Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald - Gordon Lightfoot Song Lyrics

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(Read about the 2010 lyric change below).

SS Edmund Fitzgerald, courtesy NOAA

SS Edmund Fitzgerald
Courtesy NOAA
 

"According to a legend of the Chippewa tribe, the lake they once called Gitche Gumee 'never gives up her dead.'" -- Great Lakes: The Cruelest Month, James R. Gaines with Jon Lowell in Detroit, ©1975 Newsweek Magazine

Thus began the Newsweek article in the issue of November 24, 1975. That lead and the news magazine's dry story inspired Gordon Lightfoot to write one of the greatest "story songs" ever.

On November 10, 1975, an ore carrier - the Edmund Fitzgerald - sank in Lake Superior during a November storm, taking the lives of all 29 crew members. Later that month, Gordon Lightfoot, inspired by that article in Newsweek Magazine, wrote what is probably his most famous song: Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald.

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Sheet Music
Gordon Lightfoot: Gord's Gold - sheet music
Gordon Lightfoot: Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald Performed by Gordon Lightfoot. Single for voice, piano and guitar chords. C Major. 8 pages. Published by Alfred Publishing. (AP.VS0736)
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Lightfoot wrote the song as a tribute to the ship, the sea, and the men who lost their lives that night. When asked recently what he thought his most significant contribution to music was, he said it was this song, which he often refers to as "The Wreck". In spite of its unlikely subject matter, the song climbed to #2 on the Billboard pop charts and remains one the most stirring topical ballads ever written, and a highlight of every Lightfoot concert. See the song lyrics below.

The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald

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This is a new book about the Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck, just released on October 7, 2025. It is different from the other books because it goes through a lot of history: history of shipping in the Great Lakes area; history of shipbuilding; history of industry in the big industrial cities in the Great Lakes area; and yes, the history of shipwrecks there. The author interviewd family members of the crew, getting history and insights expressed by the crew member to family members. Yes, it's second hand, but some of the observations are very interesting.

I am still reading the book and will write more when I finish and have time to review it properly, but I definitely recommend it.

I am not selling it directly, partly because it is more expensive than most items I sell, and I am not sure how much interest there might be, but I have it in my store with a bit more information and links to buy it from Amazon. Visit My store


The Edmund Fitzgerald Investigations DVD & Book

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This documentary is the most comprehensive video about the investigations into the cause of the Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck. Originally broadcast on PBS in a 30 minutes version, this is an updated one hour version and includes interviews not available elsewhere. Ric Mixter, who produced both versions, narrated this newer version and visited the wreck site himself. (Region 1/NTSC)

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And now there is a book too, released in late 2022 and called Tattletale Sounds: The Edmund Fitzgerald Investigations. It has new information, learned after the DVD release.

Buy Tattletale Sounds: The Edmund Fitzgerald Investigations from Val
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51st Anniversary on November 10th, 2026



Mighty Fitz
Michael Schumacher

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2012 paperback

Novermber 10th, 2026 is the 51st anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Every year, on November 10th and the days around it, there are commemorative services and other programs to remember the ship and the men who lost their lives. Some events are both in-person and streamed live. Check out the schedule of events listed below and mark your calendars.


Find the song on:


 

Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald - Lyric Changes

In 2010, Lightfoot changed one line in the lyrics of the song as a result of recent findings that it was waves and not crew error that lead to the shipwreck. He always felt bad that the line might have implied that the crew was at fault, and he was very happy that new evidence absolved them.

The line changed, and the new version, are:

Original version:
At seven PM, a main hatchway caved in; he said,
**2010 lyric change:
At seven PM, it grew dark, it was then he said,

See the lyric change in context below.

Several years later, he also changed the word "musty" to "rustic" in the final verse, in deference to the church referenced, which is actually named Mariners' Church.

 
 

Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald

Music and lyrics ©1976 by Gordon Lightfoot


The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down 
of the big lake they called "Gitche Gumee."
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
when the skies of November turn gloomy.
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty,
that good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
when the "Gales of November" came early. 

The ship was the pride of the American side
coming back from some mill in Wisconsin.
As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most
with a crew and good captain well seasoned,
concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
when they left fully loaded for Cleveland.
And later that night when the ship's bell rang,
could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?

The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
and a wave broke over the railing.
And ev'ry man knew, as the captain did too
'twas the witch of November come stealin'.
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
when the Gales of November came slashin'.
When afternoon came it was freezin' rain
in the face of a hurricane west wind.

When suppertime came the old cook came on deck
Sayin' "Fellas, it's too rough t'feed ya."
At seven P.M. a main hatchway caved in; he said,
(**2010 lyric change: At 7 p.m., it grew dark, it was then he said,)
"Fellas, it's bin good t'know ya!"
The captain wired in he had water comin' in
and the good ship and crew was in peril.
And later that night when his lights went outta sight
came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

Does any one know where the love of God goes
when the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
if they'd put fifteen more miles behind 'er.
They might have split up or they might have capsized;
they may have broke deep and took water.
And all that remains is the faces and the names
of the wives and the sons and the daughters.

Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
in the rooms of her ice-water mansion.
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams;
the islands and bays are for sportsmen.
And farther below Lake Ontario
takes in what Lake Erie can send her,
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
with the Gales of November remembered.

In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed,
(**Lyric change: "musty" changed to "rustic")
in the "Maritime Sailors' Cathedral."
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
for each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
of the big lake they call "Gitche Gumee."
"Superior," they said, "never gives up her dead
when the gales of November come early!"

Song: Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald





 

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