Rush’s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, The Hip and Neil Young pay tribute to Gordon Lightfoot: ‘The greatest Canadian’

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Rush’s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, The Tragically Hip and Neil Young have added their thoughts to the growing number of tributes to music legend Gordon Lightfoot, who died Monday night at age 84.

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In a heartfelt Instagram post, Lee, 69, called Lightfoot “a gem of a man” and recalled how the late folk singer-songwriter would bring his daughter to Rush’s live shows.

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“A legendary poet, a songwriting inspiration — a gem of a man — I loved him. He used to bring his daughter who was a fan, to our shows, and he’d sit with her in the audience getting blasted with volume for three hours,” Lee wrote alongside a black-and-white photo that was taken one of the first times they had met outside an awards show in Toronto.

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Lee went on to add that he last heard from Lightfoot a few months back when the Sundown singer rang him up to tell him he had watched one of Rush’s concert films and “really loved it.”

“Every time I ran into him the first thing he would ask was how many gigs we’d done that year,” Lee wrote. “He’d then proudly counter with the fact that he had played even more! RIP Gord — you are the man — the greatest Canadian.”

On Instagram, Lifeson, 69, called Lightfoot “a Canadian legend.”

“One of the greatest songwriters of all time has left us,” the guitarist wrote. “I’ll always remember Gord bringing his daughter Meredith to one of our Toronto shows and sharing a happy pre-show moment together. Safe travels, Gordie, on your Carefree Highway.”

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Elsewhere, Rob Baker and the Tragically Hip called Lightfoot “a kind and supportive friend.”

“I’m sitting here listening to Gord’s Gold and thinking of the hundreds and hundreds of times I’ve listened to this, alone, laying in the backseat of my parents car heading to Georgian Bay, or with everyone on the tour bus rolling across the country,” Baker wrote in a message on the band’s official Instagram page. “These are some of the finest, most durable songs ever written. To say he was/is a national icon sells him short. He was and always will be a great artist and one of the finest songwriters to ever grace a stage. He was a kind and supportive friend to the guys in The Hip. Put on one of his many fine albums and raise your glass in a toast to authenticity.”

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Neil Young said Lightfoot was in good spirits, despite cancelling a round of live shows just a few weeks ago.

“I just spoke to Gordon a few weeks back and he sounded happy, although he had cancelled some shows and was re-organizing his touring,” Young, 77, wrote on his Archives website. “Gordon was a great Canadian artist. A songwriter without parallel. His melodies and words were an inspiration to all writers who listened to his music, as they will continue to be through the ages. There is a unique and wonderful feeling to Gordon’s music. Lightfoot is a Canadian legend.”

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Earlier this month, Lightfoot cancelled his U.S. and Canadian concert schedule for 2023 “due to health issues.”

In 2002, Lightfoot nearly died after suffering an abdominal aortic aneurysm. But he returned two years later with a new album, Harmony, and resumed touring the following year.

“I want to be like Ralph Carter, Stompin’ Tom and Willie Nelson,” Lightfoot told the CBC in 2004, per The New York Times. “Just do it for as long as humanly possible.”

Lightfoot, who lived in Toronto, is survived by his wife Kim Hasse, six children — Fred, Ingrid, Eric, Galen, Miles and Meredith — as well as several grandchildren.

The 12-time Juno Award winner will be laid to rest in his hometown of Orillia, Ont., this Sunday.

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