Cockburn's early albums were fairly straight ahead folk music spotlighting his brilliant guitar playing. In fact, there were a good number of instrumental guitar numbers on those early recordings. A Christian element came into his music around the time of the album Salt, Sun and Time, and over time his writing has taken on a stronger and stronger political orientation.
Perhaps the most consistent element of Cockburn's music has been his willingness to change and evolve over time. In this way, he is similar to fellow Canadians Joni Mitchell and Neil Young.
He has had a couple of radio hits in the United States, including (Wondering Where the Lions Are and If I Had a Rocket Launcher).
His albums in the 80s are considered some of his strongest, including Humans, Inner City Front, Stealing Fire, and Big Circumstance. After Big Circumstance he struggled with writer's block, and his output began to slow down; but he recovered with the formidable Nothing But a Burning Light, which led the way back to a sparer, more folk-oriented form of music. His later album The Charity of Night contains one of his most thoughtful songs, Pacing the Cage.
His 2006 album Life Short Call Now was preceded by Speechless, a collection of instrumentals, many of them from earlier albums. The album highlights Cockburn's prodigious abilities as a guitarist.
Cockburn's 31st studio album,Small Source of Comfort was released in March, 2011. BruceCockburn.com called the album "an adventurous collection of songs of romance, protest and spiritual discovery. The album, primarily acoustic yet rhythmically savvy, is rich in Cockburn’s characteristic blend of folk, blues, jazz and rock."
Berlin Tonight
Bruce Cockburn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sky been down around our ears for weeks
Only once -- gap-glimpsed moon over that anal-retentive border wall
As we laughed through some midnight checkpoint under yellow urban cloud
Weeks of frantic motion -- petrol veins of
Europe pumping
Through scratchy acid-bitten transparent winter trees
Through brownish haze that makes a ghost of the horizon
Berlin tonight
Table-dancing in black tights
Waving a silver crutch in the blue lights
Shape changing over glass
On the front line of the last gasp
Green shoots of winter wheat and patches of snow
Russian walks dog in Saxon field
From the top of a solitary tree like the one on the flag of Lebanon
Unblinking eye of hawk follows traffic on the autobahn
Tank convoy winds down smokestack valley
Pound chemical pennants wave against the sky
Turret gunner laughs when I throw up my hands
I'm all glasses and grin to him under my "commie" fur hat
Berlin tonight Table-dancing in black tights
Waving a silver crutch in the blue lights
Shape changing over glass On the front line of the last gasp
Bruce Cockburn’s song, “Berlin Tonight”, is an evocative description of a frenzied experience in Berlin during the winter season. The song commences with the description of the eerie atmosphere in Berlin, characterized by a dull twilight spitting hesitant sulfur rain and a sky seemingly down around their ears for weeks. Despite these gloomy conditions, the singer, presumably Cockburn himself, recalls a moment when they spotted the moon over the border wall, and shared a laugh through a midnight checkpoint under the yellow urban cloud. The song reflects a sense of urgency and desperation through the imagery of frantically rushing after some ever-receding destination.
The song progresses to describe the contrasting views of the season. The imagery of green shoots of winter wheat and patches of snow alongside a Russian walking their dog in a Saxon field are interwoven with the contrasting viewpoint of a tank convoy winding down smokestack valley with chemical pennants waving against the sky. The song concludes with the singer’s continued pursuit of the ever-receding destination, presumably leading to Berlin, to partake in some of the nightlife. The lines, "Berlin tonight/ Table-dancing in black tights/ Waving a silver crutch in the blue lights/ Shape changing over glass/ On the front line of the last gasp," evoke a sense of vivacity and urgency with the singer moving to the front line of the last gasp.
Line by Line Meaning
Dull twilight spits hesitant sulfur rain
The sky is dark and dreary while it drizzles sulfur rain at a slow pace.
Sky been down around our ears for weeks
The sky appears low and dark for weeks, enveloping everything around us.
Only once -- gap-glimpsed moon over that anal-retentive border wall
We only saw the moon once, through a small gap in the strictly monitored border wall.
As we laughed through some midnight checkpoint under yellow urban cloud
We chuckled while passing through a midnight checkpoint, surrounded by a yellowish urban cloud.
Weeks of frantic motion -- petrol veins of Europe pumping
For weeks, we've been continuously moving through Europe, like gas flowing through veins.
Through scratchy acid-bitten transparent winter trees
We passed by transparent winter trees that appeared hazy, with a scratchy and acidic texture.
Through brownish haze that makes a ghost of the horizon
The horizon appears eerie and ghostly, with a brown haze enveloping it.
I'm rushing after some ever-receding destination
I'm in a hurry to reach a destination that seems to keep getting further away.
Berlin tonight
Tonight, we're in Berlin.
Table-dancing in black tights
We're dancing on tables while dressed in black tights.
Waving a silver crutch in the blue lights
We're waving a silver crutch in the blue lights, adding to the lively atmosphere.
Shape changing over glass
The shape we see is constantly changing when seen through the glassware.
On the front line of the last gasp
We're at the forefront of the final moment, witnessing everything as it happens.
Green shoots of winter wheat and patches of snow
There are patches of green winter wheat amidst snow-covered areas.
Russian walks dog in Saxon field
We saw a Russian person walking their dog in a Saxon field.
From the top of a solitary tree like the one on the flag of Lebanon
We saw a single tree on a hill, similar to the one depicted on the flag of Lebanon.
Unblinking eye of hawk follows traffic on the autobahn
A hawk was watching traffic on the autobahn without blinking.
Tank convoy winds down smokestack valley
We saw a convoy of tanks moving down a valley with smokestacks.
Pound chemical pennants wave against the sky
There are flags made of chemical pennants waving in the sky.
Turret gunner laughs when I throw up my hands
The gunner in the turret laughed as I raised my hands in surrender.
I'm all glasses and grin to him under my 'commie' fur hat
I'm wearing glasses and a grin, and under my 'commie' fur hat, trying to make light of the situation.
Berlin tonight
Tonight, we're still in Berlin.
Table-dancing in black tights
We continue to dance on tables while dressed in black tights.
Waving a silver crutch in the blue lights
We keep waving the silver crutch in the blue lights, enjoying the moment.
Shape changing over glass
The changing shape we see through the glass continues to fascinate us.
On the front line of the last gasp
We're still at the forefront of the final moment, savoring every experience.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., CARLIN AMERICA INC
Written by: BRUCE COCKBURN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
keith thomas
listening to mr. cockburn is like watching a brilliant painting take shape...his words are magical....he is a master
ᕼᗩᒪᗩᖽᐸᗩᕼ
MY #1 all time favorite Bruce Cockburn song... legendary...
ᕼᗩᒪᗩᖽᐸᗩᕼ
@Lou Cat No freaking WAY! I can't believe we both love Bruce & T-Bone... The name of the radio show I first heard them on was called "The Edge". This blows my mind. I have NEVER even met anyone else that has ever heard of them... WTF over...
Lou Cat
@ᕼᗩᒪᗩᖽᐸᗩᕼ Damn, it's hard not to fall into the trap though, eventually truth SHOULD win out. How does one reason with someone who won't even consider the other sides beliefs. I'm guilty myself, obviously. I'm not sure we will wake up "sooner or later" this time as the good Dr. states. We are pretty fractured this time around. On a lighter note, LOVE me some T-Bone. He does some amazing soundtracks nowadays. Staying positive and working to improve.
ᕼᗩᒪᗩᖽᐸᗩᕼ
@Lou Cat T-Bone Burnett wrote a song once called 'Trap Door'... The same radio station where I first heard Bruce's music also played a lot of T-Bone Burnett's music... A LOT of people are falling into this Hegelian trap...
"Keep the human herd ignorant and fighting with each other. Divide and conquer – it’s the oldest tactic in the book." ~ Jim Marrs
"This whole "left/right" ruse was cleverly designed to divide the country and by attacking each other, we are only serving TPTB's divide and rule agenda. The end result is we are all distracted from the real forces that are tearing society apart."
"Would-be global rulers cannot physically control six and a half billion humans. Therefore, they must use secrecy and deceit. Keep the human herd ignorant and fighting with each other. Divide and conquer – it’s the oldest tactic in the book. And it’s relatively easy if you control the major academic institutions, the political parties and the major mass media (a mere five multinational corporations with interlocking directorships today control everything we see and hear.)" (Jim Marrs)
"For far too long, Americans have been told they exist only as members of warring camps—as Republican or Democrat, red state or blue, conservative or liberal, right or left, religious or secular, urban or rural, majority, minority and even minority/majority. It’s no coincidence that we are described by these labels—as if these labels defined us—by elites who alone stand to benefit from the very divisions they promote.
"If they can convince the rest of us that we are at each other’s throats, on the verge of civil strife, these elites can make us believe our own neighbors are our enemies and that we have nothing in common but our hatred of each other.
By herding us into these warring camps, by pitting us against one another, these elites can also distract us from the real forces tearing this society apart—the unaccountable, irresponsible political establishment that now presumes to govern in our name, with no concern for anything but its own interests. By sowing these seeds of distrust, they divide and conquer, and for too long, they have succeeded."
"Dr. Sutton believes the "left" versus "right" split is fraudulent and used to control the debate and condition citizens to think along certain lines. Left-wing magazines like the "The Nation" and "The New Republic" and right-wing magazines like "The National Review were "artificially set up." The former were financed by Whitney money while the latter by Buckley. Both are "The Order."
Dr. Sutton states: "Sooner or later people will wake up. First we have to dump the trap of right and left. This is a Hegelian trap to divide and control. The battle is not between right and left; it is between us and them." Similarly, in the international field left and right political structures are artificially constructed and collapsed in the drive for one-world synthesis, i.e. authoritarian socialism controlled by monopoly capital. College textbooks present war and revolution as accidental results of conflicting forces. This is nonsense, says Dr. Sutton. They are created and financed by Wall Street to create a new world order. But you won't read this in history books."
Lou Cat
Mine too, took me a while to find it. Supposedly seeing our Bruce in March 2022 in Massachusetts, fingers crossed. Only if I can get my countymen to get the vaccine and lay off the worm paste, you tin foil hat wearing morons!
moonlitme
the stark melancholy sliding towards depression of this song gets me....every time
dean b
Magnificent