BRUCE COCKBURN

Born: Ottawa, Ontario, 27 May 1945

Genre: Folk

Best-selling album since 1990: The Charity of Night (1997)

Canadian singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn is a many-textured musical journeyman whose iconic popularity in Canada began with his first album in 1970 and has grown in the United States and the rest of the world with his twenty-five subsequent album releases. His music has encompassed many genres at various junctures in his career and his lyrics often reflect a passion for political and environmental issues. Cockburn has taken his music all over the world and has a keen interest in the music and cultures of Third World nations. He is credited with being a brilliant guitarist.

Cockburn (pronounced Coe'-Bern) grew up on a farm near Ottawa, and took an early interest in the guitar. He played in high school groups and later sojourned to Europe where he performed as a street musician in Paris. He returned from Europe and attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston in 1964 to pursue a formal musical education. He stayed there nearly three years but grew impatient and left before graduating. (In 1997 Berklee College awarded Cockburn with an honorary degree.)

After his first release, Bruce Cockburn (1970), Cockburn gained immediate attention in his home country after being named Folk Singer of the Year at the 1971 Juno Awards (Canada's equivalent to the Grammy Awards). However, due to a marketing mix-up, the album was barely released elsewhere. He continued through the 1970s gaining a reputation as an earnest and outspoken folksinger. Cockburn's persona was difficult to nail down—a trait that would continue throughout his career—as he mixed progressive social views with his newfound Christianity. Most of his albums in the later 1970s reflect his Christian beliefs. In the 1980s he changed to a more electric sound, adding varieties of rock to his music, which was growing increasingly political and angry. He was particularly concerned with matters in Central America.

Although Cockburn remains an unwavering voice on issues regarding land mines, animal rights, and environmental concerns, the 1990s marked a return to music that was more reflective. His first album of the decade, Nothing but a Burning Light (1991), is tinged with blues and serves as a reminder of Cockburn's tremendous guitar skills. Additionally, his glass-clear chameleon voice adjusts to any style that he plays and expressively highlights his vivid lyrics. His other releases within the decade, Dart to the Heart (1994), The Charity of the Night (1997), and Breakfast in New Orleans, Dinner in Timbuktu (1999), continue in a similar vein.

Cockburn has won several Juno Awards, including Best Album for Breakfast in New Orleans, Dinner in Timbuktu. In 2000 he was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. He released a new studio album, You've Never Seen Everything (2003), and Cockburn continues exchanging and exploring musical ideas with musicians in third world regions such as Nepal, Mozambique, and Central America.

Many critics have wondered why Cockburn, an agile songwriter and a monumentally talented performer, has not become more successful commercially. Some reason that his left-wing politics in combination with his devout Christianity confuse listeners; others feel that he has been too wide-ranging in his musical styles. In the meantime, Cockburn is well respected within the industry and he continues to provide his loyal fan base with progressive, thought-provoking material.

SELECTIVE DISCOGRAPHY:

Bruce Cockburn (Epic, 1970); High Winds, White Sky (True North, 1971); Night Vision (True North, 1973); Salt, Sun & Time (True North, 1974); Joy Will Find a Way (True North, 1975); Circles in the Stream (True North, 1977); Dancing in the Dragon's Jaws (Millennium, 1979); Humans (Millennium, 1980); Mummy Dust (True North, 1981); Inner City Front (Millennium, 1981); The Trouble with Normal (Gold Castle, 1983); Stealing Fire (Gold Mountain, 1984); Waiting for a Miracle (Gold Mountain, 1987); Nothing but a Burning Light (Sony, 1991); Dart to the Heart (Sony, 1994); The Charity of Night (Rykodisc, 1997); Breakfast in New Orleans, Dinner in Timbuktu (Rykodisc, 1999); You've Never Seen Everything (Rounder, 2003).

donald lowe