Summer Side of Life

Untitled

Summer Side of Life is Canadian singer Gordon Lightfoot's seventh album. It was released in 1971 on the Reprise Records Label. The album marked a radical departure from the sound Lightfoot had established on Sit Down Young Stranger in its use of drums and electronic instrumentation, to which he would later return in the second half of the decade. “Redwood Hill” contains elements of bluegrass music.

The album reached #38 on the pop chart. "Summer Side of Life" peaked at #98 on the pop singles chart while "Talking in Your Sleep" peaked at #64. The singles reached #21 and #19 respectively in Canada.

The track "Cotton Jenny" would later be covered by Anne Murray, for whom it would provide a top-twenty single on the U.S. country singles chart. The song "Love and Maple Syrup" was covered by Taylor Mitchell in 2009. She lost her life in a coyote assault later that year.

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	link
Rolling Stone	(not rated) link

Track listing

All compositions by Gordon Lightfoot.

Side 1

1. "10 Degrees and Getting Colder" – 2:43
2. "Miguel" – 4:12
3. "Go My Way" – 2:13
4. "Summer Side of Life" – 4:05
5. "Cotton Jenny" – 3:26
6. "Talking in Your Sleep" – 2:56

Side 2

1. "Nous Vivons Ensemble" – 3:45
2. "Same Old Loverman" – 3:21
3. "Redwood Hill" – 2:48
4. "Love and Maple Syrup" – 3:13
5. "Cabaret" – 5:49

Personnel

• Gordon Lightfoot - guitar, piano, vocals
• Red Shea - guitar
• Jerry Shook - guitar
• Chip Young - guitar
• Rick Haynes - bass guitar
• Roy M. "Junior" Huskey - acoustic bass
• James Rolleston - bass guitar
• Henry Strzelecki - bass guitar
• Kenneth A. Buttrey - drums
• Buddy Harman - drums
• Jim Isbell - drums
• David Brown - percussion
• Farrel Morris - percussion
• Vassar Clements - violin
• Charlie McCoy - harmonica
• Hargus "Pig" Robbins - piano
• The Jordanaires (Gordon Stoker, Neal Matthews, Hoyt Hawkins, Ray Walker)- background vocals

External links

• Album lyrics and chords