Bruce Cockburn: The Blood Of Others (2LP, gatefold) [SUNSET BLVD RECORDS]

Why you'll love it

A gatefold 2LP set of covers from one of Canada's great songwriters: 15 songs that shaped him from an early age. Ian & Sylvia's "Four Strong Winds", "God Bless the Child", "As Time Goes By" and "That's All Right" all get the Cockburn treatment.

This edition

• 2LP set
• Gatefold jacket
• 15 tracks over four sides

About the album

Cockburn has written more than 350 songs, and 22 of his albums have gone gold or platinum in Canada, so when he turns his hand to other people's material it's worth paying attention. These are the songs that shaped him: country blues ("Louis Collins", "Yellow Dog Blues", "Buddy Bolden's Blues"), standards from Casablanca and the saloon ("As Time Goes By", "One for My Baby", "I'll Be Seeing You"), gospel ("Peace in the Valley") and a French chanson in "Les Feuilles Mortes".

The title comes from Simone de Beauvoir's novel, written under the Nazi occupation of France, which Cockburn read in the 1970s; its ideas about personal responsibility and choice under oppression, he says, suit an album of songs he didn't write. The Ottawa kid who once busked his way round Paris finally gets to sing them properly. We suspect he's earned the night off from writing.

I have borrowed the title because it seems perfect for an album of songs I didn't write.
Bruce Cockburn

Tracklist

Listen

Out October 16, 2026 on Sunset Blvd Records (cat# LP-SBR-7101).