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."
Let The Bad Air Out
Bruce Cockburn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've been condemning people all day long, that's how I get paid
My dreams are full of criminals frolicking about
Open up the window, let the bad air out!"
Strangled by confusion, my mind is in decay
Can't picture tomorrow, can't remember yesterday
Open up the window, let the bad air out
Traitors in high places take my money, tell me lies
Take a walk past Parliament, it smells like something died
They ask for trust, but somehow I've got serious doubts
Open up the window, let the bad air out
Too much monkey business, like Mr. Berry said
Drugs and oil and money, don't mean nothing when you're dead
At the risk of being subversive, nothing left to do but shout
"Open up the window, let the bad air out!"
The opening verse of Bruce Cockburn's "Let The Bad Air Out" begins with a Judge asking a sex-worker if she wants to go out and play, while he condemns people for profit. The Judge is cynical about life as is portrayed in the lyrics "my dreams are full of criminals frolicking about". The Judge also seems resigned to the system's corruption, and to letting his clearly impacted dreams remain that way. Bruce then alludes to his own turmoil by suggesting that he feels strangled by confusion and that his mind is decaying. He looks to psychiatric help and tools to cope, again indicating that this is an issue that is systemic and widespread.
The second verse continues Cockburn’s animosity towards the corruption of government and politicians. He questions high positions and their justification for their lack of transparency as demonstrated by "they ask for trust, but somehow I have serious doubts." As the song progresses, Bruce calls for an end to the charade that pays no regard to citizens, and instead sees them only as sources of revenue. “Let The Bad Air Out” foregrounds the song's central theme of tension between society and the wealthy elite through vivid, striking examples such as the smell emanating from the Parliament building, which Bruce sardonically implies is full of putrid corruption.
● "Let The Bad Air Out" was released in 1994 and is from the album "Dart to the Heart."
● The song features Rob Wasserman on bass.
● The song won a Juno Award for Best Roots and Traditional Album.
● You can find this song on the album "Charity of Night," which has guest appearances by Michael Brecker and Lou Reed.
● Cockburn recorded the songs for this album in seven different studios across the globe.
● He edited and mixed tapes in his Canadian home.
● This album is one of the high water marks of Cockburn’s creatively successful career.
● Bruce Cockburn got the idea for the song while traveling in Italy.
● Cockburn is one of only a few who have played for every Canadian Prime Minister since the 1960s.
● "Let The Bad Air Out" is Cockburn's only Top 40 hit in the United States.
Chords (standard tuning):
G F C D G C D G F C D G C D G (Verse)
Em7 D Cmaj7 D Em7 D Cmaj7 D G (Chorus)
Line by Line Meaning
Judge said to the hooker, "Can you come out to play?
The system in power is corrupt and unjust, as evidenced by a judge propositioning a prostitute.
I've been condemning people all day long, that's how I get paid
Judges profit from convicting people regardless of whether they deserve it or not.
My dreams are full of criminals frolicking about
The judge's conscience is filled with the knowledge of innocent people he's convicted while guilty people go free.
Open up the window, let the bad air out!
We must expose and root out injustice to make society better, i.e., let the bad air out.
Strangled by confusion, my mind is in decay
The world's problems - political, social, personal - have left us struggling to make sense of the chaos.
Can't picture tomorrow, can't remember yesterday
The overwhelming negativity of the present has caused us to lose hope for any kind of better future.
Send out for the Black & Decker and the psychiatric couch
We seek both physical, tangible solutions and mental, emotional help to manage our anxiety and trauma.
Traitors in high places take my money, tell me lies
The corrupt politicians who are supposed to represent the people have instead sold out to the highest bidder and lied to maintain their power.
Take a walk past Parliament, it smells like something died
The government, and by extension democracy, has died and decayed beyond recognition.
They ask for trust, but somehow I've got serious doubts
The powers that be constantly ask us to trust them, but they have repeatedly shown themselves to be untrustworthy and self-serving.
Too much monkey business, like Mr. Berry said
There is too much chaos, corruption, and absurdity in the world; referring to a song by Chuck Berry about the same thing.
Drugs and oil and money, don't mean nothing when you're dead
At the end of the day, material possessions and wealth are meaningless in the face of death.
At the risk of being subversive, nothing left to do but shout
We must speak out and resist the injustices in the world, even if it's considered subversive or dangerous to do so.
"Open up the window, let the bad air out!"
We must continue to call out and fight against the corruption and injustices in the world to create a better future.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
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