Gordon Lightfoot's ninth album [Old Dan's Records] … is more and better of same: middle-of-the-road, homogenized folk rock that is sumptuously pleasant, but lacking the indelible stamp of emotional veracity that would make it irresistible. Lightfoot is certainly an important talent, whose prolific output of good songs is continuously impressive. Yet the overall impression he conveys is one of glibness….

Lightfoot clearly wants to be all things to all people—rustic folkie, cosmopolite, social commentator, and above all, the apostle of romantic love. Despite the remarkable facility and fine craftsmanship of his writing, these roles tend to overlap, resulting in work that too often is stylistically bland….

[Old Dan's Records] contains ten songs, all Lightfoot originals that display his characteristic lyrical competence and strong melodic sense.

Stephen Holden, in his review of "Old Dan's Records," in Rolling Stone (by Straight Arrow Publishers, Inc. © 1973; all rights reserved; reprinted by permission...