The best of 2011 - #3

So here we are - the illustrious top three albums of last year.

Without further ado:

#3 - Bruce Cockburn - Small Source of Comfort


Bruce Cockburn is an interesting case of someone with incredible musical talent, an unparalleled gift for lyric, and a drive so prolific that a petty, squabbling thing like a lack of mainstream success could hardly stand in the way of an enduring career spanning more than four decades and producing 24 studio albums and another dozen live and compilation albums.

Live in concert, Cockburn is a virtuoso. I got to see Bruce live at Convocation Hall in Toronto loads of years ago, and he remains one of the few people that could so easily captivate an audience of hundreds for hours by himself with only a spotlight and a guitar.

Small Source of Comfort is an amazing album, and a good snapshot of Bruce's music. Ranging from the tongue-in-cheek to the spiritual to the political and back again.

Called Me Back is a snapshot into a simple train of thought after an irritating snub by a friend. Each One Lost should be played at every since Remembrance Day ceremony from now on - I've not heard a tribute for fallen soldiers like it.

Listening through, you get simple plucked guitar and complex rhythm and instrumentation, and - particularly in Call Me Rose, which I picked as the standout track - his tribute prodigious gift for starting songs with non sequitors that make even the most casual or unphasable listener stand up and pay attention.

Observer, and then get thee to some speakers to listen to the rest of the album.