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."
Call It Democracy
Bruce Cockburn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
International loan sharks backed by the guns
Of market hungry military profiteers
Whose word is a swamp and whose brow is smeared
With the blood of the poor
Who rob life of its quality
Who render rage a necessity
Modern slavers in drag as champions of freedom
Sinister cynical instrument
Who makes the gun into a sacrament
The only response to the deification
Of tyranny by so called "developed" nations'
Idolatry of ideology
North, south, east,And it west
Kill the best and buy the rest
It's just spend a buck to make a buck
You don't really give a flying fuck
About the people in misery
I-M-F dirty M-F
Takes away everything it can get
Always making certain that there's one thing left
Keep them on the hook with insupportable debt
See the paid off local bottom feeders
Passing themselves off as leaders
Kiss the ladies, shake hands with the fellows
And it's open for business like a cheap bordello
And they call it democracy
And they call it democracy
And they call it democracy
And they call it democracy
See the loaded eyes of the children too
Trying to make the best of it the way kids do
One day you're going to rise from your habitual feast
To find yourself staring down the throat of the beast
They call the revolution
I-M-F dirty M-F
Takes away everything it can get
Always making certain that there's one thing left
Keep them on the hook with insupportable debt
And they call it democracy
And they call it democracy
And they call it democracy
And they call it democracy
Bruce Cockburn’s “Call It Democracy” is a politically charged critique of global capitalism and the role of international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in promoting and perpetuating economic inequality and exploitation. The first verse specifically refers to loan sharks backed by military profiteers who profit off the poor and turn countries into labor camps. Cockburn also notes the insidiousness of a global economy that turns impoverished people into modern-day slaves, all while calling itself a champion of freedom.
In the second verse, Cockburn highlights the sinister nature of guns and their use as an instrument of power, particularly in the deification of tyranny by developed nations. North, south, east, and west all kill the best and buy the rest, as the pursuit of profit takes precedence over the well-being of those in misery. The IMF is also lambasted for its hunger for power and willingness to leave countries with insupportable debt, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and exploitation.
The final verse is a call to revolution – a reminder that the children, despite their loaded eyes, are trying to make the best of a world that has failed them. One day, Cockburn sings, the people will rise up against the beast that is capitalism and its destructive economic model. Ultimately, “Call It Democracy” both questions the legitimacy of our current economic and political systems and calls for a radical reimagining of what democracy truly means.
Line by Line Meaning
Padded with power here they come
Powerful international players are coming to exert their influence
International loan sharks backed by the guns
These players are loan sharks who are supported by military force
Of market hungry military profiteers
They are profit-driven, military contractors who crave market opportunities
Whose word is a swamp and whose brow is smeared
Their language is corrupt and their moral character is compromised
With the blood of the poor
Their actions hurt the disadvantaged and cause them harm
Who rob life of its quality
They deprive people of basic needs and ruin their quality of life
Who render rage a necessity
Their actions provoke anger and rebellion as a natural response
By turning countries into labour camps
Whole countries become oppressed labor camps under their rule
Modern slavers in drag as champions of freedom
They claim to support freedom but are really just new versions of slave-masters
Sinister cynical instrument
They are sinister, negative tools of oppression
Who makes the gun into a sacrament
They worship weapons as part of their ideology
The only response to the deification
Their approach to divine or sacred status is to turn to weapons
Of tyranny by so called "developed" nations'
They see the actions of powerful nations as oppressive tyranny masquerading as development
Idolatry of ideology
They worship their own views, expecting others to as well
North, south, east, and west
They are everywhere, spreading their influence in all directions
Kill the best and buy the rest
They eliminate leaders then buy those who remain
It's just spend a buck to make a buck
Their only goal is getting rich, not solving problems
You don't really give a flying fuck
They don't care at all about the suffering and misery caused by their actions
About the people in misery
They ignore those who are suffering due to their actions
I-M-F dirty M-F
The IMF is a dirty organization focused on making money
Takes away everything it can get
IMF empties local resources and takes them away
Always making certain that there's one thing left
The IMF leaves just enough resources to keep locals dependent
Keep them on the hook with insupportable debt
IMF keeps local populations in debt that they can't handle
See the paid off local bottom feeders
Locals who have sold out are enjoying wealth
Passing themselves off as leaders
These sellouts pretend to be leaders
Kiss the ladies, shake hands with the fellows
They use charm to trick both men and women into their schemes
And it's open for business like a cheap bordello
Their affairs are open and notorious, and just as sleazy as a brothel
And they call it democracy
Their oppressive regimes are called democratic systems
See the loaded eyes of the children too
Even children see the pain caused by these oppressors
Trying to make the best of it the way kids do
Children try to stay positive despite bleak circumstances
One day you're going to rise from your habitual feast
A future where people are free from oppressive regimes will come
To find yourself staring down the throat of the beast
In the end, oppressive regimes will face their downfall
They call the revolution
The eventual revolt against oppressive regimes
And they call it democracy
They still insist on calling their oppressive regimes democratic
And they call it democracy
They continue to overlook the suffering caused by their regimes
And they call it democracy
They repeat this over and over, without ever really valuing true democracy
And they call it democracy
They call it democracy, but it's really just a lie
Lyrics © CARLIN AMERICA INC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Bruce Cockburn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@gregghill2059
Despite the old news footage, this song is more relevant than ever.
@juliebarrow5743
True
@2uconner
Yeah but what are we doing about it😮
@DoubleMicah2020
Amen
@taragreenetarotastrologyre4945
Bruce Cockburn is one of the best songwriters singers ever. He is a beautiful soul and his singing style began as a folkie and evolved over the years. This is one of my fave songs. Bruce is a very modest man we used to live in the same neighbourhood and I'd see him at the Y and at local cafes. He never acted special. A true blue musician. A proud Canadian.
@Sledgehammer455
He's a national (and global) treasure in my view. Love Bruce.
@frankstared
Humanism knows no nationality; he is a son of this Earth as you are its daughter. Never forget that you have as much of place and not more than any other organism.
@kendalozzel3503
I bumped into him on the street in San Francisco several years ago and showered him with praise for being so important to me as a young person discovering his music. He was so nice and seemed genuinely touched. Unlike so many "famous" people.
@deenayls5055
Agreed his mind well ahead of time, now with social media his words can be spread farther, the Oneness and consciousness needs to spread to all four corners like the wind!!
@privateconfidential4775
And it’s Sad what happened to Canadian music when the bare naked ladies, snow, alanis, shania and moxy fruvous etc etc showed up and we got hammered with Pop and Commercialized music