Tonight's Edmund Fitzgerald tribute takes on added meaning

Nov. 2—LEWISTON — The community's annual Tribute to the Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck, slated tonight at Brickyard Barbecue, has taken on a special meaning this year.

In recognition of Gordon Lightfoot, the writer of the song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" who died May 1, additional music of his will be played alongside other nautical themed works.

"That is why most people are familiar with the shipwreck, because of the song," said Thomas Asklar, an artist and self-described Edmund Fitzgerald enthusiast who puts on the tribute. "You cannot go online and research this without that Gordon Lightfoot song playing."

With help from friends, Asklar has organized an Edmund Fitzgerald tribute every November for the past 10 years. He's fascinated by the disaster, recollections of it, and the song from his youth.

The SS Edmund Fitzgerald launched in 1958 carrying iron ore across various Great Lakes ports. She sunk on Nov. 10, 1975 during a severe Lake Superior storm in Canadian waters. Lightfoot was inspired to write his song after reading about the shipwreck in Newsweek magazine.

As he does every year, Asklar will give a presentation that explains the history of the ship, the timeline of its sinking and theories on what caused its demise. Models of the boat created by John Asklar and Justin Higner will be on display.

A bell will be tolled 29 times to honor the soul of each crew member who died. While an additional toll is normally done for all sailors, this year another one will be done for Lightfoot.

The barbershop quartet French Onion Soup will perform a vocal tribute. Additional music will be performed by Jeremy Hoyle, lead singer of Strictly Hip, Bruce Wojick, Jamie Holka, and Dave Thurman. Alongside Lightfoot's music, acts will perform songs with either a nautical theme or from the year 1975.

Doug Buell, a member of French Onion Soup, will air a video interview of his perspectives on the shipwreck. He is a member of the Barbershop Harmony Society, of which Lightfoot was an honorary member.

The tribute begins at 7:10 p.m. Admission is $10. Members of the Lewiston Council on the Arts get in free of charge.