Canada Listens: Bruce Cockburn
Survivorman Les Stroud is championing Cockburn's 1978 classic Further Adventures Of in Canada Listens
Les Stroud has made a career out of surviving against the odds. But how will his chosen album weather in this year's Canada Listens, which is stacked with great albums? As with any survival situation he's thrown into, Stroud is feeling pretty confident when it comes to his choice: Bruce Cockburn's 1978 classic LP, Further Adventures Of.
"Incredibly profound lyrically, [this album] comes from an artist who is undeniably a massive force in the sound of Canada," says Stroud. "It's my all-time favourite Canadian album."
Further Adventures Of was released in a highly prolific period for Cockburn during his early years. By 1978, Cockburn had already won three back-to-back Juno Awards for folk singer of the year, and was a vocal activist and environmentalist, but had yet to score a big international hit. You could consider Further Adventures Of the stepping stone to that fame. Cockburn's next album, 1979's Dancing in the Dragon's Jaws, featured his first breakout international hit: "Wondering Where the Lions Are."
Check out this year's album trailers, panelist pre-interviews and more here.
Canada Listens is hosted by CBC Music's Saroja Coelho. She will guide the panellists through four radio shows of fast, funny, and passionate debate. Each day, starting Monday, April 11 on CBC Music (8 a.m. on Mornings, 5 p.m. repeat on Drive) the panellists will vote to remove one album from the group, leaving one album spinning on Thursday, April 14.
A special two-hour version, highlighting the best of the 2022 Canada Listens debate, will air on CBC Radio One on Monday, April 18 at 4 p.m. (4:30 NT).
The Canada Listens winner will become the one album Canada needs to hear. The contenders this year include:
- Bruce Cockburn's Further Adventures Of, championed by "Survivorman" Les Stroud.
- Mustafa's When Smoke Rises, championed by comedian Dave Merheje.
- Crown Land's Crown Lands, championed by poet Erica Violet Lee.
- Ria Mae's Ria Mae, championed by Olympic athlete Stephanie Labbé.
- Jacksoul's Sleepless, championed by actor Kim Roberts.
Which Canadian album would you suggest? Tweet us @CBCMusic with #CanadaListens and let us know!
