For 50 years, Canadian music legend Bruce Cockburn has been capturing the essence of human experience through his songs, while relentlessly striving to make the world a better place.
On March 16, he will share his music and his journey with Kootenay music lovers at The Bailey Theatre in Trail.
As one of Canada’s most distinguished artists, Cockburn has built a remarkable career shaped by politics, spirituality, and musical diversity.
His journey has taken him through genres such as folk, jazz, rock, and worldbeat, and to far-flung places like Guatemala, Mali, Mozambique, and Nepal.
Along the way, he has written unforgettable songs inspired by his expanding world of wonders.
“My job is to try and trap the spirit of things in the scratches of pen on paper and the pulling of notes out of metal,” Cockburn explains.
This dedication has earned him high praise as an exceptional songwriter and a revered guitarist.
His songs of romance, protest, and spiritual discovery rank among the best to have emerged from Canada over the past half-century.
His guitar playing, both acoustic and electric, has placed him in the company of the world’s top instrumentalists.
Cockburn is also deeply respected for his activism on issues ranging from indigenous rights and land mines to the environment and Third World debt, supporting organizations like Oxfam, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, and Friends of the Earth.
Throughout his career, Cockburn has masterfully captured the joy, pain, fear, and faith of the human experience in his music.
Whether singing about retreating to the countryside, confronting chaos, exposing imperialist lies, or embracing spiritual truths, he has consistently expressed a tough yet hopeful outlook: to "kick at the darkness till it bleeds daylight."
"We can’t settle for things as they are,” he once warned. “If you don’t tackle the problems, they’re going to get worse.”
In recognition of his many achievements, the Ottawa-born artist has been honoured with 13 Juno Awards, inductions into both the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, and the title of Officer of the Order of Canada.
Yet, he never rests on his laurels.
“I’d rather think about what I’m going to do next,” says Cockburn. “My models for graceful aging are guys like John Lee Hooker and Mississippi John Hurt, who never stopped working until they dropped — as I fully expect to be doing — and just kept getting better as musicians and human beings.”
Cockburn’s commitment to growth has made him both an exemplary citizen and a legendary artist whose celebrated songbook will be cherished for many years to come.
The concert begins at 8 p.m. on March 16 at the Bailey in downtown Trail.
Tickets are now on sale at trail-arts.com, or by calling the box office at 250.368.9669.
Please note that the Bailey Theatre is a scent-free facility; patrons are asked to refrain from wearing perfumes or strong scents.
