Photograph by David R. Spencer
For there was a time in this fair land when the railroad did not run
When the wild majestic mountains stood alone against the sun
Long before the white man and long before the wheel
When the green dark forest was too silent to be real…
And many are the dead men too silent to be real
Gordon Lightfoot, Canadian Railroad Trilogy, 1967
When I was a teen I crossed Canada by train, from Pacific to Atlantic. I marvelled at how big Canada was and how breath-taking the Rockies were. I doubt my youthful mind gave much, if any, thought to the construction of the railroad.
Just this past summer in Victoria, I watched a special presentation of the 2009 movie Iron Road, about the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Peter O’Toole (in one of his last roles) and Sam Neill both gave great performances. Though there were some aspects of the plot I found inauthentic (the feminism of the lead character and her romantic relationship with the white boss’s son), the movie was worth watching for its shedding of light on some little known historical events.
CPR train crossing Fraser River southbound on Cisco truss arch bridge at Siska, British Columbia. Photo by Michael Frei
The story takes place in the 1880’s, during the construction of the Fraser Canyon section of the Canadian Pacific Railway in British Columbia. It was a time of pushing an “iron road” through dense forests and rock-solid mountains. The wilderness, stunning for its beauty, was also unsparing in its brutality. To construct a railroad through this vast wilderness proved to be a feat of staggering proportions.
A labour shortage in 1880 vexed the contractor, Andrew Onderdonk, who set about the hiring of 1000s of Chinese men, many directly from China. These are the men featured in Iron Road.
Bitter Strength
Chinese labourers were called “coolies,” a disparaging term used to refer to “unskilled Asian workers.”
The Chinese word Kǔlì 苦力 means “bitter strength.” All rail workers—Asian, white or otherwise—needed to be strong to keep pace with the gruelling work. The Chinese, however, needed more strength than the rest. They needed the strength to survive unjust, racist treatment.
The Chinese were not wanted by the people of British Columbia. Prime Minister John A. MacDonald, saw the Chinese as an answer to the labour shortage and a way to save money. His blunt response was to the effect that “either Chinese workers and a railroad or no Chinese workers and no railroad.”
Bitter Reality
The Chinese were paid $.75 to $1.25 per day, approximately half of what other workers made. They had to pay for their own food, clothing, transportation to work-sites, etc. Iron Road shows clearly the kind of dangerous jobs reserved for them. Most notable involved the handling of nitroglycerine explosives, used for the blasting of tunnels. Nitroglycerine is a substance so unstable that any unsteady movement is apt to set it off prematurely. Whether by accident or illness—scurvy was a common one—many Chinese died. To top it off, the injured or sick were denied access to company medical care, a very real example of adding insult to injury.
Families of the deceased Chinese were given no compensation; nor were they even informed. Later, many of those Chinese who’d survived had no money to return home. They spent the rest of their days isolated and poor in a country that didn’t want them.
Not only that. Upon completion of the railroad, the Canadian government passed laws designed to keep their wives and children and other Chinese out. See Part II of this blog to get a sense of this dark chapter in Canadian history.
A Fitting Response
Though it’s been many years since those hard-working men lived and died, I believe it’s fitting for us to stop and consider the phenomenal sacrifice and contribution all the railroad workers made, especially the Chinese.
Take the train or even drive through this area of central British Columbia, in particular, and you’ll get a graphic idea of what I mean. Just look at the tunnels blasted through mountains and consider: It was the Chinese who did that treacherous work!
Gordon Lightfoot’s Canadian Railroad Trilogy
In 1966, the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) commissioned Gordon Lightfoot to write a song to celebrate Canada’s 1st Centennial. Fittingly, the song was first made public on January 1, 1967 by means of a special CBC broadcast. The structure of Lightfoot’s song is brilliant. Notice how its varying tempo captures both the feel of a train building up steam, slowing down, etc. and the emotional changes experienced by the workers. Indeed, what a vast land this is and how heroic the early builders of this land were! (Thank you, Gordon Lightfoot, for a beautiful beautiful song.)
Now here’s a little preview of what to expect in Part II of this blog, which pays tribute to the Chinese who helped build the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Preview to Part II
We’ll explore the validity of a thought-provoking consideration: “If not for the Chinese, would Canada as a coast-to-coast nation even exist?”
Please visit Part II and find out the historical “validity” of the above statement, made in reference to the Chinese who helped build the railway. Until then, when you cross tracks, take a moment to think about the untold sweat and sorrow of the men who built the original iron roads, wherever those iron roads may be.
A drink to the livin’ and a toast to the dead…
Gordon Lightfoot, Canadian Railroad Trilogy, 1967
EXCELLENT! Good for you for writing this story! When we were children in the 1950s, our family took holidays from the coast through the treacherously high, narrow and winding Fraser Canyon. We always stopped at Hell’s Gate to marvel at the railroad construction and hear my parent’s stories about how it was built by the Chinese. Higher up in the Rockies we pulled over to a small viewpoint and waited hours to watch a freight train pass through the spiraling tunnels at Kicking Horse Pass. In the magnificent surrounding beauty, it’s hard to comprehend the human hardship and tragedy that accompanied the construction of these amazing engineering feats.
Chuck and Linda, thank you for your wonderful response! As a child, I too recall driving through the Fraser Canyon with my parents and stopping at Hell’s Gate. (Quite the appropriate name, don’t you think?!) I was in awe at the power of the river, so amazing and frightening. I loved seeing the trains too but don’t recall if my little kid brain computed that people must have built those tunnels and tracks.
My dad used to bar fish along the Fraser in the Lower Mainland. I and my siblings used to go with him to play in the sand dunes. I will always remember our excitement with the passing trains, especially when the conductor waved back at us kids as we jumped up and down. Such fond memories. Trains were plain and simply special.
“In the magnificent surrounding beauty, it’s hard to comprehend the human hardship and tragedy that accompanied the construction of these amazing engineering feats.” Extraordinarily well put!
Thank you again for such a thoughtful response. I hope you enjoy part II once I get it completed and posted. (It’s well under way.) 🙂
I am curious about what part II will include. BC was such a remote land at the time of confederation, a place that most easterners would never see in person or perhaps never see in picture either, maybe the odd sketch.
Your quote from John A. MacDonald, “It’s either Chinese workers and a railroad or no Chinese workers and no railroad.” That was quite true. Without this exploited labour it probably would not have happened and BC may have never entered confederation.
I recently watched a 50 minute documentary on Netflix on the building of the Hoover dam, the worlds largest concrete structure which took place in the 1930s. Although the workers were domestic men and didn’t have to deal with the evils of racism they were treated as a commodity and humane working conditions were not a consideration. Workers had to build 4 diversion tunnels to reroute the Colorado river. The diesel machines they used filled the tunnels with exhaust that poisoned many of the workers. The general manager of the project earned enormous bonuses for finishing the job 2 years ahead of schedule.
Taking time to recount these moments in history makes you realize how far workers rights have come and how fortunate we are to work in buildings that are safe and built to code.
Thank you for the interesting reflections you have offered, Dan! Yes, British Columbia was a remote land that few Easterners would ever have seen. Thanks for writing about the Hoover Dam documentary you saw. What I hear is a deadly and profitable combination, deadly for manual labourers desperate for work and profitable for employers willing to sacrifice human life to get the job done fast. We are lucky to live in a developed land with workers’ rights and relatively safe work sites. I’m saddened to think of the places where this is not the case.
I’m working on part II and will look forward to your comments on it. (It’ll be very much about what you wrote in your second paragraph.) I appreciate your taking the time to write.
Thank you, Ramona, for writing this excellent and insightful blog article. Before reading it, I only knew that Chinese workers had sacrificed a lot in building railways in the United States. Little did I know that many Chinese also suffered such a horrible fate in Canada. They were absolutely the unsung heroes.
At that time and even dozens of years later, building railways was a dangerous job, always involving the loss of human lives, but when people ride in their comfortable train cars and enjoy the breathtaking views outside, how many of them actually think of the hardship that the workers went through to make it happen?
Many lives were also lost when the railway was built between Chengdu and Kunming in China in the 1960s. Having that railway was a great thing, because before that the only efficient way of traveling between the two cities was by plane, and few people could afford that. But maybe they could have had a better way to build the railway to avoid the loss of so many lives. It was said that Chairman Mao just drew a line between the two cities on the map and ordered the railway to be built. Had he thought about the lives that could be lost as a result of this huge endeavor, maybe he would not have proposed such a project. We may never know the true story behind it, but I think the Chinese government should have done something to honor these workers who lost their lives. Apparently, to this day, it still hasn’t done so.
When China helped Zambia and Tanzania to build a railway between the two countries in the 1970s, about 60 Chinese workers also lost their lives. Today, it seems that nobody really remembers and appreciates them. I hope that a movie can be made to let people know about their contribution to the development of the two African countries at that time. Thank you again, Ramona, for bringing up this topic about Chinese railway workers. They should definitely be remembered.
Xin, I did not know about the Chengdu/Kunming railway. I’ve not been on that railway, but now that I consider the geography of China, it must have been a hellish feat to accomplish! I also did not know about the Zambia/Tanzania railway. So, thank you for this information. I want to return to Tanzania. You never know, maybe I’ll make a point of taking a train to Zambia from Tanzania, now that I now know a teeny piece of its history.
It’s interesting to consider the invaluable role that Chinese labourers played in the development of other nations: Canada, the USA, Zambia and Tanzania. Those workers, as well as other migrant workers, must have suffered a great deal beyond the physical ordeal involved, considering language and cultural differences. I agree, it would be wonderful if we (as in all people) gave thought to what it must have taken to build the first railways, and a lot of other first things too, that we simply take for granted today.
Great post. I’ve always thought the story of the Chinese workers building the Canadian railway was such a sad one, a terrible injustice to those who paid a key role in the creation of Canada. (looking forward to Part 2). I am currently spending some time in the southern U.S. The Gordon Lightfoot song and the pictures in the video make me homesick for my Canadian home (although it is in the prairies, not the Rockies).
Hi Donna,
Though I am at home, I can understand what you mean about listening to this Gordon Lightfoot song and feeling homesick. For me, Lightfoot conveys the essence of being Canadian. What do I mean by that? I can only “emotionally think” the answer to that question. It could be that he and his music strike a deep chord in me that reminds me I’m Canadian, and not in any flag-waving way. Might you understand what I mean? It would be interesting to hear people from other countries share what music and performers help make up some of their identity. Will you come home when spring is well underway? Safe travels when you do.
🙂 Ramona
I completely understand the feeling you describe. I will be home when spring is well underway (I hope). We will be in British Columbia the end of April and back in Manitoba early to mid-May.
If you’re coming to Victoria, let me know, k?
Thank you for taking me back in history. The “coolies” were treated appallingly. Funnily this term is still used to describe the fairer skinned locals in Jamaica.
The bridge in the first photograph looks scarily high. How exciting that you took a train journey aged 10. I wonder how long it took for you to arrive at your destination.
Hi Phoenicia, thanks for your comment. I actually travelled across the country, from Vancouver, British Columbia to Dalhousie, New Brunswick when I was 16 and a part of a youth exchange program. I seem to recall the journey taking about 4 days. It was an exciting and wonderful experience! So, in Jamaica “fairer skinned locals” are called “coolies”? I bet there is an interesting story behind that.
I had no idea of the Chinese contribution to building the Canadian railroad. We take railroad travel for granted these days when we can get anywhere in the world on a plane within 24 hours. Back not that long ago, train travel really opened up the world for a lot of people. It is sad that the Chinese did so much and got so little respect. Sadly, that story tends to repeat itself over and over throughout history.The outsider is usually looked down upon, even if their contribution is great.
I agree, Erica, outsiders are often looked down upon, and especially so when they come from a different culture/race. People find all kind of reasons to look their noses down. A painful business.
In Canada to travel by railroad is a novelty kind of choice, it seems. Train travel provides a very different experience, which I’ve enjoyed. In China, trains are just as much in demand as planes. I’ve done three long train trips in China, from basic, so to speak, to luxury. Really great, actually. Thanks for your comment.
Unfortunately, throughout history engineering marvels were often built on the backs of workers who were underpaid, discriminated against and put in jeopardy. I guess that goes back at least to the pyramids.
Ken, I think you are right.
I had no idea about the Chinese and what the Canadian government did. Did the Canadian government ever acknowledge their wrong doing? Thanks for sharing.
It was a long time in the coming, Sabrina, but the Canadian government did finally acknowledge and officially apologize for the past discriminatory/racist policies and laws. I believe you will find distinct parallels in the USA, though I have not done the same level of research as I did with the Canadian.
Seems the Chinese have built railways for other countries for a long time. Now they are doing the same in the Middle East. And, believe it or not, they may even start in Sweden. In my country they will be paid fair wages but that’s definitely not the case in the Middle East.
I’ve learned something new from you, Catarina. Thank you!
This is such an excellent post, Ramona. I did see the Iron Road program and it was very enlightening. And thx for posting Gordon Lightfoot’s song. I always play his music when we drive thru the Rockies as it’s such fitting music.
Have you visited the Tunnels of Moosejaw, Saskatchewan? They have a tunnel devoted to the Chinese who lived in the town and built the railway. I was shocked to learn how the Chinese immigrants were treated.
Doreen, I’ve never actually visited Moose Jaw, and did not know about the Tunnels. Now that I’ve googled “Tunnels of Moose Jaw,” I’ve learned a bit more, that: in 1927, Moose Jaw was a centre for the Saskatchewan KKK; some Chinese used the dark tunnels to live and work in; the tunnels were used by organized crime (Al Capone possibly) during prohibition. Fascinating! Thank you for enlightening me.
Wonderful song! Very interesting story Ramona and I’m looking forward to Part II. For better or worse, history is filled with similar stories and, of course, people from all parts of Asia played an integral role in the sugar plantations where I live in the Islands. We’ve become so focused on political correctness these days it’s easy to condemn those in history for their bad behavior, but the reality is it was the times. One of my favorite things to do is to read old articles and journals available at the Project Gutenberg website. Many of them would shock people today but again it was the times and rather than hiding or condemning them I’d rather learn from them so that we can better understand where we’ve come from and avoid the same mistakes in the future. Thanks for the great read!
Thank you, Marquita, for your super response, and I agree with you. The reality of past times was what it was. It’s not fitting to sugarcoat it. Neither is it fitting to use our 21st Century standards to judge people of the past who lived according to their own time’s standards. Doing so does not serve us well. Indeed, let’s learn with the intention to understand, not to shore up personal biases/prejudices. We have evolved to a degree, no question of that, and we still have a long ways to go.
I take my own life as an interesting measure of how I and Canadian society have evolved. (Some other societies too, of course.) I was born in the middle-ish part of the 20th Century. It was a “fact” of life that a woman’s place was in the home. She was to have babies and look after many, if not most or all, of their immediate needs. Men generally did not, for instance, change stinky diapers or get up in the middle of the night when the baby cried. To have a child out of wedlock was, to put it mildly, “downright shameful” and people were “justified” to call the child horrible things, as though it was the child’s own “fault.” To be separated from one’s spouse was something to hide and to divorce was even worse. Homosexuality was utterly unspeakable, as was the instance of two same gendered people living together. The list goes on and on. The decade of the 1960s was a revolutionary God-send for shaking up and shaping anew societal norms.
I look way back at some of my thoughts about and behavior toward others, and I initially feel stricken with embarrassment/shame. The truth is that in terms of narrow, ignorant ways, I was no different from many others. I was a product of those times and I am extremely grateful that those times changed fast. What I have come to realize is that learning with the head and the heart is what is going to help humankind become more human. We have a lot of learning to do.
Some of your pics remind me of the area I grew up. That railbed has been changed to the Route of the Hiawatha Bike Trail on the north Idaho / western Montana border. Along the way are lots of signs that tell the story of the railroads, especially the Chinese workers. This post is a good supplement to what I learned on that bike ride.
Interesting about the bike trail using an old rail-bed. In my travels I have seen many abandoned rail lines, trestles, etc. It’s a different world today. Trains are an important means of transporting goods still, but not as important as previously for transporting people. And, trains and their whistles still have an instinctual appeal to many people. Thanks for commenting, Jeri.
I was totally aware of how the Chinese built the American railroad system, but was unfamiliar with Canada’s. This was until I saw on a Canadian TV (I live near Canada and get these channels). They use to have a history minute between shows. This particular one described the Chinese building the railroad.
Thanks for sharing this with us.
You’re welcome, William.
Excellent presentation of historical facts. Have times changed all that much? In a state of economic crises governments always need scapegoats and, the great majority of people always follow leaders who will satisfy their needs and survival. The 2nd and 3rd generations of Japanese never thought that they would be interned during the second World War. Why were people of German and Italian descent never interned? I think that the public has to be constantly reminded of historical sins. Hopefully history may one day stop repeating itself.
Thanks for your thought-provoking comments here, Ed! I am not a skeptical person by nature, yet I truly wonder if “we” (humans in general) will really learn from past injustice. It seems a tall order, maybe too tall? “Injustice” is a matter of perception. If one is not on the receiving end, it’s a little too easy to push whatever the particular injustice it is out of mind. After all, to keep it in mind and do anything about it would involve being empathetic–feeling others’ pain! I wonder how many people can truly empathize with others who may easily (conveniently) fit into racial stereotypes. Do you get my meaning here?
Also, we humans are Vulnerable (deliberate capital V) to leaders who induce fear. Fear is a great way to control people in order to aggrandize one’s (the leader’s, for example) power. Many leaders (and others too) are driven by ego; for instance, maintaining political and economic power. Stir up people’s fear, tell lies, find scapegoats (as you already mentioned) and treat others inhumanely to further one’s own aims promotes short-sighted strategies that normally decent people will be manipulated into buying into.
Maybe we are evolving as a human race. I hope so! We need to educate ourselves, clean our own hearts and minds, and help others to see and learn and care too. I really got going here! Thanks again, Ed. 🙂
It has been a couple of years since you commented on this thread. But I thought I would ask about your research. I have been working on a screen play which tells the story of the Chinese worker who built our railway through the Rocky mountains and I was wondering if you would be able to share your research with me so that I can add further details of truth into it. I too feel that more people need to know the sacrifice that the Chinese of Southern China made for Canadians. Thank you! Please feel free to email me.
Shawn, a screen play, how exciting! I am delighted to hear from you and would love to offer whatever support I can. I’ll not be able to quickly, however, as I am in the middle of a move. In case you don’t see this reply here, I’ll send you an email too.
In the meantime, you might find these resources of value: Paul Yee’s “A Superior Man” (https://www.amazon.ca/Superior-Man-Paul-Yee/dp/1551525909) and “I Am Canada: Blood and Iron: Building the Railway, Lee Heen-gwong, British Columbia, 1882” (https://www.amazon.ca/Am-Canada-Building-Heen-gwong-Columbia/dp/0545985935); Ed Ho’s “Yut Di-One Earth” (https://www.amazon.ca/Yut-Earth-H-K-Ho/dp/1773020587).
Great blog Ramona. Thanks for sharing it to our group on racism. It seems the ‘ making’ of any country can be understood so much better when we consider the lives of those peoples involved in the labour and difficult nature of building some of the infrastructures we take for granted. Even the terms we have used such as discovery, settling, taming, creating, building, civilizing etc., in our history are now shown to have been done at the huge expense of broken treaties and relationships with the First Nation people here before us.
I have taken train rides through the Fraser canyon and across Canada several times in my younger days and marvelled at the bridges and trestles. Such beauty and precision and scary heights!
Just last year and the one before it we have stopped to take the short walk in to see the Othello tunnels beside the Coquihalla Highway. I might be wrong but I do not believe there is any mention of the Chinese men who worked on it. Only the daring courageous vision of the engineer.
I think there might be curiosity and appetite for more of these kind of stories such as yours right now because of all the conversations and comments in media about racism.
Thank you, Janet. You’ve made some really valid points. Nowhere near enough recognition is paid to the non-whites who helped build this country. Apparently Chinese labour has been used all over the world with harrowing construction jobs, certainly in Africa. We need to do much better!!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge about the contributions of the Chinese in building the railroad. I wholehearted agree that the role they played has been under-valued and too few Canadians are aware of the sacrifices that were made.
Gordon Lightfoot’s Railway Trilogy is a tune I have been listening to since I was a teenager. I loved it back then. And when I listened to it, it conveyed to me a picture of Canada that confirmed what I was taught in school. But I never imagined Chinese labourers building the railways. Lightfoot speaks of people coming from all “around”, and the references he uses- living on stew, drinking bad whiskey, etc. made me think of white people of European origin. “Navvies” too, refers to English railway workers. So is it really a tribute to Chinese railway workers? I think Gordon white-washes this story. Probably out of his own ignorance or perhaps he felt Canadians would care more about the white workers and be able to identify more? hmmmmm
Years later, I now listen to this tune with more educated and critical ears. The mountains were never alone nor was the forest silent. There is no mention of Indigenous people or the fact that there were all kinds of Indigenous settlements and nations in Canada when the “white men” arrived. This song is an ode to colonization- “Built the mines, the mills, and the factories for the good of us all”. Really? For the good of some and the benefit of the settlers. Anyways, no doubt you get my meaning.
I think this song is still useful, and I do enjoy listening to the tune with its melody that evokes the movement of trains and the sense of vastness that is Canada. I have often thought about re-writing the lyrics to better reflect the historical reality- how would we tell this story now?
Have you thought this way about this song as well? Just curious….
Thanks again for sharing and I hope my comments do not offend. They are not meant as a criticism of your work and your efforts to raise awareness. Just going deeper….🙂
You are welcome, Susan, and I am most grateful for your comments. You have helped to lift some illusion from my beguiled state, so to speak. What I mean is this: When I first wrote this tribute to the Chinese rail workers over five years ago, I was well aware that Chinese workers were not even vaguely alluded to by Lightfoot in his song. Somehow I let my love of the song and of Gordon Lightfoot himself over-ride that awareness. I consequently made no comment of his “omission,” nor what you so rightly, I believe, call his “ode to colonization,” with no mention whatsoever of Indigenous peoples or of Asian labourers. I was not nearly so sensitive to cultural and white privilege matters five years ago as I am now. I suspect the same is true for Gordon Lightfoot in writing the song, which he did over 50 years ago. I really should find out his contact info and send him the link to this tribute of mine, direct him to the comments section and ask him to respond! I’ll let you know if I get a response.
Yes, how would we tell this story now? I do hope you consider rewriting the lyrics! It is so important to raise awareness, recognize our “white fragility”(Robin DiAngelo) as the “dominant race” and not be defended against going deeper into ourselves to address the racism that is tearing our world apart.
Many of us are on a learning curve and at different starting points and it’s good to know that beliefs and opinions can change with more knowledge and time for reflection. I am glad you are reaching out to Gordon Lightfoot to see if he now feels differently about that song. I hope so. As he sings- “history has no bounds”, so in my mind that means our history is something that is always being revealed to us if we have ears to listen…. May it be so.
Yes, Susan, may we keep learning from our past(s). I have had trouble finding contact info for Mr. Lightfoot. I sent a message to the organizers of his official Facebook page. Also I wrote to a “booking agent” but the email came back undeliverable. Next month Mr. Lightfoot will be 82. I know he’s experienced a lot of health challenges over the years. I will be hopeful that he receives my message and responds. It would be wonderful to have him share his views all these years after writing the song.
Hello Ramona,
You can reach Gordon at Early Morning Productions, 1 St.Clair Ave.E. #601, Toronto, Ontario M4V 2V7. He is currently working on the reschedule of his concerts that were postponed this year.
Gordon changed the lyrics in “The Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald” when he learned new findings found the hatchway did not give in due to not being latched properly as first thought in 1975. He felt that it would be truthful and also a kind thing to do for the families of the men who were in charge of the hatchways. He is still in touch with many of the families and attends the Nov. 10 bell ringing in the Shipwreck Museum in Whitefish Bay, Michigan when he can. He sings the song with new lyrics not mentioning the hatchway but can’t change the recordings.
His kindness also has him sing different lyrics in “If You Could Read My Mind” after speaking with his oldest daughter when she explained that it was both him and her mother who were responsible for the marriage breakup. It is recorded as: And if you read between the lines you’ll know that I’m just trying to understand the feelings that you lack. He now sings feelings that WE lack. He can’t change the recordings.
He has in concert mentioned that the Chinese were a huge part of the building of the Canadian railway. He wrote that song in late 1966 to be a song of Canada becoming a nation brought together with the railway to be a part of our 100 year anniversary in 1967. While many Chinese died in the process there were also other nationalities and some Canadians who died as well. Not mentioning any of the nationalities kept the song out of the political realm it could fall into. I know my daughter was taught about the railway in her grade 7 history class around 1998 and it included the nationalities and deaths etc. and the text had the words to CRT. I sent her to school with a CD so the class could listen and feel the movement and power of the train as it travelled across the country. It is a remarkably well written song as well as a fine piece of history. As well, the words let you see the geography and majesty of this country from shore to shore. I don’t believe he left out anything in a malicious way.
Gordon learned about the railway the same way many of us did – books that didn’t detail the truths (and those books he read in school were in the 50’s!). It’s just as he did with “The Wreck …” Yes, we could write a new song in 2021 and be more aware of the things left out of CRT and include them. Be more sensitive, less obtuse. But it was written all those years ago and all these years later it has sparked new conversation and discovery and a realization that things done long before our new enlightened times can’t be changed and we are all learning as we go.
And yes, we have ears to listen and hopefully learn. He is a contemplative man now at his age of almost 82, looking back in his personal life and his career and facing the regrets he has head on. CBC GEM streaming online has the documentary, IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND that was released in Spring 2019.
Regards, Char
Char, I am ever so grateful for your response. I saw the documentary “If You Could Read My Mind” last year. (Can be watched online now.) I loved it! My positive regard for Mr. Lightfoot shot way up. In that film, he revealed himself a much wiser, more tender, vastly more responsible soul than the entertainer I saw live at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver a number of decades ago (during an obviously very painful time in his personal life).
“Not mentioning any of the nationalities kept the song out of the political realm it could fall into.” Indeed, I see your point. And yes, there was no “malicious” omission. “…all these years later it [the song] has sparked new conversation and discovery and a realization that things done long before our new enlightened times can’t be changed and we are all learning as we go.” The song is a beautiful tribute to the sacrifice of hard working (and exploited) men from all over. It’s fine by me if the lyrics–amazing and heartfelt–stay the way they are. I can well believe that Mr. Lightfoot pays tribute in concert to specific groups not mentioned in his lyrics. I’m glad.
I just want to mention that I have been a fan of Gordon Lightfoot since I was a child, and that goes back to his debut album a very long time ago. I could wax eloquently for probably hours on the effect his voice and poetically exquisite lyrics have had on my life. Maybe sounds weird, but if I was asked what defines me as a Canadian, I’d have to say something about being from the land that produced the likes of Mr. Gordon Lightfoot. He’s been that special. Again, thank you, Char, for your thoughtful reply. Best regards to you and to Mr. Lightfoot, and his band, etc.
HI,
Gordon doesn’t get on any computers or cell phones. Not even to look at his Official Facebook page. He does hear about some things that are going on however. lol – I saw your post there as Editor and member of his Social Media Team.
I too have been a lifelong fan and have been talking about our legend all my life and online since 1999 on a Newsgroup and website with a discussion board that I still moderate. Gordon became aware of me through this work and the sharing of my memorabilia with fans all over the world. “Net People” as he called us…lol. He has been very kind and generous with me, calling, doing phone chats/interviews, singing a fave song that is never done but only once in a while when he knows I am in attendance. I was very lucky to be invited to the premieres of the documentary and attend a private party afterwards. I think my concert attendance along with some other special events since 1973 is around 130 now, mostly at The Church of Gord/Massey Hall. I have travelled and met up with many of the Net People who are now old friends to see him in the U.S. and parts of Canada as well. He is always welcoming, as are the band members and their families. In 2001 I had 70 fans from all over at my place for a pre-concert barbeque (or CHarbeque as they called it…lol) and at a pre-concert show the day before I invited Gordon…lol…He was amazed and concerned that I was a bit crazy for doing so but over the years he has come to know a lot of us and knows all is well. lol…
I was thinking about the last lines of CRT – “And many are the dead men……too silent to be real.” There is a long pause between those lines meant to make us realize the railway came with a cost and those men cannot speak for themselves so this song does. And then it’s over. Those last words resonate and pay homage to the navvies who worked and the many who died building the railway and this country. It is a powerful song to listen to but even more-so when sitting in a silent theatre amongst people who are held captive with the story. He hasn’t sung it in quite a while due to the length and how it affects his breathing at his age and with his health concerns. It is a very complex song to play and sing.
I try to video record a lot of the concerts I go to and have a YouTube channel with many of them -not from long ago unfortunately but from 2005 or so. I take lots of photos as well…lol. The channel is ‘lightfootfan’ if you want to check it out. He last called me with a surprise call in April and I was glad to hear he was doing well at home but anxious to get back on tour. He plans on 4 nights in November 2021 to be back at ”his” place and I will be there.
I too note him as a part of what it means to be Canadian so much so that I have a small red maple leaf tattoo on the inside of my left arm between my wrist and elbow that I got to celebrate being Canadian and also partly inspired by my love for Lightfoot. Gordon said it was very classy.. I got it for my 53rd birthday 12 years ago..in Hamburg, NY with a fellow fan who lives there. We saw Gordon the next night in Buffalo…lol. In 2005 The Toronto Sun did an article about my love for his music and in 2014 The Toronto Star did one as well and a photo of Gordon and I ended up on the front page – which he got a great kick out of! I think you can GOOGLE search them. I sit in my den that friends call my Lightfoot Room and still can’t believe that over 50 years later I am so blessed not only by having his music in my life but also by actually being a part of his life. Life is funny that way.
If you don’t already have it, grab a copy of his latest album – SOLO…just Gordon and his guitar, mostly recorded 20 years ago as demos. He found them a couple of years ago, had them polished up and it is a lovely compilation with some very sweet tunes, one being “Oh So Sweet”. I told him it was a new legacy song. Songs were written as his marriage was falling apart but he has one on there for his new wife. His friend the late John Prine has a legacy song on his last album – I Remember Everything that is beautiful. John did a house concert at George Stroumboulopoulos’ place in late 2018 with Gordon in attendance with his wife and youngest daughter. John cites Gordon as his songwriting hero. They met back in the 60’s at The Riverboat and Mariposa. Video of that night is online-House of Strombo concerts on YouTube) Gordon was looking forward to seeing John at the 60th anniversary Mariposa concert this past July but we lost him to Covid earlier this year. Another songwriting genius who looked to the best as did many, many others over the last 50+ years. We are lucky indeed to have the best still with us and to have the music forever.
Stay safe out there!
Char
Thank you, Char, for your newsy message about Gordon Lightfoot. Since he is not one of us “Net People,” I’ll not fuss about hearing any comments from him about his CRT song. Oh my, I can well imagine what you describe about the long pause in the last line of the song: “And many are the dead men……too silent to be real.” The long pause (silence) is very dramatic as a way of paying homage to the many who sacrificed much (many, their lives). Indeed: “a powerful song to listen to but even more-so when sitting in a silent theatre amongst people who are held captive with the story.”
Thanks also for all the leads readers may like to follow up on. May our dear “troubadour” friend stay healthy and engaged in what makes his soul sing for many years to come!