It was an incredible tragedy, they still ring the church bell at the Mariners' Church in Detroit. Originally it rang its bell 29 times; once for each life lost, and continued to hold an annual memorial, reading the names of the crewmen and ringing the church bell, until 2006 when the church broadened its memorial ceremony to commemorate all lives lost on the Great Lakes. So here I sit, along with many others, who have literally no personal connection to the Fitzgerald, no family lost in the sinking, have never set foot on the shores of Lake Superior - and I am profoundly and deeply moved by the loss of the ship and the crew to this day, forty-six years later. Why? Because of this beautiful, precisely crafted, ballad written and performed by Gordon Lightfoot, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", that was released in 1976. And this is the thought that I have. This is the power of music, of lyrics, of narrative poetry and the storytelling form of the ballad. That hundreds of thousands of people, with no other shred of connection save this powerful song, know the story, mourn the loss, honor the dead and their grieving families, feel a frisson walk their spines every November the 10th. All because of this beautiful ballad. Thank you so much for this beautiful review!
Nicely said, Cameron. You are a *strong* writer yourself. I enjoyed reading your post; appreciated your words and choice of words. We (not you and I) can long debate which of Lightfoot’s great skills and talents are most responsible for us continuing to be moved by this tragedy and epic song 46 years later. However, I submit that it is a dozen or so the the most passionate and empathetic people who make reaction videos - this relatively new phenomenon - who are now to thank for this and so many other memories being kept at the forefront of our conversations. We cajole the best of them to ‘play our favorite song’ like the DJs of our youths. We want them, for them, to see and hear what we did in the words and music of these songs. Then we delight in their reactions; especially that they are joining the club, finding past generations remarkable and fortunate to have been there. At nearly age 62, taking inventory of my own life in the context of the profound changes the pandemic has brought and the time it has afforded me to ponder such things, music reactors have come along at a very good time for me. In my Season 2 of Joy, having welcomed 5 grandchildren to our world and family I want the music to be kept alive. And in my Season 1 of trying to be strong and brave while faced with an incurable cancer that I have now beaten 3 times in the last 3 1/2 years, music I have enjoyed my entire life has been my solace, and not for the first time in my life, I assure you. Like yourself I imagine, if I may be presumptuous for a moment. Finally, against the horrific backdrop of what has seemed like a national racial pandemic, our new friends the music reactors have come along. We have had a shameful paucity of decency and compassion that has enabled and caused the deaths of brown people at the hands of white people clinging to authority, poisoned with resentment. Resentments, we know, eventually destroy the containers in which they are kept. Most of the reactors I have followed the last 3 1/2 years are young, many are brown. They’ve had no real reason to decide one day or another is the day they are going to dive into a world of music and culture that is foreign to them, no matter their age or color. I have been astounded at their collective positivity; grateful for the examples they have been to us. With so many things to appreciate about our new friends the reactors, getting back to the nuts and bolts of reaction videos, I have been shocked and amazed at how well so many of them grasp the essence and importance of songs - the literature of our time - on their first listen. Demonstrating that passion, sincerity, enthusiasm, humility, and empathy are great credentials, the best of them come before us with no apparent training or preparation for working extemporaneously before a camera and they are *nailing* it, captivating us day after day. Our new friend Sarah is one of them, one of the very best already in her brief time making reaction videos. Oh, and she is from Africa, living in Germany, and presenting her views in flawless English. What a world! Thank you, Sarah, and thank you Cameron for your fine post. If either of you, or anyone who has read this far, is interested in an even more stirring video of this song, this one put together by Joseph Fulton has had 12 million views for good reason. He incorporated the TV newscast that broke this story, strong and haunting visuals on what it must have been like on board the Fitzgerald that fateful night, and the last radio communication between the Fitzgerald and the Arthur M. Anderson, another ship caught out in that storm. th-cam.com/video/hgI8bta-7aw/w-d-xo.html
@@tonydelapa1911 what an amazing comment! Man, I hope for the best for you in your encounter with cancer! And yes, these past few years have been one for the record books! I love the way reaction videos have become a worldwide conversation of hope, powerful little beacons of light and you are so right that Sarah is one of the brightest! Thank you for your kind words about my comment... I love the power of story telling songs, ballads written about events and times. We need more of them, particularly now, that we are living through times that our grandchildren and great grandchildren may one day listen to a song about that makes it alive for them. Music is a language that makes the whole world come alive; reaction videos convey and share between us the power of that language! I do not know if you're the praying type, might have have your permission to hold you in my prayers, if not I will hold you in my heart and sincerest best wishes! Thank you so much!
@@Cameron5043 well, earlier I wrote a nice reply thanking you for payers or keeping me in your heart, either one, and agreeing with you further on the points you made. It has evidently disappeared into the ether, or Tony hit the wrong button.
@@tonydelapa1911 I see this comment! Prayers you got! Yes to everything! I guess let me know how you do, comment here...I will watch for you, brother! Be blessed!
Hey Sarah, we lost Gordon Lightfoot a week or so ago. In an incredible tribute the Sailor's Church in Detroit (which he alluded to in this song) rang it's bell 29 times plus one more in memory of Gordon. I think he's now an honourary crew member of the Fitz. He was in close contact with the surviving families for decades and I believe the royalties from this song went to them.
But I'm not from the US Midwest, and every single time I hear this song, I weep. All those men on the Edmund Fitzgerald; if they only knew how much their own personal tragedy has affected so many complete strangers all around the world...Even though it is long past, it's as though the listener spends the entire song praying for their souls.
Yes! I live close to the south shore of Lake Ontario in New York State and anyone who has seen a Great Lake , especially in foul weather, can appreciate the horror times 1000.
I live an hour from Lake Erie, go boating on it all the time, and for me this song perfectly captures the spirit and the life of the lakes. Beautiful, yet mysterious and dangerous, with the Fitz being the center point of the lakes. At least for me🙏
Gordon Lightfoot reportedly donated the profits from this hit recording to the widows and orphans victims of this tragedy. Thank you for a sincere reaction, Sarah, another keeper for me. 🌹👼
@@SarahDengler the last vessel to be in contact with the Fitz is still afloat today. The freighter Arthur M. Anderson, and you can watch these vessels come through on the Great Lakes live cameras. My favourite being port Huron
This is a beautiful tribute by one of the best Canadian singer songwriters. This 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", "Sundown", "Carefree Highway", "Rainy Day People" & many more.
They mined the iron ore in huge open pits in northern Minnesota,. It would then be shipped by train to Duluth or Superior down the 600 ft hill directly onto the docks which towered over the water, A ship would come in and open its hatches and the ore would be slid down chutes into the hold. I used to watch this from an observation deck nearby. It only took about five to ten hours for a ship like the Fitz to be loaded. The laker could come in empty, be filled and out again the same day. Unless there were delays there would be no shore leave for the crew, rather a small boat, essentially a floating grocery store would stop by the ship so the crewmen could pick up what supplies they needed. Then out of the harbor through the ship canal, passing under the lift bridge and within a couple hundred feet of the Lake Superior Marine Museum where there is now a display about the Fitzgerald. I would guess over the years thousands of people would have lined the canal to watch the Fitz enter and leave and wave to the unknown crew aboard her. The lake is big and beautiful and deep. A cold thing though. not a place to go swimming (though some now don wet suits and surf the waves when the wind pushes up big swells). It's shores are rocky, being enveloped by the massive formation known as the Canadian Shield. Cliffs follow much of the edge of the lake, and there can be great beauty in heavy winds seeing the waves smash and dance up the cliff sides. The islands are rocky as well, and there are dangerous shoals. One theory suggests that in the heavy seas, up to 25 ft high in winds that came across 300 miles of open lake, the Fitz bottomed out on such a shoal and opened her up below the water line. . No one really knows for sure. The beaches at Whitefish Point are sandy. There is a museum there for all the Great Lakes shipwrecks, and three have been many dating back hundreds of years. But that time was thought to be over by the time the Fitz went down. It's nice there, on a clear day you can see Canada, and see where the wreck must have occurred. All you see is the blue and maybe a few whitecaps if the wind is up. And kids playing on the beach.
May 1, 2023, Gordon Lightfoot passed away from natural causes at age 84. In the last week or so I've watched reaction videos both fresh and older. I've yet to see someone who wasn't on the verge of tears by the end of the song. I've been listening to this song for nearly 50 years and I still choke up. It's that powerful a story and a song.
Thank you for sharing your reaction. My first reaction was hearing this song on CKY-580AM in Winnipeg in the summer of 1976 as a teenager. I grew up in northern Minnesota and remember this storm. It was deer hunting season in November 1975. On Saturday, the weather was unusually warm and we were hunting in shirt sleeves. Then the storm hit. Monday night, the Edmund Fitzgerald went down in eastern Lake Superior. This song was on AM radio constantly from July 1976 and following. I just saw Gordon Lightfoot perform in concert on Sept. 21, 2022 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The guy has heart. He's 83 and while he has aged like the rest of us, he performs with grit and determination. There is something in concert with the opening verse of the Fitzgerald, with just him playing his 12-string that gets me every time. He has truly created a legend and story so that these 29 men will never be forgotten. And they also represent the thousands more on the Great Lakes, who have been forgotten.
I was sixteen and just got in my car after hockey practice. The DJ said he had a new song from Gordon. I sat mesmerized listening and in tears for the family that lost their loved ones….
I first heard this song in 1978. I was made aware of the true cost of all the iron and steel I saw around me and used everyday. I was blown away by this tribute to the 29 men of the Edmund Fitzgerald who never returned home. "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?"
Thank you Sarah for your reaction to this amazing song , sung by a legend and great humanitarian. I always tear up listening to this haunting and riveting song and lyrics by Gordon , he’s a truly amazing story teller . . R.I.P. to the 29 souls.❤️😢🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Thank you for reacting to this song in your way you are telling the younger generations this story. I understand that that whenever the Coastguard passes the Edmond Fitzgerald on their routes they ring their ships bell 29 times in tribute.
I remember when it happened. I grew up in Milwaukee, on the shore of Lake Michigan. The song refers to the Gales of November. I've seen them. The icy winds so strong the gusts almost knock you off your feet and the enormous wave smashing against the shore are truly terrifying. There's no earthly force that could convince me to go out on a boat in that weather. I've had other adventures on Lake Michigan when I was young and reckless that almost cost me my life. And lost a few friends to that big lake. This song meant a lot for us in that part of the country. We felt it really deeply. I can't listen to the song without struggling with strong emotions. Lightfoot's songwriting mastery put you on the deck of that ship as it sank, looking into the eyes of the men who were about to die, and later put you standing shoulder to shoulder with the surviving families. This is what a good song should do. I've been listening to this song for decades, and I can't hear it without fighting tears. This song means a lot to my people. Thank you for posting this and sharing your reaction with us.
I remember when this disaster happened too. As Detroiters this song meant a lot to us too. It’s a ritual every year at the Mariner Church to ring the bell for the dead. When you sit on the shores up in Port Huron, even down river from there, we watch the freighter go by every day. It’s dangerous when the storms come up. People don’t realize how huge those lakes really are. They can be like a sea.
I was in High School when this song came out; to me this song has always had a power in it that grabbed me and held on. Every time it came on the radio I would stop what I was doing and listen to it. Even now, after more than 45 years, and hearing it hundreds of times, it still affects me *so much!* It's comforting to see somebody who was born *decades* after this song came out, being affected by it! Thank-you for this.
Hi Sarah. This week (Nov 10th) was fhe 46th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. I have lived within 1-2 miles of Lake Michigan my entire adult life. When I was 19, I met the woman who became and still is my wife on one of the Lake Michigan beaches.I was nearly 16 years old when the Fitzgerald went down. Our town lost a 23year old sailor (oilier) that day. The tragedy and Lightfoot’s song made a tremendous impact on me that has stayed with me all these years. My wife and I were fortunate to see Gordon Lightfoot perform in our small town many years ago. Despite being a great songwriter and performer, he came across as humble on stage. Your reaction was somber, sad, respectful, and struck the appropriate tone for someone hearing this song for the first time. You immediately understood the enormity of the loss and the desperate helpless end the men faced. Gordon did an incredible job memorializing this in somg, Your overall reaction to it was heart wrenching - and very good. Thank you.
God bless these poor lost souls and thier families. Ernest McSorley - Captain born in 1912. John McCarthy - First mate born in 1913. James Pratt - Second mate born in 1931. Michael Armagost - Third mate born in 1938. David Weiss - Cadet born in 1953. Ransom Cundy - Watchman born in 1922. Karl Peckol - Watchman born in 1955. William Spengler - Watchman born in 1916. John Simmons - Senior wheelman born in 1913. Eugene O’Brien - Wheelman born in 1925. John Poviach - Wheelman born in 1916. Paul Riippa - Deckhand born in 1953. Mark Thomas - Deckhand born in 1954. Bruce Hudson - Deckhand born in 1953. George Holl - Chief engineer born in 1915. Edward Bindon - First assistant engineer born in 1928. Thomas Edwards - Second assistant engineer born in 1925. Russell Haskell - Second assistant engineer born in 1935. Oliver Champeau - Third assistant engineer born in 1934. Ralph Walton - Oiler born in 1917. Blaine Wilhelm - Oiler born in 1923. Thomas Bentsen - Oiler born in 1952. Gordon MacLellan - Wiper born in 1945. Robert Rafferty - Steward born in 1913. Allen Kalmon - Second steward born in 1932. Joseph Mazes - Special maintenance man born in 1916. Thomas Borgeson - Maintenance man born in 1934. Frederick Beetcher - Porter born in 1919. Nolan Church - Porter born in 1920.
Imagine- you just got your drivers license and you’re driving to school and this plays on AM radio, and you hear it again on your way home, for weeks. It’s part of the soundtrack of my life, all my friends’ lives.
Gordon Lightfoot is very underrated. Its a beautiful song and your reaction heartfelt and beautiful I didn't know it was a true story, their memories will remain through this song. Thanks for reacting to it
There were ships following the Fitzgerald in that storm. They all said they could see her lights one minute and a minute later, they were gone. It took years to locate the wreckage and there have been a couple of theories as to her sinking. One idea was that two waves that were close together lifted the bow and the stern, leaving midships clear of the water, and the incredible weight of all that ore cracked the Fitz like an egg. Or she may have taken a huge wave directly from the side, cracking the ship on one side and allowing her to take on water. Either way, I remember this when it happened. (I am 72, but I prefer to think of myself as 22 Celsius.) I still love your reactions and will continue to watch as long as you post.
That ship was the Arthur M. Anderson, a very similar ship. They were guiding the Fitzgerald as their radar and navigation systems were out, likely damaged by the storm. The Anderson was only about an hour or 15 miles behind them, close enough to see their lights, but even if the crew had been able to get off the Fitz before it sank, they would not have survived in the water for that hour it took for the Anderson to get there.
I believe the theory that your speaking of is called the three sisters, where waves coming back from the near shore meet with incoming waves and waves created by other colliding waves. Causing a series of wave crests with a void in the center.
There was only one ship behind the Fitzgerald, the Arthur M Anderson. The Fitzgerald was overloaded. She bottomed out at 6 fathom shoals, then she got a port list and more water came in faster than the pumps could work. There were reports of 60 foot waves that night.
There used to be a clip on YT where someone had spliced the actual radio communications between the Anderson and the Fitz over top of this song. It's was very haunting. You could hear the ships communicating with each other, then the Fitz stopped responding! You could hear the Anderson calling out to the Fitz.: ..."Edmond Fitzgerald this is the Arthur M. Anderson,...do you copy? (then nothing but the sound of radio silence/static. That shhhhhhhhh sound). Then again "Edmond Fitzgerald, this is the Arthur Anderson,..do you copy? (nothing but radio static shhhhhhhhh) Over & Over "This is the Arthur M. Anderson calling the Edmond Fitzgerald, do you copy?" (shhhhhhhhh...) Then it hits you,......the Edmond Fitzgerald is gone!! A spooky, heartbreaking, sickning feeling washes over you!
I am from Sault Ste. Marie, so very close to the tragedy. I lived up there then, now in Toronto. Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours? Gordon Lightfoot is a Canadian TREASURE. Thank you so much for this Sarah.
You are one of the few who I have seen reacting to this song who seems to grasp the gravity of the story being told. I want to thank you for that. There is a version of this song that at the end they say the name of and ring a watch bell for each of the 29 members of the crew that were lost in the wreck. They also show a photo of each of the crew members with each name. That is one to listen to.
Yup, I was a little kid when this happened, living in a small town about a mile from the Lake Michigan shoreline. My mother tells me she remembers this night very well, bad weather across the region with high-winds and waves.
One of worst shipwrecks on the LAKES and no trace found of the captain or crew. They ring the bell every anniversary 29 times as a memorial to the brave mariners that died with the wreck.POWERFUL STUFF for a folk song.
Nothing more dreadful than slowly seeing this massive storm materialize more and more, stealing away the beautiful weather at launch. It was initially forecast to only be a moderate storm, par for the course in November. This song does a very good job of depicting the gradual doom of the worsening conditions. I want to say this has to be about the 12th or so reaction video I've seen to this song, it seems every one of them does it at some point, a testimony to how many people this song has impacted. Surprised none have commented on how powerful the song is at the point where it transitions from the effective first verse that sets the table, to the drums coming in strong, to " the wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound, and a wave broke over the railing..." We get thrown from the set-up into the onset of this nasty storm first making itself known to the crew by this sensory-grabbing line, a shame no one seems to be as grabbed by it as what it does to me, sooooo good, so effective.
Thank you. Growing up Northern MN and having swum in Lake Superior, it is very cold. It was late August and the water temp was 42 degrees F- At Grand Marais. It doesn't matter which lake. They can all be deadly.
I remember when this happened in November 1975. Grew up in the Great Lakes area. Lived near Lake Michigan and Huron at one time and another. Been to Suoerior several times including one time on a stormy November with 25’ waves and heavy winds off of Lake Superior cold waters. Of all the lakes, Superior is the one not easily tamed. She can break a boat in two when her waters are stirred by the cold weather from the north coming down in the autumn.
Grew up in Michigan near the Ludington area spent my Summers in the u.p. had a cousin that worked on one of the lower Lakers and an uncle that was a cook on another lower Laker. My brother is currently on Lake Superior as a kayaking tour guide. I was 10 years old when this happened. It brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it
Sarah, I knew Gordon personally. He made many great songs. It is a good song but your emotions are heart warming! Thank you for your reviews. God bless you 🙏
I've been on the ship William A. Irvin, which is very close to the design of the Edmund Fitzgerald and so the ship has three separate functions. In the front (bow) you have the Bridge that consists of the ship's steering, communication, navigation, mess (kitchen) and living quarters. At the very back, (stern or aft) you have engineering, which deals with all the mechanical needs of the ship like the engine, power, hydraulics. Between Bow and Stern, is the Cargo Hold and it is a large and deep sections that takes iron ore. Once it's filled, Hold Covers are used to close off the top in order to keep water out. It is believed, that because the ship was overloaded and setting too deep into the water (displacement) and that the hold covers were old and not sealing out water and because they were going through extremely rough seas, that water filled the cargo space and the ship sank, with all crew going down with the ship
I appreciate the fact that know the importance of story telling, and this song a great example. I'm Canadian Scottish, and my people have tried to keep stories alive, but its fading. Sad.
Where I live, (Puget Sound area, Washington State) we don't get weather reports for the Great Lakes very often but I recall (I think it was in the late '90's) our area was reporting a nasty of a nor'easter storm about to hit the Great Lakes region that was being compared in its ferocity to the storm that sank the Edmund Fitzgerald. There were a few who remembered when that happened and read about it in the paper. I would love to go to whitefish point and see the museum that has the ship's bell in Michigan.
On May 2, 2023 the Maritimes Sailors' Cathedral in Detroit rang the church bell 30 times. One for each of the 29 members lost from the Edmund Fitzgerald and once for Gordon Lightfoot to honour him after his passing. Such a beautiful and respectful tribute.
Thank you Sarah, for another heart-felt reaction! In honour of your reaction to one of our Canadian Treasure's, I am going to leave you with some more Canadian Gold to add to your list of songs to get to one day! "Life In The Bloodstream" by The Guess Who, "Signs" by The Five Man Electrical Band, "The Needle And The Damage Done" by Neil Young, "Carey" by Joni Mitchell, "Superman's Song" (Official video) by The Crash Test Dummies, "Grace Too" by The Tragically Hip and "Try" by Blue Rodeo! Best wishes to you Sarah!!
It's hard not giving up a tear listening to that song. Every note, every word sung speaks of the peril and complete helplessness of the crew to its end with only one choice, and that is, to let go.
Thank you Sarah. Your reaction was so real and your analysis and comments perfect. I agree, absolutely beautiful song with exceptional lyrics and musical accompniment. I've been learning guitar for this. A lot of words though!
I remember as a kid growing up on the U.S./Canada border hearing this song SO much on the radio. What an incredible and heartbreaking story. So glad it's being discovered by a new generation.
I'm from Detroit and lived for years in Northern Michigan on Grand Traverse Bay. People on the Mitten, and our Canadian brothers, know the power of an angry Manitou.
The lake it is said never gives up her dead when the gales of November come early....The Waters of Lake Superior never get warm enough for the bacteria to grow in a drown body to cause it to rise to the surface. The Lake really does not give up it's dead. The Edmund Fitzgerald went down in 1975. I remember the news report.I knew a man who sailed on her. It was a big ship. It was a very tragic event. The American Great Lakes are huge. Lake Superior is the largest, the deepest and the farthest North. It is the coldest and the storms are as intense as any ocean storm. I am still sad when I hear this song. Writer singer Gordon Lightfoot did not keep a penny of the money this song made. He gave it all to the 29 surviving families of the lost crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald. ...Well Played Gordon.
Being a Michigander who visited Whitefish Point every fall it is very haunting standing on the shore of Lake Superior looking out into the distance knowing that is where the Edmund Fitzgerald went down all while this song plays in your head. Such a tragic event, this song has had significant meaning to me ever since i was a kid.
God bless you for paying tribute to the brave sailors of the ‘Fitz. This song was passed to me by my grandmother to me, to my boys. It’s a sad but great story put to music
This was far from the greatest loss of life in a shipwreck on the Great Lakes... but it was the single largest such since the 1930s. By 1975, people thought that they knew enough to build really safe ships to haul the freight - especially the iron ore - from Dulth down to Detroit, Indiana Harbor / East Chicago, and Cleveland. So the loss of a 17 year old modern freighter was a shock. The SS Arthur M. Anderson was near the Fitz that night... and she still plys the Great Lakes to this day. As best as anyone can tell, the Fitz was taken from astern by a rogue wave while going over a shoal, and her bow got pushed into the lakebed while the water continued to lift her stern, breaking her keel, and flooding the wreck in seconds. Today, we remember her wreck, and honor her memory as tribute to the people who have perished while moving cargo on the Great Lakes.
The youtube channel Ask A Mortician did a video on this topic and explains the history of the ship in a wonderful manner, especially since she has a descendant of one of the crewman as a friend she could talk to about it to get the family's perspective. You should check it out if youre ever curios on the background information. Her video is a good showcase on why you show the Great Lakes the respect they deserve.
Gordon Lightfoot passed away a month ago. At the Mariners' Church of Detroit they rang the bell 30 times. 29 for each member of the lost crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald, and one more for the musician who made sure they would never be forgotten.
if this song moved you, you might want to check out the work of Stan Rogers, another great Canadian singer-songwriter. The songs "Mary Ellen Carter", about a ship that sinks and is raised and salvaged by her crew, and "White Squall", about a young man llost on the great lakes, are also very powerful.
Hi, Sarah. It's me again. This is another of my favorite songs. Part of the reason is because I live on the Great Lakes where this happened, and I actually remember when it occurred. It happened on November 10, 1975. The Edmund Fitzgerald still remains the largest ship to ever sink on the Great Lakes, and it remains the worst marine tragedy on the Great Lakes as well. Many future safety reforms were enacted after this event, and some ships are now restricted from traveling on the Great Lakes during November because the Lakes are rough at that time of year. In the song, he mentions the five Great Lakes, which are Lake Superior (the largest), Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, and Lake Erie (the smallest). The wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald happened on Lake Superior, the largest one. Calling them 'Lakes' is really not an accurate statement in terms of size. They are really inland seas that resemble oceans. The only difference being that they are freshwater instead of saltwater, but ships can still travel from the Great Lakes into the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence Seaway. Cargo, however, is usually transferred from Lake ships to Ocean ships and vice versa at some point in the St. Lawrence. Ocean ships are able to carry more weight because saltwater makes them more buoyant. Freshwater ships have to be designed differently or carry less weight to account for the lower buoyancy. Sorry, didn't mean to get so technical, but I've lived on the Great Lakes my entire life. Anyway, it's a sad song, but it was written as a remembrance to an actual tragedy, so it will never be anything but solemn. Take care.
The Edmund Fitzgerald sank on Nov 10, 2975 exactly as Gord says. The 730 ft wreck was located a few decades later in 500 or so feet of water, and all of the crew are still aboard. Families opted to leave the bodies in situ. The ship's bell was recovered, and now sits in the Maritime Sailor's Cathedral in Detroit, rung 29 times on Nov 10 each year, having been replaced by a replica on the lake bottom.
Sorry to correct you, but Fitz's bell sits in the Great Lakes museum at Whitefish Point. Always has since its recovery. The Detroit Cathedral used its own bell for its ceremonies.
The story of the Fitz is tragic enough, but the haunting guitar makes you feel the the loss even more. As a high school aged boy I actually saw and took a picture of the Fitz when touring the Soo locks. When the news of the possible loss of the Fitz came on the news everyone was waiting and hoping for a different outcome. All the great lakes can turn into a dangerous inland sea with the right weather, but if you've ever been at the shores of Superior when the wind is up you can really feel the force of that body of water as the waves meet the shore.
Yes! Superior IS Superior in every way! Largest and deepest of all the Great Lakes. If people looked up the info they'd see there is no comparison to the others.
This song is autumn for me. The actual tragedy happened in fall 1975 (I was in college). A year later came the song, The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald" fall of 1976. Turning leaves. Smoke filled cool air. Pumpkins. And this song for me absolutely defines autumn, sadness, and melancholy. But it is one of the greatest story songs ever written. Canada's penultimate story teller.
That was a really good reaction I could see that you felt everything in that song,as a sailor and served with the US navy the line that probably hits most guys would be does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours my heart breaks pretty much every time I hear this song as I relate to those men. I always say a prayer after hearing the song for the wives the sons and the daughters and the nephews an the nieces and all of the great times that were missed may their souls rest in peace great reaction he has a number of great hits check him out a little bit more if you could read my mind incredible song God-bless.
",Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours" is surely one of the greatest lines ever written in modern music history. The penultimate singer songwriter and storyteller...and Canada's gift to all of us. 🇨🇦 ❤❤❤❤❤
You should check out this version of the song with REAL footage, sound clips from passing ships, and photos of crew: th-cam.com/video/hgI8bta-7aw/w-d-xo.html By the way, Gordon ensured that all profits from the song went to the families--"the faces and the names of the wives, the sons, and the daughters."
Gordon wrote a song that tried to heal a nation. I was 14 when it happened, remember it so vividly. So many young crew members. At 63, I still cry when I hear it.
Just 29 men risking their lives to support their families. So many men do this every day....work high risk jobs for slightly higher pay to support their wife and kids.
I'm from a small town near Toledo; some of my friends' fathers were sailors on the Lakes, and on a long summer day we used to go up to watch ships go in and out of Toledo Harbor. Don't know if I ever saw the Fitz herself, but she passed through the harbor a lot. This short film gets the facts pretty straight (and it's kind of amazing how close Gordon Lightfoot was able to stick to the facts): th-cam.com/video/wIg90sVSwSE/w-d-xo.html This might be the most accurate "Wreck" song since the original version of "The Wreck of Old 97" (many recordings of it out there but I like Boxcar Willie's: th-cam.com/video/E7_zfYq8WZM/w-d-xo.html. Just in case you haven't had enough Wreck songs!)
In 1996 a body was found in a cork life jacket laying o it's back facing upwards to the surface on feet from the bow of the Fitz. Idk if they ever proved it to be a Fitz crewman or officer. But you need to understand " she never gives up her dead" is true. This lack is so cold and dark at those depths that bacteria that usually bloat a body to make it float don't exist down there. So they never surface. It's a lake I respect and fear more than the ocean. Gails are winds 35knots and up.. storms are 50 knots and up. Superior is a WITCH of a lake. She's worse than ANY ocean Gail. The Fitz was the largest laker at her time. She was 1ft shorter than the Sault lock length. You should do some research of the day and facts of what happened in that day. Gordon lightfoot wrote this song and signed all proceeds over to the families of the 29 lost men on the Fitz. A freighter was once recorded to have over 260 000 pounds per in pressure o the hull. Some experts thing the Fitz too a large wave over her stern and when the bow was in the trough of that wave it helped drive te bow into the lake bottom and caused her to snap I two and all hands were lost without a distress call as it happened so suddenly. Here in Canada when I was a kid (80/90's) you grew up knowing about the fate of the Fitz. It's a Canadian legend that will never be forgotten. This song is probably top 5 greatest songs ever written.
I think you said, "Soul-wrenching." The best description of this song that I've ever heard. This song is the proof of Elton John's line, "Sad songs say so much."
It was an incredible tragedy, they still ring the church bell at the Mariners' Church in Detroit.
Originally it rang its bell 29 times; once for each life lost, and continued to hold an annual memorial, reading the names of the crewmen and ringing the church bell, until 2006 when the church broadened its memorial ceremony to commemorate all lives lost on the Great Lakes.
So here I sit, along with many others, who have literally no personal connection to the Fitzgerald, no family lost in the sinking, have never set foot on the shores of Lake Superior - and I am profoundly and deeply moved by the loss of the ship and the crew to this day, forty-six years later.
Why?
Because of this beautiful, precisely crafted, ballad written and performed by Gordon Lightfoot, "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", that was released in 1976.
And this is the thought that I have.
This is the power of music, of lyrics, of narrative poetry and the storytelling form of the ballad.
That hundreds of thousands of people, with no other shred of connection save this powerful song, know the story, mourn the loss, honor the dead and their grieving families, feel a frisson walk their spines every November the 10th.
All because of this beautiful ballad.
Thank you so much for this beautiful review!
Nicely said, Cameron. You are a *strong* writer yourself. I enjoyed reading your post; appreciated your words and choice of words. We (not you and I) can long debate which of Lightfoot’s great skills and talents are most responsible for us continuing to be moved by this tragedy and epic song 46 years later. However, I submit that it is a dozen or so the the most passionate and empathetic people who make reaction videos - this relatively new phenomenon - who are now to thank for this and so many other memories being kept at the forefront of our conversations.
We cajole the best of them to ‘play our favorite song’ like the DJs of our youths. We want them, for them, to see and hear what we did in the words and music of these songs. Then we delight in their reactions; especially that they are joining the club, finding past generations remarkable and fortunate to have been there. At nearly age 62, taking inventory of my own life in the context of the profound changes the pandemic has brought and the time it has afforded me to ponder such things, music reactors have come along at a very good time for me. In my Season 2 of Joy, having welcomed 5 grandchildren to our world and family I want the music to be kept alive. And in my Season 1 of trying to be strong and brave while faced with an incurable cancer that I have now beaten 3 times in the last 3 1/2 years, music I have enjoyed my entire life has been my solace, and not for the first time in my life, I assure you. Like yourself I imagine, if I may be presumptuous for a moment.
Finally, against the horrific backdrop of what has seemed like a national racial pandemic, our new friends the music reactors have come along. We have had a shameful paucity of decency and compassion that has enabled and caused the deaths of brown people at the hands of white people clinging to authority, poisoned with resentment. Resentments, we know, eventually destroy the containers in which they are kept. Most of the reactors I have followed the last 3 1/2 years are young, many are brown. They’ve had no real reason to decide one day or another is the day they are going to dive into a world of music and culture that is foreign to them, no matter their age or color.
I have been astounded at their collective positivity; grateful for the examples they have been to us. With so many things to appreciate about our new friends the reactors, getting back to the nuts and bolts of reaction videos, I have been shocked and amazed at how well so many of them grasp the essence and importance of songs - the literature of our time - on their first listen. Demonstrating that passion, sincerity, enthusiasm, humility, and empathy are great credentials, the best of them come before us with no apparent training or preparation for working extemporaneously before a camera and they are *nailing* it, captivating us day after day.
Our new friend Sarah is one of them, one of the very best already in her brief time making reaction videos. Oh, and she is from Africa, living in Germany, and presenting her views in flawless English. What a world! Thank you, Sarah, and thank you Cameron for your fine post.
If either of you, or anyone who has read this far, is interested in an even more stirring video of this song, this one put together by Joseph Fulton has had 12 million views for good reason. He incorporated the TV newscast that broke this story, strong and haunting visuals on what it must have been like on board the Fitzgerald that fateful night, and the last radio communication between the Fitzgerald and the Arthur M. Anderson, another ship caught out in that storm. th-cam.com/video/hgI8bta-7aw/w-d-xo.html
@@tonydelapa1911 what an amazing comment! Man, I hope for the best for you in your encounter with cancer! And yes, these past few years have been one for the record books!
I love the way reaction videos have become a worldwide conversation of hope, powerful little beacons of light and you are so right that Sarah is one of the brightest!
Thank you for your kind words about my comment...
I love the power of story telling songs, ballads written about events and times. We need more of them, particularly now, that we are living through times that our grandchildren and great grandchildren may one day listen to a song about that makes it alive for them.
Music is a language that makes the whole world come alive; reaction videos convey and share between us the power of that language!
I do not know if you're the praying type, might have have your permission to hold you in my prayers, if not I will hold you in my heart and sincerest best wishes!
Thank you so much!
@@Cameron5043 well, earlier I wrote a nice reply thanking you for payers or keeping me in your heart, either one, and agreeing with you further on the points you made. It has evidently disappeared into the ether, or Tony hit the wrong button.
@@tonydelapa1911 I see this comment! Prayers you got! Yes to everything! I guess let me know how you do, comment here...I will watch for you, brother! Be blessed!
@@Cameron5043 Thank you. I will see you around on one of Sarah’s other reactions. It was a good exchange today I enjoyed it.
Whenever the US Navy or Coast Guard crosses the spot where the Edmund Fitzgerald lays, we still ring our ships bell 29 times. ❤️🩹
God Bless You Ruth.................. sailed the seas for 20 Years... Let us bless all those brave souls that go down in the seas..........
Wow that is really beautiful. ❤️🇨🇦
One of the few inland Seas. Very unique conditions. Much respect. ...Canadian Coast Guard shoutout...
That's pretty heavy.
true
Royalties from this song always have, and still go to the families to this day. What a classy guy
God rest his soul.
Hey Sarah, we lost Gordon Lightfoot a week or so ago. In an incredible tribute the Sailor's Church in Detroit (which he alluded to in this song) rang it's bell 29 times plus one more in memory of Gordon. I think he's now an honourary crew member of the Fitz. He was in close contact with the surviving families for decades and I believe the royalties from this song went to them.
Truth every dime he ever made off that song went right to the families
Being from the US Midwest, this ballad has a real effect on the people there who appreciate the size and scope of the Great Lakes.
But I'm not from the US Midwest, and every single time I hear this song, I weep. All those men on the Edmund Fitzgerald; if they only knew how much their own personal tragedy has affected so many complete strangers all around the world...Even though it is long past, it's as though the listener spends the entire song praying for their souls.
@@Kayenne54 It's true. It goes bone deep.
Yes! I live close to the south shore of Lake Ontario in New York State and anyone who has seen a Great Lake , especially in foul weather, can appreciate the horror times 1000.
I live an hour from Lake Erie, go boating on it all the time, and for me this song perfectly captures the spirit and the life of the lakes. Beautiful, yet mysterious and dangerous, with the Fitz being the center point of the lakes. At least for me🙏
Hard to imagine the size unless you've been on the lakes. Daunting.
Gordon Lightfoot reportedly donated the profits from this hit recording to the widows and orphans victims of this tragedy.
Thank you for a sincere reaction, Sarah, another keeper for me. 🌹👼
That's very thoughtful of him!
@@SarahDengler the last vessel to be in contact with the Fitz is still afloat today. The freighter Arthur M. Anderson, and you can watch these vessels come through on the Great Lakes live cameras. My favourite being port Huron
YES HE GAVE ALL THE PROFITS TO THE VICTIMS FAMILIES AND STILL TO THIS DAY ALL REVENUE FROM THIS SONG GOES TO THEM.
This is a beautiful tribute by one of the best Canadian singer songwriters. This 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", "Sundown", "Carefree Highway", "Rainy Day People" & many more.
They mined the iron ore in huge open pits in northern Minnesota,. It would then be shipped by train to Duluth or Superior down the 600 ft hill directly onto the docks which towered over the water, A ship would come in and open its hatches and the ore would be slid down chutes into the hold. I used to watch this from an observation deck nearby.
It only took about five to ten hours for a ship like the Fitz to be loaded. The laker could come in empty, be filled and out again the same day. Unless there were delays there would be no shore leave for the crew, rather a small boat, essentially a floating grocery store would stop by the ship so the crewmen could pick up what supplies they needed.
Then out of the harbor through the ship canal, passing under the lift bridge and within a couple hundred feet of the Lake Superior Marine Museum where there is now a display about the Fitzgerald. I would guess over the years thousands of people would have lined the canal to watch the Fitz enter and leave and wave to the unknown crew aboard her.
The lake is big and beautiful and deep. A cold thing though. not a place to go swimming (though some now don wet suits and surf the waves when the wind pushes up big swells). It's shores are rocky, being enveloped by the massive formation known as the Canadian Shield. Cliffs follow much of the edge of the lake, and there can be great beauty in heavy winds seeing the waves smash and dance up the cliff sides.
The islands are rocky as well, and there are dangerous shoals. One theory suggests that in the heavy seas, up to 25 ft high in winds that came across 300 miles of open lake, the Fitz bottomed out on such a shoal and opened her up below the water line. . No one really knows for sure.
The beaches at Whitefish Point are sandy. There is a museum there for all the Great Lakes shipwrecks, and three have been many dating back hundreds of years. But that time was thought to be over by the time the Fitz went down. It's nice there, on a clear day you can see Canada, and see where the wreck must have occurred. All you see is the blue and maybe a few whitecaps if the wind is up. And kids playing on the beach.
May 1, 2023, Gordon Lightfoot passed away from natural causes at age 84. In the last week or so I've watched reaction videos both fresh and older. I've yet to see someone who wasn't on the verge of tears by the end of the song. I've been listening to this song for nearly 50 years and I still choke up. It's that powerful a story and a song.
I remember when she went down in '75, I was 11 years old.
Thank you for sharing your reaction. My first reaction was hearing this song on CKY-580AM in Winnipeg in the summer of 1976 as a teenager. I grew up in northern Minnesota and remember this storm. It was deer hunting season in November 1975. On Saturday, the weather was unusually warm and we were hunting in shirt sleeves. Then the storm hit. Monday night, the Edmund Fitzgerald went down in eastern Lake Superior. This song was on AM radio constantly from July 1976 and following. I just saw Gordon Lightfoot perform in concert on Sept. 21, 2022 in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The guy has heart. He's 83 and while he has aged like the rest of us, he performs with grit and determination. There is something in concert with the opening verse of the Fitzgerald, with just him playing his 12-string that gets me every time. He has truly created a legend and story so that these 29 men will never be forgotten. And they also represent the thousands more on the Great Lakes, who have been forgotten.
I was sixteen and just got in my car after hockey practice. The DJ said he had a new song from Gordon. I sat mesmerized listening and in tears for the family that lost their loved ones….
Yours is the most deeply heartfelt reaction to this piece of music that I've ever heard. Be well and blessèd be. And thank you.…
I love how you really understand and FEEL the music you react to!
This video was initially blocked, it's just been realised. Yay
I get extremely emotional when I hear this song, even more so when I watched your reaction to it ... God bless the 29 men on the Edmund Fitzgerald !!
I first heard this song in 1978. I was made aware of the true cost of all the iron and steel I saw around me and used everyday. I was blown away by this tribute to the 29 men of the Edmund Fitzgerald who never returned home. "Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?"
Thank you Sarah for your reaction to this amazing song , sung by a legend and great humanitarian.
I always tear up listening to this haunting and riveting song and lyrics by Gordon , he’s a truly amazing story teller . . R.I.P. to the 29 souls.❤️😢🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
You said it perfectly when you said this song is soul wrenching!
Thank you for reacting to this song in your way you are telling the younger generations this story.
I understand that that whenever the Coastguard passes the Edmond Fitzgerald on their routes they ring their ships bell 29 times in tribute.
I remember when it happened. I grew up in Milwaukee, on the shore of Lake Michigan. The song refers to the Gales of November. I've seen them. The icy winds so strong the gusts almost knock you off your feet and the enormous wave smashing against the shore are truly terrifying. There's no earthly force that could convince me to go out on a boat in that weather. I've had other adventures on Lake Michigan when I was young and reckless that almost cost me my life. And lost a few friends to that big lake.
This song meant a lot for us in that part of the country. We felt it really deeply. I can't listen to the song without struggling with strong emotions.
Lightfoot's songwriting mastery put you on the deck of that ship as it sank, looking into the eyes of the men who were about to die, and later put you standing shoulder to shoulder with the surviving families. This is what a good song should do.
I've been listening to this song for decades, and I can't hear it without fighting tears. This song means a lot to my people. Thank you for posting this and sharing your reaction with us.
I remember when this disaster happened too. As Detroiters this song meant a lot to us too. It’s a ritual every year at the Mariner Church to ring the bell for the dead. When you sit on the shores up in Port Huron, even down river from there, we watch the freighter go by every day. It’s dangerous when the storms come up. People don’t realize how huge those lakes really are. They can be like a sea.
This song hits a nerve with anyone who grew up on the great lakes.
I was in High School when this song came out; to me this song has always had a power in it that grabbed me and held on. Every time it came on the radio I would stop what I was doing and listen to it. Even now, after more than 45 years, and hearing it hundreds of times, it still affects me *so much!*
It's comforting to see somebody who was born *decades* after this song came out, being affected by it! Thank-you for this.
Hi Sarah. This week (Nov 10th) was fhe 46th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. I have lived within 1-2 miles of Lake Michigan my entire adult life. When I was 19, I met the woman who became and still is my wife on one of the Lake Michigan beaches.I was nearly 16 years old when the Fitzgerald went down. Our town lost a 23year old sailor (oilier) that day.
The tragedy and Lightfoot’s song made a tremendous impact on me that has stayed with me all these years. My wife and I were fortunate to see Gordon Lightfoot perform in our small town many years ago. Despite being a great songwriter and performer, he came across as humble on stage. Your reaction was somber, sad, respectful, and struck the appropriate tone for someone hearing this song for the first time. You immediately understood the enormity of the loss and the desperate helpless end the men faced. Gordon did an incredible job memorializing this in somg, Your overall reaction to it was heart wrenching - and very good. Thank you.
Thank you very much for the kind words, this is a great tragedy
God bless these poor lost souls and thier families.
Ernest McSorley - Captain born in 1912.
John McCarthy - First mate born in 1913.
James Pratt - Second mate born in 1931.
Michael Armagost - Third mate born in 1938.
David Weiss - Cadet born in 1953.
Ransom Cundy - Watchman born in 1922.
Karl Peckol - Watchman born in 1955.
William Spengler - Watchman born in 1916.
John Simmons - Senior wheelman born in 1913.
Eugene O’Brien - Wheelman born in 1925.
John Poviach - Wheelman born in 1916.
Paul Riippa - Deckhand born in 1953.
Mark Thomas - Deckhand born in 1954.
Bruce Hudson - Deckhand born in 1953.
George Holl - Chief engineer born in 1915.
Edward Bindon - First assistant engineer born in 1928.
Thomas Edwards - Second assistant engineer born in 1925.
Russell Haskell - Second assistant engineer born in 1935.
Oliver Champeau - Third assistant engineer born in 1934.
Ralph Walton - Oiler born in 1917.
Blaine Wilhelm - Oiler born in 1923.
Thomas Bentsen - Oiler born in 1952.
Gordon MacLellan - Wiper born in 1945.
Robert Rafferty - Steward born in 1913.
Allen Kalmon - Second steward born in 1932.
Joseph Mazes - Special maintenance man born in 1916.
Thomas Borgeson - Maintenance man born in 1934.
Frederick Beetcher - Porter born in 1919.
Nolan Church - Porter born in 1920.
They will not be forgotten
And Gordon Lightfoot, 2023, RIP
I agree, Gordon Lightfoot is one heck of a storyteller...a bard extraordinaire.
Gordon Lightfoot is an incredible poet, musician and singer.
Imagine- you just got your drivers license and you’re driving to school and this plays on AM radio, and you hear it again on your way home, for weeks. It’s part of the soundtrack of my life, all my friends’ lives.
Gordon Lightfoot is a legend among songwriters..... one of the greatest balladiers of all time.
indeed.
I grew up in Michigan, and remember when it happened.
He is Canada's greatest story teller and Nov17th is his birthday. He is still going strong at 83.
Wow! He's really good 👍
1 May 2023. RIP, Gordon. 😢
Beautiful song, beautiful lyrics and beautiful voice. Thank you.
Makes me weep every time I hear this great song.
Gordon Lightfoot is very underrated.
Its a beautiful song and your reaction heartfelt and beautiful
I didn't know it was a true story, their memories will remain through this song.
Thanks for reacting to it
Thank you
Their ages ranged from 18 to maybe 63!! They were only in the Great Lakes, but they're so big it's like the ocean!
Wonderful reaction to this classic song. Thank you.
No song I've ever heard paints such a vivid picture in my mind as this one.
Thank you, Sarah for your reaction to this song, and for your kind words. ☺
Thank you for watching 🙂
There were ships following the Fitzgerald in that storm. They all said they could see her lights one minute and a minute later, they were gone. It took years to locate the wreckage and there have been a couple of theories as to her sinking. One idea was that two waves that were close together lifted the bow and the stern, leaving midships clear of the water, and the incredible weight of all that ore cracked the Fitz like an egg. Or she may have taken a huge wave directly from the side, cracking the ship on one side and allowing her to take on water. Either way, I remember this when it happened. (I am 72, but I prefer to think of myself as 22 Celsius.) I still love your reactions and will continue to watch as long as you post.
Oh My God...
That ship was the Arthur M. Anderson, a very similar ship. They were guiding the Fitzgerald as their radar and navigation systems were out, likely damaged by the storm. The Anderson was only about an hour or 15 miles behind them, close enough to see their lights, but even if the crew had been able to get off the Fitz before it sank, they would not have survived in the water for that hour it took for the Anderson to get there.
I believe the theory that your speaking of is called the three sisters, where waves coming back from the near shore meet with incoming waves and waves created by other colliding waves. Causing a series of wave crests with a void in the center.
There was only one ship behind the Fitzgerald, the Arthur M Anderson. The Fitzgerald was overloaded. She bottomed out at 6 fathom shoals, then she got a port list and more water came in faster than the pumps could work. There were reports of 60 foot waves that night.
There used to be a clip on YT where someone had spliced the actual radio communications between the Anderson and the Fitz over top of this song. It's was very haunting.
You could hear the ships communicating with each other, then the Fitz stopped responding!
You could hear the Anderson calling out to the Fitz.: ..."Edmond Fitzgerald this is the Arthur M. Anderson,...do you copy? (then nothing but the sound of radio silence/static. That shhhhhhhhh sound). Then again "Edmond Fitzgerald, this is the Arthur Anderson,..do you copy? (nothing but radio static shhhhhhhhh) Over & Over "This is the Arthur M. Anderson calling the Edmond Fitzgerald, do you copy?" (shhhhhhhhh...)
Then it hits you,......the Edmond Fitzgerald is gone!!
A spooky, heartbreaking, sickning feeling washes over you!
I am from Sault Ste. Marie, so very close to the tragedy. I lived up there then, now in Toronto. Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours? Gordon Lightfoot is a Canadian TREASURE. Thank you so much for this Sarah.
You are one of the few who I have seen reacting to this song who seems to grasp the gravity of the story being told.
I want to thank you for that.
There is a version of this song that at the end they say the name of and ring a watch bell for each of the 29 members of the crew that were lost in the wreck.
They also show a photo of each of the crew members with each name.
That is one to listen to.
Everyone who grows up around The Lakes knows the story of The Fitzgerald and her crew.
Very sad story
Yup, I was a little kid when this happened, living in a small town about a mile from the Lake Michigan shoreline. My mother tells me she remembers this night very well, bad weather across the region with high-winds and waves.
One of worst shipwrecks on the LAKES and no trace found of the captain or crew. They ring the bell every anniversary 29 times as a memorial to the brave mariners that died with the wreck.POWERFUL STUFF for a folk song.
Nothing more dreadful than slowly seeing this massive storm materialize more and more, stealing away the beautiful weather at launch. It was initially forecast to only be a moderate storm, par for the course in November. This song does a very good job of depicting the gradual doom of the worsening conditions.
I want to say this has to be about the 12th or so reaction video I've seen to this song, it seems every one of them does it at some point, a testimony to how many people this song has impacted. Surprised none have commented on how powerful the song is at the point where it transitions from the effective first verse that sets the table, to the drums coming in strong, to " the wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound, and a wave broke over the railing..." We get thrown from the set-up into the onset of this nasty storm first making itself known to the crew by this sensory-grabbing line, a shame no one seems to be as grabbed by it as what it does to me, sooooo good, so effective.
This song makes us feel like we knew these people too. Very sad but beautiful song. Your reaction was awesome. Keep them coming
Thank you. Growing up Northern MN and having swum in Lake Superior, it is very cold. It was late August and the water temp was 42 degrees F- At Grand Marais. It doesn't matter which lake. They can all be deadly.
I remember when this happened in November 1975. Grew up in the Great Lakes area. Lived near Lake Michigan and Huron at one time and another. Been to Suoerior several times including one time on a stormy November with 25’ waves and heavy winds off of Lake Superior cold waters. Of all the lakes, Superior is the one not easily tamed. She can break a boat in two when her waters are stirred by the cold weather from the north coming down in the autumn.
I live in Toronto and Lake Ontario seems so massive but Lake Superior is even more powerful. I’d like to see it one day.
Grew up in Michigan near the Ludington area spent my Summers in the u.p. had a cousin that worked on one of the lower Lakers and an uncle that was a cook on another lower Laker. My brother is currently on Lake Superior as a kayaking tour guide. I was 10 years old when this happened. It brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it
Born and raised growing up on Lake Erie.this song means alot.thx for sharing.
Sarah, I knew Gordon personally. He made many great songs. It is a good song but your emotions are heart warming! Thank you for your reviews. God bless you 🙏
Yes it's really special! Your reaction honors the 29 men of the Edmund Fitzgerald!
Thank you
I've been on the ship William A. Irvin, which is very close to the design of the Edmund Fitzgerald and so the ship has three separate functions. In the front (bow) you have the Bridge that consists of the ship's steering, communication, navigation, mess (kitchen) and living quarters.
At the very back, (stern or aft) you have engineering, which deals with all the mechanical needs of the ship like the engine, power, hydraulics.
Between Bow and Stern, is the Cargo Hold and it is a large and deep sections that takes iron ore. Once it's filled, Hold Covers are used to close off the top in order to keep water out.
It is believed, that because the ship was overloaded and setting too deep into the water (displacement) and that the hold covers were old and not sealing out water and because they were going through extremely rough seas, that water filled the cargo space and the ship sank, with all crew going down with the ship
I appreciate the fact that know the importance of story telling, and this song a great example. I'm Canadian Scottish, and my people have tried to keep stories alive, but its fading. Sad.
Where I live, (Puget Sound area, Washington State) we don't get weather reports for the Great Lakes very often but I recall (I think it was in the late '90's) our area was reporting a nasty of a nor'easter storm about to hit the Great Lakes region that was being compared in its ferocity to the storm that sank the Edmund Fitzgerald. There were a few who remembered when that happened and read about it in the paper. I would love to go to whitefish point and see the museum that has the ship's bell in Michigan.
On May 2, 2023 the Maritimes Sailors' Cathedral in Detroit rang the church bell 30 times. One for each of the 29 members lost from the Edmund Fitzgerald and once for Gordon Lightfoot to honour him after his passing. Such a beautiful and respectful tribute.
Thank you Sarah, for another heart-felt reaction! In honour of your reaction to one of our Canadian Treasure's, I am going to leave you with some more Canadian Gold to add to your list of songs to get to one day! "Life In The Bloodstream" by The Guess Who, "Signs" by The Five Man Electrical Band, "The Needle And The Damage Done" by Neil Young, "Carey" by Joni Mitchell, "Superman's Song" (Official video) by The Crash Test Dummies, "Grace Too" by The Tragically Hip and "Try" by Blue Rodeo! Best wishes to you Sarah!!
I’m 🇨🇦 and love all the songs you mentioned. 👍❤️
@@LetItBeSummer-1 Thank you for the vote of confidence in these great Canadian hits! Hopefully Sarah will get to some of them one day!!
Gordon donated the proceeds of this song to the families of the lost sailors.
It's hard not giving up a tear listening to that song. Every note, every word sung speaks of the peril and complete helplessness of the crew to its end with only one choice, and that is, to let go.
Thank you Sarah. Your reaction was so real and your analysis and comments perfect. I agree, absolutely beautiful song with exceptional lyrics and musical accompniment. I've been learning guitar for this. A lot of words though!
Thank you🙏
I've seen 10 or 12 reactions to this song and yours is by far - by FAR - the best I have ever seen.
Appreciate that reaction.
I remember as a kid growing up on the U.S./Canada border hearing this song SO much on the radio. What an incredible and heartbreaking story. So glad it's being discovered by a new generation.
This song breaks my heart but also why as a MN resident I am infatuated with the ships on the lakes!
I'm from Detroit and lived for years in Northern Michigan on Grand Traverse Bay. People on the Mitten, and our Canadian brothers, know the power of an angry Manitou.
The lake it is said never gives up her dead when the gales of November come early....The Waters of Lake Superior never get warm enough for the bacteria to grow in a drown body to cause it to rise to the surface. The Lake really does not give up it's dead. The Edmund Fitzgerald went down in 1975. I remember the news report.I knew a man who sailed on her. It was a big ship. It was a very tragic event. The American Great Lakes are huge. Lake Superior is the largest, the deepest and the farthest North. It is the coldest and the storms are as intense as any ocean storm. I am still sad when I hear this song. Writer singer Gordon Lightfoot did not keep a penny of the money this song made. He gave it all to the 29 surviving families of the lost crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald. ...Well Played Gordon.
This very sad
Being a Michigander who visited Whitefish Point every fall it is very haunting standing on the shore of Lake Superior looking out into the distance knowing that is where the Edmund Fitzgerald went down all while this song plays in your head. Such a tragic event, this song has had significant meaning to me ever since i was a kid.
God bless you for paying tribute to the brave sailors of the ‘Fitz. This song was passed to me by my grandmother to me, to my boys. It’s a sad but great story put to music
Amen, thank you
This was far from the greatest loss of life in a shipwreck on the Great Lakes... but it was the single largest such since the 1930s. By 1975, people thought that they knew enough to build really safe ships to haul the freight - especially the iron ore - from Dulth down to Detroit, Indiana Harbor / East Chicago, and Cleveland. So the loss of a 17 year old modern freighter was a shock.
The SS Arthur M. Anderson was near the Fitz that night... and she still plys the Great Lakes to this day.
As best as anyone can tell, the Fitz was taken from astern by a rogue wave while going over a shoal, and her bow got pushed into the lakebed while the water continued to lift her stern, breaking her keel, and flooding the wreck in seconds.
Today, we remember her wreck, and honor her memory as tribute to the people who have perished while moving cargo on the Great Lakes.
The youtube channel Ask A Mortician did a video on this topic and explains the history of the ship in a wonderful manner, especially since she has a descendant of one of the crewman as a friend she could talk to about it to get the family's perspective. You should check it out if youre ever curios on the background information. Her video is a good showcase on why you show the Great Lakes the respect they deserve.
Thanks for that, I will check it out
Great reaction and interesting thoughts.
Love this song as a Canadian I grew up on his music and living near Lake Ontario you learn to respect our great lakes
Two things: 1. you are a sweetheart 2. you are very good at this. Thank you.
Gordon Lightfoot passed away a month ago. At the Mariners' Church of Detroit they rang the bell 30 times. 29 for each member of the lost crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald, and one more for the musician who made sure they would never be forgotten.
if this song moved you, you might want to check out the work of Stan Rogers, another great Canadian singer-songwriter. The songs "Mary Ellen Carter", about a ship that sinks and is raised and salvaged by her crew, and "White Squall", about a young man llost on the great lakes, are also very powerful.
Already subscribed! Stopped by for a Gordon Lightfoot reaction! loved it.
Thank you 😊
I was 15 when this happened. I still remember.
A real story that happened , Sad but true, We forget how dangerous the sailor's work is. Thanks for the post.
This is my first time on your channel!!! Liked and subbed :) well done great reaction!
Another brilliant Gordon Lightfoot song -- in a different vein I'm sure you'll love,. "if you could read my mind"
Thank you for the suggestion, added 😊
Hi, Sarah. It's me again. This is another of my favorite songs. Part of the reason is because I live on the Great Lakes where this happened, and I actually remember when it occurred. It happened on November 10, 1975. The Edmund Fitzgerald still remains the largest ship to ever sink on the Great Lakes, and it remains the worst marine tragedy on the Great Lakes as well. Many future safety reforms were enacted after this event, and some ships are now restricted from traveling on the Great Lakes during November because the Lakes are rough at that time of year. In the song, he mentions the five Great Lakes, which are Lake Superior (the largest), Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, and Lake Erie (the smallest). The wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald happened on Lake Superior, the largest one. Calling them 'Lakes' is really not an accurate statement in terms of size. They are really inland seas that resemble oceans. The only difference being that they are freshwater instead of saltwater, but ships can still travel from the Great Lakes into the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Lawrence Seaway. Cargo, however, is usually transferred from Lake ships to Ocean ships and vice versa at some point in the St. Lawrence. Ocean ships are able to carry more weight because saltwater makes them more buoyant. Freshwater ships have to be designed differently or carry less weight to account for the lower buoyancy. Sorry, didn't mean to get so technical, but I've lived on the Great Lakes my entire life. Anyway, it's a sad song, but it was written as a remembrance to an actual tragedy, so it will never be anything but solemn. Take care.
The Edmund Fitzgerald sank on Nov 10, 2975 exactly as Gord says. The 730 ft wreck was located a few decades later in 500 or so feet of water, and all of the crew are still aboard. Families opted to leave the bodies in situ. The ship's bell was recovered, and now sits in the Maritime Sailor's Cathedral in Detroit, rung 29 times on Nov 10 each year, having been replaced by a replica on the lake bottom.
Sorry to correct you, but Fitz's bell sits in the Great Lakes museum at Whitefish Point. Always has since its recovery. The Detroit Cathedral used its own bell for its ceremonies.
The wreck was discovered by sonar a few days after it sank, not decades later. They had pictures of the wreck by spring of 1976.
I was in Iowa in a farm field harvesting corn when I heard the news of this ship going down on the radio
I have always LOVED this song. Your reaction to it is the same as mine; it always brings tears to my eyes.
The story of the Fitz is tragic enough, but the haunting guitar makes you feel the the loss even more. As a high school aged boy I actually saw and took a picture of the Fitz when touring the Soo locks. When the news of the possible loss of the Fitz came on the news everyone was waiting and hoping for a different outcome. All the great lakes can turn into a dangerous inland sea with the right weather, but if you've ever been at the shores of Superior when the wind is up you can really feel the force of that body of water as the waves meet the shore.
Yes! Superior IS Superior in every way! Largest and deepest of all the Great Lakes. If people looked up the info they'd see there is no comparison to the others.
This song is autumn for me. The actual tragedy happened in fall 1975 (I was in college). A year later came the song, The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald" fall of 1976. Turning leaves. Smoke filled cool air. Pumpkins. And this song for me absolutely defines autumn, sadness, and melancholy. But it is one of the greatest story songs ever written. Canada's penultimate story teller.
That was a really good reaction I could see that you felt everything in that song,as a sailor and served with the US navy the line that probably hits most guys would be does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours my heart breaks pretty much every time I hear this song as I relate to those men. I always say a prayer after hearing the song for the wives the sons and the daughters and the nephews an the nieces and all of the great times that were missed may their souls rest in peace great reaction he has a number of great hits check him out a little bit more if you could read my mind incredible song God-bless.
",Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours" is surely one of the greatest lines ever written in modern music history. The penultimate singer songwriter and storyteller...and Canada's gift to all of us. 🇨🇦 ❤❤❤❤❤
You should check out this version of the song with REAL footage, sound clips from passing ships, and photos of crew:
th-cam.com/video/hgI8bta-7aw/w-d-xo.html
By the way, Gordon ensured that all profits from the song went to the families--"the faces and the names of the wives, the sons, and the daughters."
The anniversary was on November 10th. So you did this almost right on time
always draws on heartstrings a very sad sad time when loved ones are lost
What a wonderful heart you have, don’t ever lose that compassion.
Thank you 😊 🙏
Well reviewed of this classic legendary story telling masterpiece . Gorden lightfoot. Vip
Gordon wrote a song that tried to heal a nation. I was 14 when it happened, remember it so vividly. So many young crew members. At 63, I still cry when I hear it.
"and all that remains is the faces and the names of the wives and the sons and the daughters" Instant tears, every time
This song still makes me cry. Gordon lightfoot is brilliant. So lovely and haunting.
Just 29 men risking their lives to support their families. So many men do this every day....work high risk jobs for slightly higher pay to support their wife and kids.
I still remember watching the network news broadcast reporting the sinking of the Fitzgerald.
Such a beautiful sad emotional song based on truth. Mercy. Prayers for them.
Your reaction was beautiful, thank you
I'm from a small town near Toledo; some of my friends' fathers were sailors on the Lakes, and on a long summer day we used to go up to watch ships go in and out of Toledo Harbor. Don't know if I ever saw the Fitz herself, but she passed through the harbor a lot.
This short film gets the facts pretty straight (and it's kind of amazing how close Gordon Lightfoot was able to stick to the facts): th-cam.com/video/wIg90sVSwSE/w-d-xo.html
This might be the most accurate "Wreck" song since the original version of "The Wreck of Old 97" (many recordings of it out there but I like Boxcar Willie's: th-cam.com/video/E7_zfYq8WZM/w-d-xo.html. Just in case you haven't had enough Wreck songs!)
You have a beautiful spirit. I enjoyed listening to your accent as well. Greetings and many thanks from the United States.
In 1996 a body was found in a cork life jacket laying o it's back facing upwards to the surface on feet from the bow of the Fitz. Idk if they ever proved it to be a Fitz crewman or officer. But you need to understand " she never gives up her dead" is true.
This lack is so cold and dark at those depths that bacteria that usually bloat a body to make it float don't exist down there. So they never surface. It's a lake I respect and fear more than the ocean.
Gails are winds 35knots and up.. storms are 50 knots and up. Superior is a WITCH of a lake. She's worse than ANY ocean Gail. The Fitz was the largest laker at her time. She was 1ft shorter than the Sault lock length. You should do some research of the day and facts of what happened in that day. Gordon lightfoot wrote this song and signed all proceeds over to the families of the 29 lost men on the Fitz. A freighter was once recorded to have over 260 000 pounds per in pressure o the hull.
Some experts thing the Fitz too a large wave over her stern and when the bow was in the trough of that wave it helped drive te bow into the lake bottom and caused her to snap I two and all hands were lost without a distress call as it happened so suddenly.
Here in Canada when I was a kid (80/90's) you grew up knowing about the fate of the Fitz. It's a Canadian legend that will never be forgotten.
This song is probably top 5 greatest songs ever written.
A truly haunting ballad..
When news of Gordon's death was announced. They rang the bell 30 times in respect to him.
RIP Gordon Lightfoot
Hi Sarah, I'm so happy I found your channel! Hope you are well.
Yes I am, thanks so much 🙂
I think you said, "Soul-wrenching." The best description of this song that I've ever heard.
This song is the proof of Elton John's line, "Sad songs say so much."