Chance Meeting
Friday May 12th, 2023 with Heavy Ben
Coversions VIII: Gordon Lightfoot, Wayfaring Stranger, Ed Sheeran, and chord ownership
Coversions VIII: covers | versions | edits | dubs | remixes
Chance meeting on a tall oak tree of a robin and a stranger
2 performances by Gordon Lightfoot of his tune "The Way I Feel"
10 versions of others performing "The Way I Feel"
4 versions of "Wayfaring Stranger"
Should Gord get writing credit for "The Way I Feel" when it is clearly indebted to "Wayfaring Stranger" (been around for 100 years)?
Should Ed Sheeran and others continue to get sued for recording certain chord progressions?
Is Lightfoot's estate cashing cheques for a tune he did not (fully) write?
Does it matter?
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| Gordon Lightfoot's original recording of "The Way I Feel" was made in December 1964, yet not released until January 1966. It features Bill Lee (Spike's father) on bass.
In the interim, Lightfoot's reputation as a songwriter was growing, and the recording by The Womenfolk was the first to be released. |
| The Way I Feel Gordon Lightfoot - Lightfoot - United Artists - 1966 
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| The Way I Feel The Secretaries [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - 7" - Hot Plains - 2014
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| The Way I Feel Billy Lee Riley [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - In Action!!! - GNP Crescendo - 1966
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| The Way I Feel The Womenfolk [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - 7" - RCA Victor - 1965
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| The Way I Feel Cowboy Junkies [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - Songs Of The Recollection - Proper Records - 2022
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| The Way I Feel Neil Chotem [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - Plays The Songs Of Gordon Lightfoot - Apex - 1969
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| "Wayfaring Stranger" is an American spiritual folk song with a long and complex history, going back more than a century before Lightfoot's "The Way I Feel". Lyrics aside, the music and melody sound very similar. Some music critics (not aware of Lightfoot's tune) thought that a band was performing "Wayfaring Stranger" when they were covering "The Way I Feel".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wayfaring_Stranger_(song) Meanwhile, English singer and songwriter Ed Sheeran has been accused of stealing his song “Thinking Out Loud” from Marvin Gaye’s 1973 classic “Let’s Get It On,” by the wife and descendants of that song’s co-writer, Ed Townsend. The supposed evidence? A similar but not identical chord progression used by both songs as a principal motif. https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/05/02/ed-sheeran-marvin-gaye-lawsuit-chord-progression-copyright/ Ed Sheeran was cleared of the charge of copyright infringement. Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams had to pay up. What a chance meeting that we have a recording of Ed Sheeran performing "Wayfaring Stranger". |
| Wayfaring Stranger Ed Sheeran - One Take EP - Ed Sheeran - 2011 |
| Wayfaring Stranger Emmylou Harris - Roses In The Snow - Warner Bros. - 1980 |
| Wayfaring Stranger Burl Ives - The Wayfaring Stranger - Columbia - 1944 |
| Wayfaring Stranger Jack White - Cold Mountain OST - Miramax, Sony Music Soundtrax - 2003 |
| The Way I Feel The Modern Grass [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - City Ghosts - Modern Grass - 2014
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| The Way I Feel Julie Felix [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - Changes - Fontana - 1966
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| The Way I Feel Fotheringay [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - Fotheringay - Island - 1970
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| The Unintended are a paradox: an "unknown super group" that consisted of Rick White (Eric's Trip & Elevator), The Sadies (Dallas Good, Travis Good, Sean Dean, & Mike Belitsky), and Greg Keelor (Blue Rodeo). Their name is a play on a lyric referring to a band called The Intended in Gordon Lightfoot's "Go-Go Round" from his album "The Way I Feel". |
| The Way I Feel The Unintended [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - Play Lightfoot - Blue Fog - 2005
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| Phil Upchurch's masterful performance is my favourite of all versions of "The Way I Feel".
For more on Charles Stepney, check out the May 17 episode of In A Mellow Tone. https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/94/60569.html We close with Lightfooot's second recording of the tune, this time with a full band in a dark and psychedelic mood. |
| The Way I Feel Phil Upchurch (arr. Charles Stepney) [orig. Gordon Lightfoot] - The Way I Feel - Cadet - 1969
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| The Way I Feel Gordon Lightfoot - The Way I Feel - United Artists - 1967
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3:31 PM, May 12th, 2023