and the pressure is great. The waters of Lake Superior are so deep that the temperature at the depth of the wreckage would preserve the bodies forever ("... never gives up its dead"). So, the bodies of the crew are entombed in the wreck forever.
My dad was in the Air Force, and we were stationed at Kincheloe A.F.B.(now closed), in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, commonly referred as the U.P. I was 12 when we moved there in the summer of 1975. It was on Nov. 10 of that year the Edmund Fitzgerald went missing. Gordon Lightfoot was a singer/songwriter who hit his biggest popularity in the mid 70's. Gordon lived on the Canadian side of Sault (pronounced Soo) Saint Marie, Ontario, Canada. Sault Saint Marie, Michigan is the US side. There is a locks (it is a place where they transfer a ship from one of the Great Lakes to another. In this case, Lake Superior to Lake Huron, which allows the ships to go from Wisconsin to Cleveland. In the song he states that the ship may have split up or capsized, or drove deep and took water. At the time of the release of the song, the Edmund Fitzgerald had not been found. In may of 1976, the found the remains of the ship at the bottom of Lake Superior in 2 parts, so, it did split apart. The church bells at the Maritime Sailor's Cathedral in Detroit rings 29 times on the anniversary of the sinking on Nov. 10th. Gordon Lightfoot passed away in May of 2023, that year, the Cathedral rang 30 times, to include Gordon.
When you add in the fact that this was a tribute to all those 29 men who lost their lives aboard in an instant, it takes on a whole other meaning. When you research the wreck, the ship was broken in half, the smaller ship that was following never saw the ship go down and never saw a lifeboat or survivor as they passed over, literally minutes after. The reports go hand in hand with the song and you have to read those to understand just how deep this song's meaning is. When you read the reports and listen to this it becomes very emotional. I was born in 72 in Traverse City MI adopted at birth, and I cry when I hear this every time, I feel there is a greater connection for me. This in the Great Lakes region is larger than the Titanic in historic significance.
This is my favorite reaction I've ever seen. Your take and watching you figure it out was priceless ,brought me back to my 1st time hearing this gem thank you!
Gales are huge winds that create extremely rough water. The ship was carrying iron ore to be turned into steel. The ship sank in Lake Superior with its crew, where it all remains to this day. The Cippewa is an native tribe and in their language Lake Superior is called Gitche Gumee Please read up on the Edmond Fitzgerald, It is facts!
Gales are a misnomer where the lakes are concerned. A Gale is no easy thing but the song spells it out correctly, they were effectively hurricanes. The lakes have a unique microclimate not entirely disimilar to the the Mexican gulf and the various atlantic storms. Similar dynamics but on a micro scale. As such the same calamities occur only far quicker and and intense. The novermber storms will blow out quicker but also rise quicker making november trips down right suicidal (checkout the Carl D Bradley and the 1903 storms). Another 'intimidating' fact and more kudos to Gordon, the ice water referrence is very significant as t why Superior does't give up her dead. The chill causes the bodies to stay pretty well preserved and static. As such bodies tend not to float (I'll save the gory detail) and remain at peace where they lay. It is a very stark description but one born of fact. May the crews of all lost on the lakes Rest in Peace and their slumber never disturbed. Take heed the tale of the Mighty Fitz that there is no might greater than nature, one deserving of respect and reverence. When the chill winds blows stay ashore and in harbour.
God bless you. You are a sweet heart, and full of light. I'm an old sailor, and the son of an older sailor, long buried. Terrified of sinking, I dream about it often. I freaking cry every time I hear this song.
This is one of the few songs that make me cry instantly. Another one is "Woman in Chains" from Tears for Fears. Your thumbnail says "How did I miss this???" My answer is that all of us will only ever know a small sliver of the human experience. Just imagine that you live in New York, you get the local news and there is a big local story you hear about every day for a month or two. People living in a small town in another state will never hear about it. Just like you are not aware of 6 families losing their homes due to a fire in another town. For the longest time, I knew that Gordon Lightfoot was a legend but the fact that he was a folk singer kept me off from checking him out. Reaction chanels like yours have allowed me to sample other genres and always discover things that many people know already but that were out of my tiny sliver of experience. So instead of asking "How did I miss this?" I am just grateful for the new worlds I am exposed to.
I am 70 yrs old . Iwas a young man when I visited Mackinaw's locks where I saw the captains' face. His eyes I will never forget. I cry every time I hear this song.
I'm also 70 years old. When I was a young man of 21 , I was with a friend on our way to an annual fishing trip to Canada.We stopped at the Soo locks and saw the Edmond Fitzgerald pass through the locks in the summer before it sank. Several years later , we visited the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish point. I talked to an old man from Sault Ste. Marie.He said the day the ship sank, it was like 100 freight trains were coming through the Soo. He thought his house would blow away. In 1976, I was in Columbus ,Ohio trying out new speakers for my stereo system. I took that record of Gordon's to choose my speakers. So, I have a soft place in my heart for the man and his song. I also cry every time I hear it.
You must understand, the Great Lakes are essentially inland seas. They are that big. I grew up on the Great Lakes and remember this very well. RIP Captain & Crew🙏
This song was so popular and on the radio all the time, so imagine, just as it affected you I think it affected everybody. I mean why else would a song like this just be on the radio constantly. And it's woven into my childhood memories for sure. And the adult understanding of it of course is terrifying.
I was 9 years old when the Edmund Fitzgerald met her tragic fate, and 10 years old when the song came out. I still remember clearly the first time I heard the song - I was laying in bed reading while listening to the radio, nice and snug under 3 blankets (because it was cold outside). The DJ introduced the song and I sat up, because I remembered the actual wreck happened the previous year, and turned up the volume a bit. I just sat there, staring blankly at the radio as the words became images in my head - and I began to cry silently, the tears running down my face almost unnoticed. By the time the song was fading out on its last notes, the neck of my pajamas was soaked and I had to change. Then I went to the kitchen to get a glass of water… my mom was sitting at the kitchen table doing crossword puzzles, and when she saw my red tear-swollen eyes she asked me, “What’s wrong?? What happened??” I gave out a shaky sigh and said in a near-whisper, “I just heard the saddest song on the radio, Mom. It’s about that big ship that sank in the storm last year…” She gathered me onto her lap even (though I was getting too tall for that), wrapped her arms around me, kissed the top of my head- and that made me cry again. I don’t even know how long we sat there like that… but by the time I stopped crying, I was exhausted and still crushingly sad. I went back to my room, climbed into bed, reduced the radio to very-low volume, turned off the bedside lamp - and slept for 12 hours straight. Forty-nine years later, I STILL cry every time I hear this song.
As someone who grew up very near Duluth/Superior, I can say this song is extra powerful when you know the lake. Because of the sheer size and shape making it super cold, and the fact that it's freshwater, the bodies of people who are lost on it are actually preserved extremely well, which is where the line "the lake it is said never gives up her dead.," comes from. You can actually Google "old whitey" and see a story of a corpse that follows divers around (for presumably natural reasons). The Edmund Fitzgerald is the most well known, but it's just one of many ships that have been lost on Lake Superior.
This song always chokes me up. My dad worked on an ore boat the Ben E Tate on the Great Lakes in the 1950’s. My mom and I would meet him in Cleveland after they sailed to and from Duluth. I never understood as a 5 year old kid how dangerous his job was, Thankfully he always came home. He loved the water. He’s gone now, but this song always makes me think of him and how much I miss him.
13:10 Well, later in the year the Lakes often freeze at least partially, so from late December to March the Lakes are impassable to boats. The Soo Locks are usually shut down in the depths of winter, so you can't get from Lake Superior to the lower Lakes or back, until they reopen in spring.
I was in college in Michigan when it occurred. One of my friend’s father worked on a Great Lakes freighter and the families always worried when they had to traverse Lake Superior, which is known for the sudden and fierce storms. It is a sad song but Gordon Lightfoot did an excellent job of honoring the lost crew. RIP Gordon and the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Gordon is known as the Canadian troubadour and any song on Gord’s Gold is worth a listen.
I was a kid when this happened, and everybody knew, at least in the midwest and around the Great Lakes, about the wreck. Gordon just put it to music, beautifully.
I'm encountering this for the second time and I'm a little bit after the 10 minute Mark and you are gobsmacked. And yeah man it's just like the intensity of the lyrics and the Poetry in it just ratchets up more and more and more.
The Chippewa are a Native American tribe, Gitche Gumee is their name for Lake Superior. Yes, this song is very sad, I live on the coast of Maine now and the song has taken on new meaning for me. Ships and boats are lost all the time still, but now with people that I may have known. Being a sailor is a very dangerous job. I've heard this song 100s of times and it always hits home.
Chippewa is the American name, (Ojibway or ojibwe, ojibwa in Canada and Saulteux in both) of the people, with several tribes (american) and nations (Canada). The tribe/nation is more relating to their regional political organization, not cultural. And it's gichi-gami. Gumee was the incorrect spelling from Longfellow's The Story of Hiawatha. Not being picky, but it's just not well known by most people, and it's incorrectly taught if at all in schools. Sort of like oil coming from dinosaur bones.
All five of the Great Lakes (Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario) are named in the song. I was a child in Wisconsin when this happened and fell in love with this song when it was first released. I grew up on Lake Michigan, and these monster ships were a common site from the coastline. They travel through all of the Great Lakes and in/out the St. Lawrence Seaway to/from the Atlantic Ocean. Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes that has the southern shore including Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and a small part of Minnesota and the northern shore faces Canada. The Chippewa is an Indian Tribe, and Gitche Gumee is their names for the Lake Superior.
Yes. This is a true story. It happened in Lake Superior (which stays cold year round), which can be the most vicious of all the Great Lakes, especially in November. A Gale is the same as a hurricane. Here around the Great Lakes, we all know every detail. I live near the Maritime Sailors Cathedral. It brought tears to hear the bell ring 29 times each year. The people around here have a long memory for those 29 men. Thank you for doing this. It remembers those men, who should not be forgotten. And from November through the winter the lakes are dangerous. Oh and the Chippewa Indians called lake Michigan Gitche Gumee. If you want a research Rabbit hole, check into "The Great Lakes Storm of 1913" Great reaction.
It went down 17 miles from Whitefish Bay…so the line that says “the searchers all say they’d made Whitefish Bay if they put 15 more miles behind her.” And when they say “Superior they said never gives up her dead”… The water at the bottom of Lake Superior is about 38 degrees…Normally, when someone drowns bacteria will end up bloating the body and it will rise to the surface - when the temperatures are below 40 degrees there’s no bacteria…therefore, all 29 people are still down at the bottom of Lake Superior since November of 1975
Is it possible the lyric used nautical miles since they would be used for speed and distance. 15 nautical miles equals a bit more than 17.26 miles.
@@bobmartin4942 The feeling was that if there were within 2 miles of the coast the weather would have been clam enough for them to reach shore
I worked with the radioman who received the call from the sister ship that said she disappeared between the squalls.
😮😮😮
Oh my God. I didn’t know this. That’s so tragic and dark.
I was eleven when this happened. Had to do current events everyday on it. All over the news in Detroit.😢
They rang the bell 30 times on the announcement of Gordons death.
Why 30?
@@skunkmonster129 for the men who died on the ship and 1 for Gordon lightfoot
@droid8472 I love that!!! I put it together when we got to the end and I heard it again. Thanks!!!
@@skunkmonster1because of the passing of GORDON....
Permission was given from the families....
To this day, any royalty money generated from this song goes to a fund for all family members.
One of my favorite songs, my friends and I play it and song whenever we have a get together. Our local small town Ohio bar has had this on the jukebox since it came out. Went thru multiple jukeboxes but this always had to be on it.
“Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?” is just about the most tragically beautiful lyric I’ve ever heard.
The most poetic way of describing despair I've ever heard. One of my father's ship mates told a story of the cook lashing a huge kettle to the stove in order to at least have hot soup available while riding out a hurricane. It was a very small ship.. He never said how they kept it on the bowls.
Yup, one of my favorite lyrics ever.
Agreed
Been there and know exactly what it means.
@@la_old_salt2241 watching and listening to the vessel flex in the swell all the while thinking cmon baby hold together. 😢
Because of everything Gordon did for the families and his efforts to keep the story of the ship's loss alive, the families and the historical society had his name officially added as the 30th member of the crew.
Gordon Lightfoot was a wonderful man whose memory deserves every honor it receives.
My father worked on the boats as a cook for many years.....including the Fitz....
I've been aboard her a few times myself....
We knew many of the men personally......
Rest in Peace....
Michael Armagost- 37- Third Mate- Iron River, Wisconsin
Fred Beetcher- 56- Porter- Superior, Wisconsin
Thomas Bentsen- 23- Oiler- St. Joseph, Michigan
Edward Bindon -47- First Asst. Engineer- Fairport Harbor, Ohio
Thomas Borgeson -41- Maintenance Man- Duluth, Minnesota
Oliver Champeau- 41-Third Asst. Engineer- Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
Nolan Church -55 -Porter -Silver Bay, Minnesota
Ransom Cundy- 53- Watchman- Superior, Wisconsin
Thomas Edwards-50- Second Asst. Engineer- Oregon, Ohio
Russell Haskell -40- Second Asst. Engineer- Millbury, Ohio
George Holl -60- Chief Engineer- Cabot, Pennsylvania
Bruce Hudson- 22- Deck Hand -North Olmsted, Ohio
Allen Kalmon -43- Second Cook- Washburn, Wisconsin
Gordon MacLellan- 30- Wiper- Clearwater, Florida
Joseph Mazes- 59- Special Maintenance Man -Ashland, Wisconsin
John McCarthy -62-First Mate -Bay Village, Ohio
Ernest McSorley -63 -Captain -Toledo, Ohio
Eugene O'Brien- 50- Wheelsman -Toledo, Ohio
Karl Peckol -20- Watchman -Ashtabula, Ohio
John Poviach -59- Wheelsman- Bradenton, Florida
James Pratt -44- Second Mate- Lakewood, Ohio
Robert Rafferty -62 -Steward -Toledo, Ohio
Paul Riippa -22 -Deck Hand -Ashtabula, Ohio
John Simmons -63 -Wheelsman -Ashland, Wisconsin
William Spengler -59- Watchman- Toledo, Ohio
Mark Thomas -21- Deck Hand- Richmond Heights, Ohio
Ralph Walton -58- Oiler- Fremont, Ohio
David Weiss -22 -Cadet -Agoura, California
Blaine Wilhelm -52- Oiler- Moquah, Wisconsin
Thank you for that. How special to list them. Rest in peace dear souls.
RIP, to all of these dear souls...
RIP
I'm sorry for your loss.
Wow. Im not usually so speechless
They ring the bell annually on the anniversary of the sinking. This past year, the bell was rang 30 times to include the passing of Gordon Lightfoot.
I never heard that they rang it one more time for Gordon Lightfoot! That is beautiful!
Respect
All royalties from this song went to the families.
May he rest in peace.
That bell in the chapel was brought up by my late friend. That is the Fitz's original bell in the chapel. A copy was cast and brought back down to replace on the ship. A can of beer was also left on the wheelhouse console.
I live on the shore of Lake Superior, I worked in the local iron mines that produce the ore that is shipped in ore boats like the Fitz. She was caught in a massive November storm and she tried fighting the huge waves to find refuge in Whitefish Bay, but went down in 530 feet of water with all 29 crew members. I was still in high school and this song came out soon after - there isn't a Yooper (a native of Upper Peninsula of Michigan) that doesn't know the story and we can all receit the words of this tribute song. Gordon Lightfoot is a master storyteller.
I was born in Ontonagon -- never lived there, but been there a few times for family reunions. My Mom is a Yooper, my Dad A Tennessee Native) was in the Navy stationed in San Diego, but in Vietnam during my birth, so Mom had me up there where her family could help. I grew up in SoCal, and knew this story since birth. 😊❤
Well said yooper … respect.. from a troll
Wasn't born in the Great White North, but I grew up there (post 1975). Just south of Duluth. Annual school trips to the maritime museum at the mouth of the St Louis river into Lake Superior. The song, the museum exhibit dedicated to the Edmund Fitzgerald, we knew this from our earliest memories. My mom had seen Lightfoot in concert in Superior, WI when she was a teen, but that was way before this song came out. But it hit when it did come out, and it still hits. Watching that lake and watching those ships and hearing those stories for years and years, not just in a museum, but on the radio. This one still gets me, to this day.
@@jasonfisher8529 the song bring tears everytime I hear it ..
@@chuckwilson4186Every. damn. time. Watching Britt's little sad pout didn't help, either, LOL
The song refers to the bell in Detroit's Mariners' Church ringing 29 times each year for the 29 souls lost on the Edmund Fitzgerald. Gordon Lightfoot passed away on May 1, 2023. The church added one more ring of the bell to 30 rings in honor of Gordon Lightfoot and his contribution to the memory of the Edmond Fitzgerald and the sailors lost. As always, an excellent reaction on your part!!
As a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, I would like to make a small clarification. In the Anishinaabe language (which is the proper name for our People) Lake Superior is in fact called Gichigami, not Gitche Gumee. It means "great water" or "huge water."
Thank you!
Yes.
Thank You. ✌️🫂 🕊
We need to get back to this...in many areas. The original language matters. Up and down the East coast, and all the way across the current U.S. Being a Texan of indigenous heritage, I feel like the origin of our lands has been suborned, if not lost completely...yet it is integral to who we are, all conflicts aside. The heritage of our country is being erased
@@JamesBrown-wo2qj Yes so true!
My great uncle was an assistant engineer on the Edmund Fitzgerald. This song always makes me cry.
Condolences for your loss. When reactors react to this song, they always pick the lyric video. I try to suggest the video done in a documentary style that has the newscast, home films/pictures of the ship and crew, and the radio traffic of the "Arthur M. Anderson".
ua-cam.com/video/hgI8bta-7aw/v-deo.htmlsi=viYHN4w7kg2yrIbM
My condolences.
Fair winds and following seas to him. May his memory forever be a bright blessing.
I do to and I am just from Duluth.
The loss of the Edmund Fitzgerald was a shock to all of us in "the Lakehead" aka Thunder Bay and filled us with grief. I hope this song keeps the memory of your great uncle alive.
FYI, Gordon Lightfoot asked permission of all the family members who lost their loved ones on the Fitzgetald to release this song. When they heard the song, they all agreed it was a worthy tribute. 😢
And he gave all the family members the money , profit of this song to the 29 family's... Donated every dime. And each dime continues to go the family's of the dead.
Gordon had such a true soul of humanity
RIP GORDON
I didn't know he donated the music proceeds. What an amazing thing to do.
❤
Yankees Suck!
@@benjamindouglas862
Chill out bud.
Not the song to be a troll on.🤨
My dear, I loved your reaction. I'm 67 yrs old and still cry when I listen to this song. So powerful and sad and a fine tribute to those sailors. RIP 29 plus 1.
Thank you for your comments. Her reaction was so pure and candid. I just loved it. I still cry when I hear this song.
Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. Canada and the USA are so fortunate to have them. Makes me even more proud to live in a country of democracy. We are indeed so fortunate!
Saw him in Ottawa a couple times. Yeah this is one of the songs that gets me every time. And even older when I saw him the way he sings this, just so much emotion in it
I fully agree with that! You are so delightfully sensitive Britt!
I was working aboard a tramp steamer in the North Atlantic when the Edmund Fitzgerald went down. Our radio operator came to the bridge and told the watch officer who then told the rest of us. A year or so later I was in Auburn Alabama at a Gordorn Lightfoot concert and heard this song for the first time. I still cry when I hear it.
The waters of Lake Superior are so cold at the bottom that bodies don’t float to the top because the bacteria that causes that can’t grow. That’s why he says “never gives up her dead”. To this day it’s impossible for me to listen to this song with out tearing up. 😢
Gordon paints such a clear picture of what happened. It almost feels like you knew the crew. Both be a beautiful yet haunting song at the same time.
Same for me, I've heard this song probably hundreds of times and still get misty eyed every time.
Amen.
While he paints a clear picture, he had to revise the song after a number of years. He had described the hatch giving in, which had been the prevailing theory, but the family of the crewman responsible for the hatch had always disputed it. When the Fitz's wreckage was found, the hatch was secure and the ship was broken elsewhere. To reflect this, Lightfoot revised the lyrics. He also revised the description of the sailor's cathedral as a 'musty' old hall - the hall was regularly used and so was not musty, so he changed that description as well: no hard feelings on either side.
There's a good reason this song was voted the worst song to strip to.
@@gregjustlovesyoutubeguidelines😂
When Gordon died, The Maritime Sailors Cathedral in Detroit, rang its bell 29 times for the crew of the Edmond Fitzgerald, and once more for Gordon Lightfoot.
He also donated every dollar of profit from this song to the families of the 29 lost crewmen.
They always have rang it 30 times. The last one being for all of the crewmen of all ships lost.
I had the good fortune to see Gordon Lightfoot in concert in LA towards the end of his career, a true poet and musician. I shed more than a few tears every time I hear this song.
@@mikebradshaw6484 - That is not accurate. Tradition of ringing the bell 29 times started to commemorate the men of the Fitzgerald. Then in the earl 2000s the expanded the ceremony to honor all sailors lost on the lakes but still rang it 29 times. Last year, to honor them (and Gordong Lightfoot passing away) they rang it 30 times.
My husband is a man's man and I remember looking in the back seat as we were driving on vacation and seeing the tears roll down his face as we listened to this song with our son. It is a tragically sad song beautifully told and sung by one of Canada's finest singers. I love Gordon Lightfoot. The song truly breaks my heart as it does my husbands as well. I love to hear this song but it is hard to hear at the same time due to the loss suffered by so many families who lost their husbands, fathers, sons and brothers. May God have mercy on them all. The hardest part for me was hearing the cook tell them he couldn't feed them. It was like men on death row not getting their last meal. Hard not to cry hearing this song.
❤🙏
I am a retired US Navy Sailor and although a different sea, every Sailor knows that they are always rolling the dice when they go to sea. Wonderful tribute to those men.
Thank you for your service, and you're 100% right. The Great Lakes are quite different from the oceans. Much less large rolling waves, much more frequent medium hard hitting waves that can fuck you up just as hard but in a different way. I grew up in Michigan right off of Lake Huron, and know a lot of people who make their trade out on the Lakes, either as fishermen or out on Lakers like the Edmund Fitzgerald. My Dad was a Coastie who grew up in Detroit but served on both ocean coasts. You have to go out, but you don't have to come back.
@@nr63kish Life long Michigander here. My In-Laws live on Sugar Island in the Saint Mary's River, just out side of the Lochs. I've ridden the ferrie to the island in rough seas before. Not fun.
I was als on a charter fishing boat that got caught in a nasty squall in the 90s, on Lake Huron. One minute it was beautiful, sunny, the next, we thought we were witnessing Cthulu rising from the depths.
I have far more respect for the power of the Great Lakes, than I do for the oceans. Oceans can be scary, the Great Lakes are a beautiful nightmare.
So true. I served on an ATS in the Pacific; damn thing rode like a cork.
Storms can be bigger & more powerful on the ocean. But you can see them coming & if need be, avoid them. On the Great Lakes, things happen faster & due to the tight confines, you're going to get hit by that storm. Ideally, you can get to some sheltered waters.
Not to mention superior never gets over 55 degrees
She sank in Lake Superior, the biggest of the Great Lakes. The Chippewa Indians call it Gitche Gumee.
Wow, I was about to make the exact comment, glad I read down.
November in Michigan has the worst storms
Ojibway
Big Lake of Shining Waters..
@@brianherrala8238 Chippewa, Ojibwe and Ojibwa are the same people. Never knew that, I had to look it up.
"The witch of November" refers to the unpredictable squalls on the Great Lakes.
I've been in those squalls ,Can't say I enjoyed myself. Terrifying really.
And as you may have got from the lyrics, there was icing on the boat. That sort of thing has send many a ship to the deep.
it also refers to crewmen being snatched off the decks... >.> "the witch came stealin"
As long as people listen to this song/sing this song, the crew is not forgotten.
This is probably the greatest tribute song ever written.
Perhaps, but "Tribute" from Tenacious D was funnier! 😉😂
It is about "The Greatest Song in the World" (as they claim)
Candle in the wind Elton john? Although don't like the song it was huge at the time.
Canadian railway trilogy is most likely best.
Gordon is considered to be Canada's greatest folk singer/songwriter. This song is based on a true story, and, as I am to understand, all of the proceeds were donated, in perpetuity, to the families of the crew.
You are incorrect. Gordon Lightfoot set up a scholarship fund but did not donate all of the profits from the song. It's just a persistent rumor.
No that would go to Leonard Cohen
@@timothytouhey8682 I would say Stan Rogers.
And I would say Joni Mitchell!
@@timothytouhey8682 Leonard Cohen songwriter, ok. Singer? He's Canada's Bob Dylan. Leonard is my favorite artist from Québec though.
Anyone who has tried to write a song... wow. This is not just a song. He is telling the story of people who died in a terrible storm. The responsibility is huge and then the difficulty in conveying everything that happened and making it all fit into a 3 minute song. This is pure song-writing genius.
And to do it in such an honorable and respectful manner. Wow. Lightfoot was a genius
The single is just under six minutes, while the album track checks in at six and a half minutes.
Dear Britt, as a near 56 year old who grew up listening to this and a number of other songs you have reacted to, it is a real pleasure seeing your excitement in learning these musicals masterpieces and the stories behind them.
I remember seeing a cartoon the day after he died Gordon was at the gates of heaven, and he was told, “come in, Mr. Lightfoot, there are 29 souls here waiting to welcome you.” ❤️❤️❤️
❤
Oh that made me cry!! He was extraordinary!!
See now I’m just crying. We had a famous author here in Atlanta and the paper published a cartoon at the gate with his dog running out to greet him. Lewis something. One book is Shoot Low Boys They’re Riding Shetland Ponies. 😂 Don’t Bend Over in the Garden Granny You Know Them Taters Got Eyes. 😂😂😂
Lewis Grizzard.
That just brought a tear to my eye. I grew up in Michigan and remember that event like it just happened.
Gordon was disappointed with the scant media coverage so he wrote this as a tribute to the 29 men who died. Lake Superior is like an ocean in its size. It's the world's largest freshwater lake by surface area - 31,700 square miles (82,100 square kilometres), or roughly the size of Maine - and holds 10 percent of the world's surface fresh water. (By volume, it's the third largest, behind Lake Baikal in Siberia and Lake Tanganyika in eastern Africa.) Lake Superior's 3 quadrillion gallons are enough to cover both North and South America under a foot of water.
It's also over 1300 feet in depth at spots, though apparently it was "only" 500 feet deep where the ship sank.
Gorden Lightfoot read the article about the sinking in Newsweek Magazine, & it inspired him to write "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald".
@@DavidSmith-pg1ob Actually I had read once that at its deepest point it's around 2,000 feet. I think Michigan is second at about 950 feet.
It’s 3rd largest only when you artificially consider Michigan Huron to be 2 separate lakes.
@@DavidSmith-pg1ob The surface of Lake Superior is about 600 feet above sea level, the highest elevation of the Great Lakes. But the deepest point in the lake, 1300 feet below, is lower than the deepest point in the rest of the Great Lakes even with the 167 foot drop of Niagara Falls between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. Lake Superior alone holds more fresh water than the other four Great Lakes combined.
To come into this song with no background, and sketchy on details, you did an amazing job breaking it down and your willingness to explore it further will fill in all those gaps. Great job.
No she did not. She’s an idiot.
Gordon is Canadian from the Great Lakes region and this sinking was a huge story.. he researched it extensively and it moved him to write this song - he gave All of his royalties to the families of the perished.. you’d love his songs like sundown
He also met with all of them first to make sure they were ok. He was such a great man.
This song is based on a true event. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was a freighter carrying a full cargo of iron ore pellets that sank during a storm with hurricane force winds on Lake Superior on November 10, 1975, with a loss of the entire crew of 29 men. I had just graduated from high school that year. Back then, they didn't have the weather reporting that we do today. It was a very sad day indeed.
I was 10 years old at the time of the mighty Fitz sinking. I can remember my dad taking us out to the lake and watching the big ships coming by. The Fitz was a massive ship and I cried when she sank.
Chippewa is a native American tribe. It's said Gitche gumme is the name for Lake Superior in their language. You got the message about staying off the great lakes in November just right. I lived on Lake Michigan the day of that storm. I saw waves roll over the beach and down the street
Large lakes can be worse than the ocean during a storm. I’ve lost family members on Lake Winnipeg, which is the 8th largest lake in the world and is only 3/10 the size of Superior.
I learned about it around 6th or 7th grade. The story always stuck with me because of an uncle that ran fishing charter off of Lake Michigan.
May they be comforted by God.@@daerdevvyl4314
The song was not only Gordon Lightfoot's tribute to everyday working men who put their lives on the line for their families, but also his powerful reaction to the minimal coverage the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald got from the media. All the profits from the song went to the families.
I don't know how you could say there was four media coverage or maybe that was Nationwide I lived in Cleveland at the time this happened it was on the news every day for months
@@williamlukacik4648 I was 11 years old at the time in Chicago and never heard a word about this until the song came on the radio. I wasn't sure until I was older that it was even a real wreck. I was paying attention to the news at the time. The EF went down in 1975, and I was very familiar with the news of the prior two yeas, the OPEC oil embargo. So it was not like I was some (totally) dumb kid. As a member of the blue collar class tho, this song really hit hard. I knew it had to do with steel production and risky work, which was made more clear as I got to college age and did a project on the SE side, the 10th Ward, where there were many steel workers and their families. I learned that steel production involved crazy large shipments of iron ore and coal, etc. Later, during my career, I toured US Steel, an "integrated" steel mill. That is, they took raw materials at one end and rolled out coils of steel at the other. I never toured another steel mill, but I suppose from the terminology, non-integrated mills would take close to finished product. Still dangerous work. The workers are wearing basically flame suits, almost like space suits, near some of the equipment. Back to the song, the tight vocals and rhythm, the sort of emphatic pronunciation that evokes a mariner telling a tale, this is a mood piece and a fitting elegy. We should remember that these tragedies happen all the time as part of the sacrifice to produce the comforts of our lives. Videos abound, one of which showed a huge sip breaking in two midship. What is crazy is that you might expect that on the open ocean, but a few miles from shore in a lake? We should remember that Lake Superior is the deepest of the Great Lakes. I think that means it gets the biggest waves, but I am prepared to be corrected. I do know that the lake is so deep that 30 years ago I read about a bespoke trend before we had a name for that. Wood that was being transported from Michigan through L. Superior had been lost a century before; so many ships had gone down. This was desirable old growth hardwood. It was found to have been preserved by the lack of oxygen and the coldness at the bottom of that deep lake. So there was a market to retrieve it for high-end furniture or whatever. Kind of gross, imo. I felt it should be left as a grave marker or perhaps shown in a museum.
@@williamlukacik4648 Same in the Toledo market.
This song is a lyrical masterpiece. You only get a song like this once in a generation, and this is ours. Requiescat in pace, Gordon.
Once in a lifetime
May perpetual light shine upon them...
My father was a Great Lakes wreck diver. I grew up learning all about the hundreds and hundreds wrecks all over the lakes. This song was played constantly and it always brings tears to my eyes.
Growing up in a Great Lakes community in the 70's and 80's, with community members lost, we were raised listening to this song.
I'm from Ashtabula - Lake Erie. We lost 3 boys on that ship.
@@jerrybowers3174 I'm so sorry for your loss.
it was in constant rotation on all the radio stations in Thunder Bay
If this song doesn't bring a tear to your eye, you are not human. Amazing song, one of Gord's best
Glad to report that I'm human.
A Canadian singer, singing about an American tragedy! Another testament to the friendship of our two great nations.
Given the nature of the Great lakes, and Lakers in general, this tended to be more of a shared tragedy than an American tragedy. It could have just as easily have been the Canadian ship and everybody who works the lakes knew that.
FYI It did sink in Canadian water even though it was a American ship
@@79tazman well I want to see next is a video about the results of her deep dive into the rabbit hole.
@@79tazman I knew that, sad anyway you look at it.
The ship sank in Canadia waters.
I love the music which is haunti8ng. The Chippewa were a tribe of American Indians who lived in the area and Gitchigumi was their name for Lake Superior. And Lightfoot is definitely a poet.
I was a sailor in the Navy, and this damn song brings tears to my eyes every time.
Retired from the Navy in '94...listen to this ballad every Nov. 10th and still cry my ass off today...happened upon this reaction video and can't thank @brittreacts enough for sharing this with UA-cam nation...she is adorable and seemed very sincere ❤
Same here for many Marines. Greatest tribute song, in all my 63 years, that I have ever heard in my opinion!
It was carrying iron ore. "Gales of November", "Witch of November" = Bad windy weather. Gitchagumi is the Indian name for Lake Superior.
Gichi-gami. He misquoted Longfellow's The Song of Hiawatha
The Great Lakes are basically huge inland seas, more than lakes. “ Gave Early” means that they came early. The ship was an iron ore carrier. Steel is made from iron ore.
@@ritafoster4958 I live on Lake Ontario, the Eastermost great lake and the 2nd smallest. It's so large you can't see the other side (which is Canada).
@@jasonhaynes2952 Ontario , Canada to be precise .
I work at the steel mill the Edmond Fitzgerald was destined for. If you did not sail the iron ore over the Great Lakes during the winter months then car manufacturing and appliance manufacturing would cease and prices would escalate to unattainable levels for the consumer.
God bless the men and women who have to treck this journey and may they always be safe.
Now the ore goes to China.
Exactly!
@@orangeandblackattack Exactly!
@@Ilikeryche I'm pretty sure that China mines its own ore.
I don't think it would be economically feasible to ship iron ore down the Mississippi on barges, then off-load it onto ocean-going vessels, send it through the Caribbean and then across the Atlantic ocean, through the Mediterranean, down the Suez Canal, and across the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea.
But I *could* be wrong
It's a really short trip (only about 19,000 miles - taking about 9 weeks)
This happened when I was a teen in high school. I live in Michigan. I can't not cry every single time I listen to it. Gordon was a genius wordsmith and his tribute to the lost crew and ship is unparalleled. Also the mournful instrument sounds.
"We are holding our own" -- the last communication from the Edmund Fitzgerald's Captain Mcsorley when queried by the Arthur M. Andersen how they were doing. 10 minutes later, she suddenly disappeared from sight and from radar of the Andersen (who was only a few miles behind her trying to guide her in the storm because their radar masts had been damaged). It was quick and catastrophic, whatever happened. You can find pictures of her broke in 2 at the bottom of the lake., 533 feet down.
Kids raised in Michigan heard this song at least once a year, in November, as radio stations would play it.
45 years on and it still evokes tears.
I think kids on all the GL states did/do.
Born and raised in Michigan, this song gets me every time I hear it. 😢
This is a song about the loss of at the time the largest lake boat in Canada. These ships were called lakers or lake boats, they carried bulk cargo such as grain, coal or iron ore. I personally travelled through the lakes to Chicago on a British ship carrying grain, and we were one of the first ships to enter the lakes after the winter of 1973 . Before we even entered the lakes we hit a huge iceberg in the St Lawrence seaway which caused us to limp into Montreal for repairs. Even so the Lloyds register of London reported my ship as lost at sea for three days, my parents thought I was lost.
As a teenager at the time I have to say when I heard we were traversing the Great Lakes I really didn’t know what to expect. Imagine my dismay when sailing across these lakes, when you don’t see any land for 2 ,3 or 4 days because they are so big and consequently have a whole climatic/weather system of their own which can be brutal. RIP the crew of the many ships that have perished in those bitterly cold waters. ❤
The Fitz was built in Detroit and owned by Northwester Mutual based in Milwaukee. The Port of registry was also Milwaukee.
It was an American ship.
Britt I strongly suggest you and the husband take a vacation to the Michigan coast areas to see the lakes for yourself. They are truly majestic. These aren't the lakes you go to the beach and swim in. You can't see the shoreline on the other side. They are really inland seas, the vestiges of the last ice age. The water is cold till July in the lower ones and it never gets warm in Superior. You don't go boating on them unless you know what you are doing. They are forces of nature demanding respect. But that are beautiful and awesome inspiring. There's magnificent fishing and wondrous sand dunes.You can collect fossilized stones right off the beach. Ernest Hemingway absolutely loved this area. His family had a summer home in Northern Michigan and he wrote his first stories there before WW1. You can do guided tours of the home and areas he traversed. Finally because of the lakes Michigan has more coastline than Florida.
I never said what nationality the EFitz was.I merely referred to the fact that they were all referred to as “lakeboats “ or “Canadian lakeboats” or “Lakers”. They all have a unique look designed around the fact they had to traverse the locks of the Welland canal and others on the lakes.There are many other reasons these ships>…….and I say ships because they were not boats. The design of these ships were narrower and longer. They typically had the bridge at the bow of the ship and they had a second superstructure at the rear of the ship .. I remember the first time I ever saw one of these ships I was confused because all my life previous had thought that ships had all the superstructure for accommodation and navigation at the rear of the ship. The ship that I was on was a conventional bulk carrier with all the superstructure to the rear, my beautiful memories of that trip were passing through the bay of a thousand islands, and eventually arriving at Chicago . All those bridges opening up for us to slide through, magical memories .❤️
Fair enough. I’m somewhat familiar with these boats, because I have done repair work on several of them. I even got the chance to ride on one (the Lee A Tregurtha needed an emergency repair while they sailed).
So, I know some stuff, heard some stories, I’ve just never heard them referred to as Canadian lake boats.
@@JohnStrandt not worth responding to
"We are holding our own" - The last message from the Edmund Fitzgerald, Captain McSorley, November 10, 1975
I grew up on Lake Superior. The storms that come off of that lake in November can be insane. There's a reason it's called an inland ocean.
Gordon Lightfoot (Lightfoot is an Indian name), donated all proceeds of this album to the surviving families of each victim. 🎼🎶♥️👍
Chippewa is tribe native to that area
Nobody could tell a story in a song like the late great Gordon Lightfoot. This is one of the most hauntingly beautiful sad songs of all time. Once you hear this song you will never forget it. Whoever recommended this song to you...I tip my hat to them. When the singer Gordon Lightfoot passed away the cathedral in Detroit which is mentioned in this song rang their bell 30 times, once for each of the men lost with the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald and once for Mr Lightfoot. Cheers from Ottawa, Canada🍁
Please accept my congratulations for having the courage to push yourself to the end of a heart-breaking song about a truly sorrowful event. This is the first time that I have viewed on of your videos, but it shan't be the last. Your honestly and compassion moved me. Thank you.
Gordon Lightfoot was Bob Dylan's favourite songwriter. So yes, he was a great poet.
“What does it feel like to be called the greatest songwriter ever?”
“I don’t know. Ask Gordon Lightfoot”
-Bob Dylan
Does any one know where the love of God goes, when the waves turn the minutes to hours.
One of the most haunting lyrics in music history.
Britt your community is giving you top songs to react to. This one and Sundown are 2 of my favorites.
This is my favorite melancholy song. It has legs enough but nothing I can't handle. Watching you react transfered your emotions through the screen and gave this thing all new life and sadness.
Knowing the the 29 times was coming and you didn't was like watching a kid go out into traffic but you can't call them back. Brace for emotional impact.
Greatest reaction vid yet. TY. 🙏🏾❤️
That single lyric conveys what was happening to the crew. They were completely powerless.
Here in Australia when the "Wreck of the Edmond Fitzgerald" was played on radio I was shocked then learnt that Gordon's song was based on a true story even more shocked.
Every time I see someone react to it, I get 😢
Young lady, I am glad you covered this fantastic song. You just learned a tragic history lesson of our country. I too wish they would teach things like this from our American History. Thank you for this and thank you for being a believer. I trust that your dive into this, post production, brought you insight.
When Gordon heard this in the news it barely got any recognition. So Gordon, having such a kind heart, wrote this to bring it the attention it deserved. What a kind soul. I feel for those families still.
And he accomplished his mission beautifully.
The newspaper article he read about the sinking was only a few lines and couldn’t even be bothered to spell the ship’s name right.
Gordon made it so the sinking would never be forgotten. It’s unfortunate how many other shipwrecks didn’t get that level of respect and care.
These aren't lyrics this is just pure prose, truly beautiful and heart wrentching. Gordon was a special kind of artist.
In case you are confused, Chippewa are the natives that live near the Great Lakes, and Gichi-gami, pronounced gitchi-gami or kitchi-gami in different dialects, means 'big sea'-'gichi' meaning big and 'gami' meaning liquid. It can also mean the ocean. Zhiiwitaagani-gichigami, meaning 'Saltwater/Bitterwater sea,' was the name given by the natives who speak that language and the different dialects of the language, to be exact Nayaano-nibiimaang Gichigamiin means the 'Five Freshwater Seas.' Anishinaabewi-gichigami is Lake Superior, meaning 'Anishinaabe’s Sea.' Ininwewi-gichigami is Lake Michigan, meaning 'Illinois’ Sea.' Lake Huron has two names: Naadowewi-gichigami and Gichi-aazhoogami-gichigami, meaning 'Iroquois’ Sea' and 'Great Crosswaters Sea' respectively. Lake Erie goes by two names: Naadowewi-gichigami and Aanikegamaa-gichigami, meaning 'Neutral’s Sea' and 'Chain of Lakes Sea' respectively. Lake Ontario also has two names: Niigaani-gichigami and Gichi-zaaga’igan, meaning 'Leading Sea' and 'Big Lake' respectively.
Very much appreciated.
The Chippewa are one of the bands living around Superior. In our area at the north-west end of Superior there are Ojibwa and Cree. I'm glad you pointed out that there are
different dialects ......Miigwech.
@@ve3snw I know, but the point specifically mentioned the Chippewas and the name of the lake. So, I made it clear what he was talking about. If he had sung and mentioned the other bands, I would have specified what he was referring to when mentioning them but he didn’t mention them.
15:10 the point is if he didnt sing this song no one would remember or remember them or go to look into the story...
As a child living across from Detroit Michigan in WIndsor ontario Canada. My dad pointed out the Edmund Fitzgerald saying it was the largest ship on the Great lakes . Gordon Lightfoot went to the church a few times to hear the bells chime 29 times. With the verse that says in a musty old hall.. One of the mothers gave him heck saying it wasn't musty. So he later changed to the words to Rustic old hall. Every year you can hear the bells chime from the Detroit river. and it was really cool hearing them chime 30 times last year. One for Mr Lightfoot.
Having been in Mariners Hall multiple times, musty is not inaccurate.
@@donpietruk1517 he changed it for later performances
Gale is a very strong wind - this is why Dorothy *Gale* is the main character of The Wizard of Oz.
Yes, the Mighty Fitz was a Great Lakes freighter - she was the largest ship to have sailed the Great Lakes, and is the largest ship to sink there. She also set 6 records for hauling freight across the Lakes.
She sank in a very bad storm with near-hurricane level winds and waves 35 feet high, only 15 (nautical, 17 non-nautical) miles away from a bay that would have sheltered her from the storm.
When Gordon wrote the song, they hadn't found where the Mighty Fitz's wreckage. They have since then.
Largest to sail when launched, by todays' standards she'd be too small to be profitable. Still the largest wrecked though. 729ft long vs the current queen of the Lakes is the MV Paul R. Tregurtha at 1013.5ft.
Definitely not the biggest anymore, but many ships of that era and size are still sailing the lakes. I assume they're profitable. The Arthur M. Anderson was with the Fitz when she went down and is already loading in Minnesota for her first trip of '24.
@@glahtiguy _"Still the largest wrecked though."_ To be fair, that's not exactly a record anyone *wants* to beat.
They salvaged the ship's bell, but families of the men wanted the rest if the Fitz left undisturbed as a grave site. You cannot dive the wreck at all anymore, it was only done the once in order to recover the bell
Part of the reason the song has it's unique sound is that it is written in the AAB rhyming scheme. (example: "The ship was the pride (A) of the American side (A) (next line) Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin (B)"). It gives it a "sea chantey" sound and incidentally it is the highest rated song ever to use the AAB scheme.
Thank you for this!! I learned something new today ☺️
I did too! I had heard the song before but this explanation is excellent. 👍🙏
Learn something new every day. Thank you!
It's also in 3/4 time, like typical sea shanties, but unlike rock music, almost all of which is in 4/4.
@@davorzmaj753I never picked up on that. Thanks.
That, "floating device thing" is called a barge. It's a flatbed boat hauling raw iron ore to be melted down into cast iron and steel at the foundry.
I've lost 2 family members on ships that sank on the Great Lakes. On 11/18/1958 the ship SS Carl D. Bradley went down in a storm on Lake Michigan and of the 35 on board, 33 lost their lives (my Uncle being one of them). And the SS Henry Steinbrenner on 5/10/1953 sank on Lake Superior and 17 were lost (Another uncle). The Great Lakes are an unforgiving mistress when the weather turns bad.
That's so sad.
I've heard of the Bradley, but not the Steinbrenner. I'll look that up.
It's important to remember all those who were lost on the lakes.
How sad and tragic. So sorry for your loss. Thankful you have family brave enough to do the hard jobs that keeps this great nation turning......you have my gratitude.
I'm so glad that you saw the poetic meaning in the best line in this song. "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours"
Beautiful line. My take on this is that in times of unbearable stress, it is difficult, if not impossible, to calm oneself with comforting thoughts of God or family or friends. The mental torture makes each minute feel like an hour.
On November 10th, 1975, [49] years ago. The Edmund Fitzgerald sinks in Lake Superior. The biggest of the Great Lakes. Twenty-Nine men lost their lives never to be recovered. " Lake Superior never gives up her dead"-Gorden Lighfoot. The Chippewas are an Indian tribe. They called Lake Superior (Gitche Gumee).
I was a young lady when this song came out. I didn't until it. So I asked. Now I cry every time I hear it. I'm 66 now. And I'm still crying.. it's an emotional thing to listen to Gordon's music.
I was so sad to hear of Gordon Lightfoot's passing away recently. Loved his music. One of the best songwriters & storytellers. He was a Canadian legend. This song is a beautiful tribute & is based on a true story & the lyrics tell the sad tale of the sinking of the ship & loss of lives in 1975. Gordon Lightfoot has had many hits through his long career such as "If You Could Read My Mind", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon Of Darkness", "Carefree Highway", "Rainy Day People", "Cotton Jenny", "Black Day In July", "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" etc.
You left off Sundown.
She already reacted to that one a month ago.@@WVUFootballGoinDeep
A brilliant song about a horrible tragedy in November 1975. God bless their souls 🙏
I am a Marine, and this song brings me to tears every time I hear it. Gordon is a talented story teller.
I love someone who is willing to listen to good music and can appreciate it and, yes, it is like a poem. I remember when the song came out.
He’s a master lyricist!! A tribute to the people who died in that tragic accident 😢 RIP, too GL
This is without doubt the best reaction to this song I've ever seen! You really paid attention to the lyrics to follow the story, and I loved how you picked up on the drums mimicing the sound of the storm. Best of all was when you talked about the lyric, "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?" Girl, I was having church right along with you! Gordon Lightfoot wrote a brilliant tribute to honor the tragic loss of November 10, 1975. I think he would have appreciated the respect given in your reaction.
I was in Duluth 2 times and both was about December. Waves is like Sup was looking mean on the first time and iced over the second. Knowing the Coastguard has ice beakers there. I never went close to that cold water!.... I knew unless you have the artic red big fluffy suits the water sucks the heat and life out of you fast. So the minutes being in waters would react like being in hours = death...
Born in Michigan in 1968, I remember when the Edmund Fitzgerald sank. Of course I also remember when this song came out. My Dad was once a sailor on a railcar ferry across Lake Michigan...this song never fails to give me the willies.
The Fitz got caught by surprise. Weather forecasting has come SO far since then.
...and yes, the Great Lakes are some of the deadliest waters in the world. There are uncounted ships and people that have been swallowed up by them never to be seen again.
1967 here.
1965.
@@stacy.lapine27 Also 1967. 🙂
Which ferry? I've been across Lake Michigan on the _Badger_ twice, and remember watching all three ferries _(Badger,_ _Spartan,_ and _City of Midland 41,_ IIRC) that were operating in the early '80s. We'd camp at Ludington State Park for a week or so, and often went to get ice cream in downtown Ludington and watch the ferries come in and out.
@@drtidrow I don't remember which one, he was on in the 60s. It might have been the Badger but I just can't say for certain.
14:10 The line "from the Chippewa on down" refers to the Ojibwe Native American tribe that lived along the shores of Lake Superior and called it "Gichigami" which got morphed into "Gitche Gumee" by later white explorers and settlers.
So many of us who will listen to this throughout our lives and no matter who is hearing this song for the first time...we listen along and cry. Quietly cry for the crew as if they were our family.
So true. I always cry when I listen to this song. My sister lived up in Duluth and I'd always head down to the harbor where the lake freighters were coming and going. Lake Superior's like an ocean but frigidly cold. This song is a poetic masterpiece.
The U.S. Navy has ships that patrol the great lakes, including training cruises. Whenever they pass over the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, there is a ceremony observed to honor those fallen sailors.
The ship's bell of the Edmund Fitzgerald was retrieved, and replaced with a replica, for use in museums or education, but never a for-profit use.
Hi Britt, I think you do a great job with your reactions. I live in a suburb of Detroit. I'm a Vietnam vet and had the privilege to be part of the military honor guard for the ceremony he mentions at the Mariners Church which is near the tunnel to Canada from Detroit. I love music and saw Gorden Lightfoot in concert in Detroit, great show.
Yes, it was the Great Lakes! Lake Superior to be exact. I'm from Michigan and when this happened I just held my baby boy and rocked him for hours! Great reaction young lady! The Great Lakes are very dangerous, as much or more so than any ocean, because it is unexpected! They have rip currents and gigantic waves, also storms form over them out of nothing! You should look this up but I'll tell you Lake Gitche Gumee is the Indian name for Lake Superior. Thank you for reacting to this! Have an awesome day!
I'm 55 years old, never been to America, but this song still brings a tear to my eye every time I hear it.
The reference saying ".The searchers all say they'd made Whitefish Bay if they'd put fifteen more miles behind her". refers to the waters at the eastern side of Lake Superior. If they would have made those waters they would have been safe as the waters there are surrounded closer by land and those calmer waters the ship would easy weather. There is a Shipwreck Museum up on Whitefish Point the closest point of land to the site of wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. It contain many relics from the ship including the ship's bell. They replaced the bell on the ship itself with the names of all the crew who went down with the ship. It is very difficult to reach the wreck as it lies in very deep waters and the pressure is great. The waters of Lake Superior are so deep that the temperature at the depth of the wreckage would preserve the bodies forever ("... never gives up its dead"). So, the bodies of the crew are entombed in the wreck forever.
My dad was in the Air Force, and we were stationed at Kincheloe A.F.B.(now closed), in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, commonly referred as the U.P. I was 12 when we moved there in the summer of 1975. It was on Nov. 10 of that year the Edmund Fitzgerald went missing. Gordon Lightfoot was a singer/songwriter who hit his biggest popularity in the mid 70's. Gordon lived on the Canadian side of Sault (pronounced Soo) Saint Marie, Ontario, Canada. Sault Saint Marie, Michigan is the US side. There is a locks (it is a place where they transfer a ship from one of the Great Lakes to another. In this case, Lake Superior to Lake Huron, which allows the ships to go from Wisconsin to Cleveland. In the song he states that the ship may have split up or capsized, or drove deep and took water. At the time of the release of the song, the Edmund Fitzgerald had not been found. In may of 1976, the found the remains of the ship at the bottom of Lake Superior in 2 parts, so, it did split apart. The church bells at the Maritime Sailor's Cathedral in Detroit rings 29 times on the anniversary of the sinking on Nov. 10th. Gordon Lightfoot passed away in May of 2023, that year, the Cathedral rang 30 times, to include Gordon.
When you add in the fact that this was a tribute to all those 29 men who lost their lives aboard in an instant, it takes on a whole other meaning.
When you research the wreck, the ship was broken in half, the smaller ship that was following never saw the ship go down and never saw a lifeboat or survivor as they passed over, literally minutes after. The reports go hand in hand with the song and you have to read those to understand just how deep this song's meaning is.
When you read the reports and listen to this it becomes very emotional. I was born in 72 in Traverse City MI adopted at birth, and I cry when I hear this every time, I feel there is a greater connection for me.
This in the Great Lakes region is larger than the Titanic in historic significance.
This is my favorite reaction I've ever seen. Your take and watching you figure it out was priceless ,brought me back to my 1st time hearing this gem thank you!
You should watch the reaction of this song from Sincerely K.S.O
True😂 that
Gales are huge winds that create extremely rough water.
The ship was carrying iron ore to be turned into steel.
The ship sank in Lake Superior with its crew, where it all remains to this day.
The Cippewa is an native tribe and in their language Lake Superior is called Gitche Gumee
Please read up on the Edmond Fitzgerald, It is facts!
Gales are a misnomer where the lakes are concerned. A Gale is no easy thing but the song spells it out correctly, they were effectively hurricanes. The lakes have a unique microclimate not entirely disimilar to the the Mexican gulf and the various atlantic storms. Similar dynamics but on a micro scale. As such the same calamities occur only far quicker and and intense. The novermber storms will blow out quicker but also rise quicker making november trips down right suicidal (checkout the Carl D Bradley and the 1903 storms). Another 'intimidating' fact and more kudos to Gordon, the ice water referrence is very significant as t why Superior does't give up her dead. The chill causes the bodies to stay pretty well preserved and static. As such bodies tend not to float (I'll save the gory detail) and remain at peace where they lay. It is a very stark description but one born of fact. May the crews of all lost on the lakes Rest in Peace and their slumber never disturbed. Take heed the tale of the Mighty Fitz that there is no might greater than nature, one deserving of respect and reverence. When the chill winds blows stay ashore and in harbour.
Gichigami, apparently.
Damn you figure out all that by your self smart man or you just figure others are to stupid to listen to the song and know what the words mean
I loved watching you discover one of the most beautiful songs ever written.
God bless you. You are a sweet heart, and full of light. I'm an old sailor, and the son of an older sailor, long buried. Terrified of sinking, I dream about it often. I freaking cry every time I hear this song.
This is one of the few songs that make me cry instantly. Another one is "Woman in Chains" from Tears for Fears. Your thumbnail says "How did I miss this???" My answer is that all of us will only ever know a small sliver of the human experience. Just imagine that you live in New York, you get the local news and there is a big local story you hear about every day for a month or two. People living in a small town in another state will never hear about it. Just like you are not aware of 6 families losing their homes due to a fire in another town. For the longest time, I knew that Gordon Lightfoot was a legend but the fact that he was a folk singer kept me off from checking him out. Reaction chanels like yours have allowed me to sample other genres and always discover things that many people know already but that were out of my tiny sliver of experience. So instead of asking "How did I miss this?" I am just grateful for the new worlds I am exposed to.
I am 70 yrs old . Iwas a young man when I visited Mackinaw's locks where I saw the captains' face. His eyes I will never forget. I cry every time I hear this song.
I'm also 70 years old. When I was a young man of 21 , I was with a friend on our way to an annual fishing trip to Canada.We stopped at the Soo locks and saw the Edmond Fitzgerald pass through the locks in the summer before it sank. Several years later , we visited the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish point. I talked to an old man from Sault Ste. Marie.He said the day the ship sank, it was like 100 freight trains were coming through the Soo. He thought his house would blow away. In 1976, I was in Columbus ,Ohio trying out new speakers for my stereo system. I took that record of Gordon's to choose my speakers. So, I have a soft place in my heart for the man and his song. I also cry every time I hear it.
You must understand, the Great Lakes are essentially inland seas.
They are that big.
I grew up on the Great Lakes and remember this very well.
RIP Captain & Crew🙏
This song was so popular and on the radio all the time, so imagine, just as it affected you I think it affected everybody. I mean why else would a song like this just be on the radio constantly. And it's woven into my childhood memories for sure. And the adult understanding of it of course is terrifying.
I was 9 years old when the Edmund Fitzgerald met her tragic fate, and 10 years old when the song came out.
I still remember clearly the first time I heard the song - I was laying in bed reading while listening to the radio, nice and snug under 3 blankets (because it was cold outside).
The DJ introduced the song and I sat up, because I remembered the actual wreck happened the previous year, and turned up the volume a bit.
I just sat there, staring blankly at the radio as the words became images in my head - and I began to cry silently, the tears running down my face almost unnoticed.
By the time the song was fading out on its last notes, the neck of my pajamas was soaked and I had to change. Then I went to the kitchen to get a glass of water… my mom was sitting at the kitchen table doing crossword puzzles, and when she saw my red tear-swollen eyes she asked me, “What’s wrong?? What happened??”
I gave out a shaky sigh and said in a near-whisper, “I just heard the saddest song on the radio, Mom. It’s about that big ship that sank in the storm last year…”
She gathered me onto her lap even (though I was getting too tall for that), wrapped her arms around me, kissed the top of my head- and that made me cry again. I don’t even know how long we sat there like that… but by the time I stopped crying, I was exhausted and still crushingly sad.
I went back to my room, climbed into bed, reduced the radio to very-low volume, turned off the bedside lamp - and slept for 12 hours straight.
Forty-nine years later, I STILL cry every time I hear this song.
In my soul, I hear your words like a song. You too, have the gift that made Gordon shine. Shine on, girl....and thank you
As someone who grew up very near Duluth/Superior, I can say this song is extra powerful when you know the lake. Because of the sheer size and shape making it super cold, and the fact that it's freshwater, the bodies of people who are lost on it are actually preserved extremely well, which is where the line "the lake it is said never gives up her dead.," comes from. You can actually Google "old whitey" and see a story of a corpse that follows divers around (for presumably natural reasons). The Edmund Fitzgerald is the most well known, but it's just one of many ships that have been lost on Lake Superior.
This song always chokes me up. My dad worked on an ore boat the Ben E Tate on the Great Lakes in the 1950’s. My mom and I would meet him in Cleveland after they sailed to and from Duluth. I never understood as a 5 year old kid how dangerous his job was, Thankfully he always came home. He loved the water. He’s gone now, but this song always makes me think of him and how much I miss him.
For anyone who's interested in Great Lakes shipwrecks should read about the November storms of 1913 and 1940. Many ships were lost in those.
Just because it's sad, doesn't keep it from being great! A true classic! If more "history" was written like this, maybe more people would know it!
13:10 Well, later in the year the Lakes often freeze at least partially, so from late December to March the Lakes are impassable to boats. The Soo Locks are usually shut down in the depths of winter, so you can't get from Lake Superior to the lower Lakes or back, until they reopen in spring.
I was in college in Michigan when it occurred. One of my friend’s father worked on a Great Lakes freighter and the families always worried when they had to traverse Lake Superior, which is known for the sudden and fierce storms. It is a sad song but Gordon Lightfoot did an excellent job of honoring the lost crew. RIP Gordon and the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Gordon is known as the Canadian troubadour and any song on Gord’s Gold is worth a listen.
48 yrs later and this song STILL gives me goosebumps. (as does Eve of Destruction)
I was a kid when this happened, and everybody knew, at least in the midwest and around the Great Lakes, about the wreck. Gordon just put it to music, beautifully.
I'm encountering this for the second time and I'm a little bit after the 10 minute Mark and you are gobsmacked. And yeah man it's just like the intensity of the lyrics and the Poetry in it just ratchets up more and more and more.
She was an iron ore carrier.
The Chippewa are a Native American tribe, Gitche Gumee is their name for Lake Superior. Yes, this song is very sad, I live on the coast of Maine now and the song has taken on new meaning for me. Ships and boats are lost all the time still, but now with people that I may have known. Being a sailor is a very dangerous job. I've heard this song 100s of times and it always hits home.
Chippewa is the American name, (Ojibway or ojibwe, ojibwa in Canada and Saulteux in both) of the people, with several tribes (american) and nations (Canada). The tribe/nation is more relating to their regional political organization, not cultural. And it's gichi-gami. Gumee was the incorrect spelling from Longfellow's The Story of Hiawatha. Not being picky, but it's just not well known by most people, and it's incorrectly taught if at all in schools. Sort of like oil coming from dinosaur bones.
All five of the Great Lakes (Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario) are named in the song. I was a child in Wisconsin when this happened and fell in love with this song when it was first released. I grew up on Lake Michigan, and these monster ships were a common site from the coastline. They travel through all of the Great Lakes and in/out the St. Lawrence Seaway to/from the Atlantic Ocean. Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes that has the southern shore including Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and a small part of Minnesota and the northern shore faces Canada. The Chippewa is an Indian Tribe, and Gitche Gumee is their names for the Lake Superior.
The province of Ontario is on the northern shore ...not all of Canada
Yes. This is a true story. It happened in Lake Superior (which stays cold year round), which can be the most vicious of all the Great Lakes, especially in November. A Gale is the same as a hurricane.
Here around the Great Lakes, we all know every detail. I live near the Maritime Sailors Cathedral. It brought tears to hear the bell ring 29 times each year. The people around here have a long memory for those 29 men.
Thank you for doing this. It remembers those men, who should not be forgotten.
And from November through the winter the lakes are dangerous.
Oh and the Chippewa Indians called lake Michigan Gitche Gumee.
If you want a research Rabbit hole, check into "The Great Lakes Storm of 1913"
Great reaction.