Classic Lightfoot concert will benefit CHATS

May 31, 2018 · 0 Comments

By Brock Weir

A night of classic Canadian music at Theatre Aurora on Saturday, June 9 will benefit Community & Home Assistance to Seniors (CHATS).
John Stinson will bring his Classic Lightfoot Live, a Gordon Lightfoot tribute, back to Aurora with highlights from the iconic Canadian’s songbook, including If You Could Read My Mind, Canadian Railroad Trilogy, Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Early Morning Rain, and more.
Stinson, a popular fixture on the Aurora music scene, first fell in love with Lightfoot’s music as a teen while learning to play guitar. He tried to copy Lightfoot’s deceptively simple sounds and it sowed the seeds of passion.
“I loved his lyrics and unique melodies,” he says. “You’d buy his latest album, listen, and read through the lyrics as the new songs came across your 2-bit record player. During college parties I would play more than drink, and was always asked to play Canadian Railroad Trilogy. As job and family took up more time and music became a cloudy memory I’d happened to form a duo and perform in clubs and bars as often as I could and performing pop-folk-rock. Often I›d be asked to perform a Lightfoot tune, as they thought I sounded a bit like him.
“Moving to Aurora in 1988 and finding Red Shea living here, then taking lessons from him got me more and more excited about Gord’s music. Around 2000, the duo was less important, I started to re-awaken my forgotten musical taste for Lightfoot. Hearing all the great tunes again on new CDs and iPods. I created a solo act of all Lightfoot tunes and performed them live in local clubs and bars.”
The love affair continues, and now it is paying dividends for local charities.
“When I was planning 2018 over the winter, being my hometown, I wondered if there was an organization that might be interested in having the show be a fundraiser,” says Stinson. “I asked around town and CHATS came up, so I called and met Tim Jones and eventually arranged with Rhonda at CHATS to make them our beneficiary.
“My mother-in-law lived with us, now passed away, had Alzheimer’s and we used CHATS. My daughter has Muscular Dystrophy and approached them (MD) about a fundraiser. These donations need local support. I found a few local sponsors, asked Gord to donate an autographed photo, framed it, and booked Theatre Aurora.”
Tickets for the Theatre Aurora show are on sale now.
For more information, visit www.theatreaurora.com or call 905-727-3669.
Showtime is 7.30 p.m.