I don’t often mark the passing of notables as I write in my Travel Tuesday journal but upon Gordon Lightfoot’s passing on May 1, I learned that Highway 74, a route we often drove to a couple of our favorite places in Arizona, is the same Carefree Highway that Mr. Lightfoot made famous in his song.

Picking up the pieces of my sweet shattered dream
I wonder how the old folks are tonight?
Her name was Ann
And I’ll be damned if I recall her face
She left me not knowing what to do

For some reason, I never made the connection in my mind that the highway name was Mr. Lightfoot’s inspiration. Coincidentally, “Carefree Highway” was the second single released from his 1974 album, Sundown. It peaked at No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent one week at No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart in October 1974.

Carefree highway
Let me slip away on you
Carefree highway
You’ve seen better days
The morning after blues
From my head down to my shoes
Carefree highway
Let me slip away, slip away on you

In 2021, on our most recent visit to Lake Pleasant Regional Park, we met friends and family there to ride the back roads around Lake Pleasant in a Can Am. The photos accompanying this post are mostly from this journey near the Carefree Highway. Other photos are from previous hikes on trails that meander through the park.

Turning back the pages to the times I love best
I wonder if she’ll ever do the same?
Now the thing that I call living
Is just being satisfied
With knowing I got no one left to blame

The song “Carefree Highway” is a wistful ballad that reflects on the past and the memories that we carry with us. It is often interpreted as a reflection on the ups and downs of a romantic relationship. The Carefree Highway serves as a symbol of the freedom and independence that the singer longs for.

Carefree highway
I’ve got to see you my old flame
Carefree highway
You’ve seen better days
The morning after blues
From my head down to my shoes
Carefree highway
Let me slip away, slip away on you

I have my own Gordon Lightfoot story in my hometown of Fargo, North Dakota. One afternoon we were having a late lunch at a nearby McDonald’s restaurant. We were just about finished when a middle-aged woman approached Lynn and me at our table. She asked, “Do you know who Gordon Lightfoot is?”

When I responded in the affirmative, she asked if we knew that Gordon Lightfoot was performing in a Fargo venue that evening. We were aware of it but hadn’t really considered whether or not to go to the concert. She went on, “Our parents were planning to attend this evening, but they are going to have to go home earlier than planned. They have two tickets they aren’t going to be able to use. If you’d like them, they are yours, no charge.”

Searching through the fragments
Of my dream shattered sleep
I wonder if the years have closed her mind?
I guess it must be wanderlust or trying to get free
From the good old faithful feeling we once knew

It didn’t take me long to accept the tickets graciously and that evening we spent the time listening to Gordon Lightfoot singing renditions of his many hits including “Carefree Highway.”

Carefree highway
Let me slip away on you
Carefree highway
You’ve seen the better days
The morning after blues
From my head down to my shoes
Carefree highway
Let me slip away, slip away on you
Let me slip away on you

The inspiration for this Travel Tuesday journal entry came from a Facebook post published by the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT). The post notes Mr. Lightfoot’s passing with a link to an article on the ADOT blog here. It links the song to the highway which in truth is only a section of Arizona Highway 74, the easternmost stretch that terminates in the town of Carefree.

Carefree highway
I’ve got to see you my old flame
Carefree highway
You’ve seen better days
The morning after blues
From my head down to my shoes
Carefree highway
Let me slip away, slip away on you

Lyrics courtesy of a Gordon Lightfoot fan site here.

For those who doubt the relationship between the song and the highway, in the moments before he begins singing “Carefree Highway”, he mentions his trip to Phoenix and the reminder he wrote as they passed the Carefree Highway signs on I-17 and how he almost left the note in the rental car.

The connection between the Carefree Highway in Arizona and the Gordon Lightfoot song of the same name has made the road a popular destination for music lovers and road trip enthusiasts alike. Many people who visit the area make a point of driving along the Carefree Highway and listening to the song as they go.

Rest in peace, Mr. Lightfoot.

John Steiner