The Lightfoot Band @ The Opera House

Many music-loving hearts broke when Gordon Lightfoot died unexpectedly in May of 2023. A singer-songwriter of extraordinary talent, his songs were the soundtrack of his fans’ lives for over 60 years. Bereft but believing that his music needed to live on, his bandmates rallied in their grief to reconstitute as The Lightfoot Band and set about establishing themselves as his legacy. The band will play the Opera House at Boothbay Harbor on Thursday, July 23, at 7:30 pm.

Bandmate Rick Haynes says of Lightfoot, “He was a great leader and a great musician and a great songwriter. And it was a tragic loss. We were all very shocked when he passed and we were just sort of speechless for a few weeks. Then we started calling each other like ‘What are you going to do now man?’. We decided to have a meeting at a coffee shop and out of that came that songs of Gordon Lightfoot are too important to just leave and let lie and that we, collectively, between Mike (Heffernan) the keyboard player, Barry (Keane) on the drums and percussion, and myself–we’re over 150 years of service with Gordon.” So the group hit the road, along with lead guitarist Carter Lancaster, and haven’t looked back.

Finding a vocalist represented a challenge; it couldn’t be someone imitating Lightfoot, but rather channeling his essence. A devoted fan of the original band proved to be the answer. Of Andy Mauck, Haynes says, “He became a fan of ours in the 70s when we were playing around Ohio at the big outdoor venues like Blossom Music Center and he would show up after shows so we started to recognize him and we befriended him.” After considering a rotating roster of vocalists, Haynes convinced the band to consider Mauck: “I told the guys, listen you all know Andy, he’s part of our culture, he’s been around almost as long as we have. It’s turned out to be really, really positive, even for fans that originally might have said ‘I don’t want to see the band without Gordon’.”

Widely considered one of Canada’s greatest songwriters, Gordon Lightfoot had numerous gold and platinum albums,and his songs have been covered by many of the world’s most renowned musical artists. Lightfoot’s biographer Nicholas Jennings wrote, “His name is synonymous with timeless songs about trains and shipwrecks, rivers and highways, lovers and loneliness.”  Bob Dylan said, “I can’t think of any Gordon Lightfoot song I don’t like. Every time I hear a song of his, it’s like I wish it would last forever.”

The Lightfoot Band has made this iteration its own. One of the band’s favorite things to do is chat with audience members after the show.
Haynes says, “You know, a lot of bands are charging huge amounts of money for coming to their sound check, coming for meet and greet passes and all that stuff. We don’t do that. If you have a ticket to the show you have an immediate meet and greet backstage pass and we like to come out and talk to the folks who want to stick around after the show–that’s what we do.” Anyone who has been to a show at the Opera House knows how well that represents the spirit of the venue and its commitment to being a place of community and welcome.

This show is sponsored by the Abbe family, who say “We are motivated by and continue to support the Boothbay Harbor Opera House to ensure that the community has access to arts and culture. Our love and connection to Blues music lead us to choose the Lightfoot Band, one of the season’s best!”

Advance discounted tickets are available now, from the box office at 86 Townsend Avenue, Boothbay Harbor or by calling 207-633-5159. Advance tickets are $35. The box office is open Wednesday-Friday from 10-2.
Regular tickets are $40, on the day of the concert and online at boothbayoperahouse.com.  Doors for seating open at 7pm and the music kicks on at 7:30pm. This concert is appropriate for all ages. The bar will have cold drinks for sale, cash only.