Classic Lightfoot Live bringing legendary songs to #ForParisCentre stage this month

Paris Community Church is home to the #ForParisCentre, located at 164 Grand River St N, in Paris. The architectural beauty was built in 1893 and features superb acoustics, a new 48 channel sound board and a high-level sound and lighting system making it a fantastic location for live concerts. 

Casandra Turnbull

Managing Editor

Fans of Canadian music will have a chance to relive the timeless songs of Gordon Lightfoot later this month when Classic Lightfoot Live brings its acclaimed tribute performance to Paris.

The theatre-style concert, set for March 28 at #ForParisCentre, celebrates the music and storytelling of one of Canada’s most influential songwriters. Audiences can expect to hear many of Lightfoot’s best-known classics, including Rainy Day People, If You Could Read My Mind and The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, along with lesser-known tracks from across his more than 20 studio albums. 

Led by vocalist John Stinson, the show has been touring Ontario theatres for more than a decade, recreating the sound and spirit of Lightfoot’s recordings with remarkable accuracy. Stinson, a Toronto native who has been performing for more than 30 years, developed a deeper appreciation for Lightfoot’s music after befriending two of the singer’s longtime guitarists — Red Shea and Terry Clements — who helped shape the distinctive sound heard on many of Lightfoot’s recordings. 

The band itself has unusually close ties to the Lightfoot legacy.

Bass player Steve Eyers is Lightfoot’s nephew, the son of Gordon’s sister Beverly, while the show’s music director, Bob Doidge, produced several of Lightfoot’s later albums at Hamilton’s Grant Avenue Studio. 

Those family and professional connections give the performance an authenticity that sets it apart from many tribute shows.

For Paris resident Jeff Maue, those connections are also deeply personal.

Maue helped orchestrate the band’s upcoming stop in Paris and shares a family link to the legendary songwriter. His former mother-in-law, Beverly Eyers, was Gordon Lightfoot’s sister and for a time managed his career during the 1970s.

Despite Lightfoot’s worldwide fame, Maue said the man he encountered at family gatherings was far removed from the public spotlight.

“At family gatherings, which were usually for holidays and birthdays at Gord’s sister Bev’s house in Barrie, he was simply ‘Uncle Gord,’” Maue said. “He was always kind and polite and very welcoming to me and to my son Adam when he was born.” 

Although Lightfoot’s songs are now woven into the fabric of Canadian music history, Maue admits he wasn’t originally one of the singer’s biggest fans.

“The funny thing is when I first met his niece Jane, who I later married, I wasn’t really a Lightfoot fan,” he said. “I was more into rock, blues and country, but of course I knew who he was.” 

It wasn’t until Maue began attending concerts that the magnitude of Lightfoot’s impact became clear.

“His Massey Hall concerts are legendary, and the fan support I witnessed was remarkable,” he said. “Even when we saw him in Sudbury the whole building was buzzing, spiritual almost.” 

Over the years Maue also gained glimpses of the music legend’s world behind the scenes, visiting Lightfoot’s Tudor-style home in Toronto’s Rosedale neighbourhood and hearing stories about gatherings that once included artists such as Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan and actor Jack Nicholson.

Seeing the piano and guitars where many of the iconic songs were written left a lasting impression.

“All the behind the scenes stuff was quite insightful for me,” he said. “So yeah, I became a fan.”

Maue also brings his own musical background to that appreciation. A songwriter and longtime musician, he spent years writing songs and radio jingles in Toronto and remains a member of the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN). His career later expanded into marketing, but music remained a constant, including performing and playing alongside Lightfoot’s nephew, Steve Eyers.

“I am very proud of Steve and this band,” Maue said. “With regards to Gord’s songs, he has been playing them since he was a kid and can now play them blindfolded. It’s in him.” 

Maue and his son saw the group perform last fall at London’s historic Aeolian Theatre and were impressed with how faithfully the musicians captured Lightfoot’s sound.

“They hit every note and John Stinson sounds very much like Gord,” he said. “These are lifelong professional musicians who know the music inside and out.” 

Perhaps most significant, the band performed with Lightfoot’s blessing, which something Maue says speaks volumes.

“Gord was very detailed and meticulous about every aspect of production and performance,” he said. “To have his blessing does not get any better.” 

For Maue, bringing the show to Paris was also about showcasing a community he has come to love.

“I’ve been living here and in the surrounding area for over 25 years and it’s one of the greatest communities I’ve ever been part of,” he said. “The support for arts, sports and people in need is really impressive.”

He believes #ForParisCentre is the perfect venue for a concert celebrating one of Canada’s most iconic musicians and is a hidden gem in the community that deserves the kind of attention the Classic Lightfoot Live band will bring to the stage. 

“I’m more than happy to have recommended this venue to the band and I hope it becomes an annual event,” Maue said. “Hopefully it brings people together and provides a little escapism from this crazy world.” 

The concert runs 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday, March 28, with tickets available online through the Classic Lightfoot Live website.