Cochrane was born in Lynn Lake, Manitoba to Violet and Tuck Cochrane, a bush pilot. The family relocated to Etobicoke, Ontario in the West Deane Park area when Tom was four years old. He purchased his first guitar at age 11 by selling a toy train set. He attended Martingrove Collegiate Institute in the 1960's. In the early 1970s, he was performing in coffee houses across Canada. He eventually made his way to Los Angeles where he found a job writing theme music for My Pleasure is My Business, a Xaviera Hollander movie. Unable to find steady income from music, Cochrane returned to Toronto where he drove a taxi cab and later took a job on a Caribbean cruise liner to help pay the bills. Cochrane went back to Los Angeles in 1976, trying to sell his songs to publishers but without success, and returned to Toronto in 1977. Cochrane walked into the El Mocambo club one night in Toronto and came across a band of locals calling themselves Red Rider. After an audition, they agreed to Cochrane joining the band as lead singer and songwriter, a decision that would change their musical careers.
After the Red Rider era, Cochrane set off on his soloist path again. In 1990, Cochrane took his family to West Africa where he helped to raise awareness and money for the World Vision famine relief organization. That experience shaped his next album Mad Mad World which contained the internationally acclaimed hit single "Life is a Highway".
The three-CD box set Ashes to Diamonds, including material by both Red Rider and Cochrane as a solo artist, was released in 1993.
In 1995, he released Ragged Ass Road and followed that with a Canadian tour in 1996. The tour resulted in Songs of a Circling Spirit, a live CD and multi-media package of previously released material.
In June 1999, Cochrane was involved in a light plane crash in Montreal, after his plane's engine stalled just after take-off. Fortunately, no one was injured.
At the 2003 Juno Awards, Tom Cochrane was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. The special award ceremony took place April 5, 2003 at Casino du Lac-Leamy in Gatineau, Quebec. According to the Life Is a Highway Songfacts, his other honors include seven Juno Awards, being an Honorary Colonel in the Canadian Air Force, and having been inducted onto the Canadian Walk of Fame. They take their rock stars seriously in Canada.
In December 2003 he was one of the musical guests on a CBC special called, Rick Mercer's Christmas in Kabul.
He currently lives with his family in Oakville, Ontario.
On July 2, 2005, Cochrane took part in the Live 8 concert series.
Cochrane's new album "No Stranger" recorded in rural Ontario was released in October 2006.
"Life Is A Highway" was re-made in 2006 by the country band Rascal Flatts for the motion picture "Cars" and became a successful country single.
Emotional Truth
Tom Cochrane Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let her see the beat
Around the world for emotional truth
Waited out here for so long
Wanna let love liberate you
Don't you need emotional truth
I don't want to fake it no more
You don't have to take it no more
Come on home for emotional truth
Watch the sun set down on the sea
Set down then rise up again
Sure as that happens we need emotional truth
I've been driving out here for so long
A thin man in the rain
I'm comin' home for your emotional truth
I don't want to fake it no more
Comin' in for emotional truth
You don't have to take it no more
Let me in for emotional truth
Oh my soul my love
There's so many things I haven't told you
Oh my soul my love
Let me show you
Emotional Truth
I've seen her out there for so long
Like a ghost standing by the roadside
Reaching out for emotional truth
CHORUS
EMOTIONAL TRUTH
EMOTIONAL TRUTH
EMOTIONAL TRUTH
The song "Emotional Truth" is a plea for vulnerability and honesty in a relationship. The singer admits that he has been pretending and faking it for too long and wants to finally let his guard down and experience true emotional connection with his partner. He urges his partner to do the same, to let go of any anger or resentment and find peace. The song compares this emotional journey to the movement of the sun and the beat of the world - something inevitable and necessary that we all must go through to find our own personal truth.
The lyrics also touch on the idea of waiting and driving for a long time, which could represent the emotional journey towards authenticity as a long and difficult process. The line "like a ghost standing by the roadside, reaching out for emotional truth" could be interpreted as a reminder that we are all searching for truth and connection, but sometimes feel isolated or unseen in that journey.
Overall, the message of the song is that it's okay to be vulnerable and to seek out emotional truth - even when it's difficult or scary. The singer is making a plea for his partner (and for himself) to let go of their armor and find a deeper level of connection.
Line by Line Meaning
Let the woman have her peace
Give her the space she needs to find inner calm and rest
Let her see the beat
Let her feel the rhythm of life and discover her own path
Around the world for emotional truth
Traveling the world to find the emotional depth and authenticity that is lacking in everyday life
Waited out here for so long
Been searching and waiting for something true and meaningful
Wanna let love liberate you
Wanting to break free from fears and doubts and open oneself to love and its transformative power
Don't you need emotional truth
Asking if others also long for deeper, more authentic emotional connections
I don't want to fake it no more
Refusing to keep up appearances and pretend to be someone other than who one truly is
Comin' in for emotional truth
Returning to one's true self and finding the emotional depth that has been lacking
You don't have to take it no more
Encouraging others to stop accepting the superficial and the fake, and seeking out genuine connections instead
Watch the sun set down on the sea
Contemplating the beauty and cycles of life, and the importance of finding emotional truth in it all
Set down then rise up again
Acknowledging the natural cycle of life, with its ups and downs, and the need to weather it with emotional authenticity
Sure as that happens we need emotional truth
Stressing the importance of emotional truth and its role in navigating the ups and downs of life
I've been driving out here for so long
Having been searching for emotional truth for an extended period of time
A thin man in the rain
Painting an image of someone weathered and worn by the journey of searching for emotional truth
I'm comin' home for your emotional truth
Returning to someone who embodies emotional truth and connection, and the comfort and home that brings
Let me in for emotional truth
Asking to be let back in to a relationship that values emotional truth
Oh my soul my love
Addressing one's innermost self and speaking to one's deepest desires and longings
There's so many things I haven't told you
Acknowledging the importance of expressing one's truth and feelings to oneself
Let me show you
Inviting oneself to be open and vulnerable to emotional truth and connection
I've seen her out there for so long
Having observed others also searching for emotional truth, and empathizing with their journey
Like a ghost standing by the roadside
Painting a vivid portrait of those searching for emotional truth, who may feel unseen or overlooked
Reaching out for emotional truth
Striving for and grasping at emotional authenticity and connection
EMOTIONAL TRUTH
The central theme of the song, driving home the importance of emotional depth and authenticity in relationships and in life
Contributed by Nathan N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.