Bruce Cockburn has released a new album, “The Blood of Others,” through Sunset Boulevard Records. The record consists entirely of songs written by other artists, tracing the musical influences Cockburn absorbed before he began writing his own material, from gospel and blues records he heard growing up in Ottawa to songs discovered through friends, radio and coffeehouse performances.
The tracklist spans material by Robert Wilkins, Herman Hupfeld, Jo Stafford, Billie Holiday and Arthur Herzog, Mississippi John Hurt, Ian and Sylvia, and others, along with Cockburn’s take on “That’s Alright,” which he says draws more from Arthur Crudup’s original recording than from Elvis Presley’s version. The album’s title is borrowed from Simone de Beauvoir’s novel of the same name, which Cockburn says dealt with personal responsibility amid oppression, a theme he felt suited a collection of songs he did not write himself.
According to the announcement, the album has drawn praise from outlets including Folk Alley, Glide Magazine, Americana Highways and Maximum Volume Music. Cockburn, who has built a catalog over more than five decades, has said the idea for the project dates back to the 1980s and grew out of songs that had stayed with him since the 1960s.
Based on a press release provided to Music Industry Weekly by Eric Alper, thatericalper.com.