Nothing but a Burning Light, Bruce Cockburn's first release for Columbia, teams him with producer T-Bone Burnett, whose singer/songwriter background, and spiritual leanings, seemed to be a perfect match.
Throughout, Burnett's production is understated, allowing Cockburn's voice, guitar, and songs to lead the way over a solid foundation of bass, drums, and tasteful organ by Booker T.
Jones.
This sort of sympathetic production brings out the best in Cockburn and his material, which is consistently strong.
Songs such as "Kit Carson," "Mighty Trucks of Midnight," and "Indian Wars" continue the weightier concerns of his work of the past decade, but the majority of the record takes on a more personal, introspective tone.
"One of the Best Ones" and "Great Big Love" are winning affirmations of love and life, while the retelling of the nativity, "Cry of a Tiny Babe," is as beautiful and moving a contemporary Christmas song as you're likely to hear.
Cockburn also decides to include a rare cover, his excellent reading of the Blind Willie Johnson gospel-blues "Soul of a Man," which fits nicely in the whole of the album.
Though it may lack the immediate power, Nothing but a Burning Light is Bruce Cockburn's best since his 1984 release Stealing Fire.
Jackson Browne and Sam Phillips guest on backing vocals.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A Dream Like MineBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 03:53 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 2 | Kit CarsonBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 04:12 | 9 MB | 20 MB |
| 3 | Mighty Trucks of MidnightBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 05:58 | 13 MB | 33 MB |
| 4 | Soul of a ManBlind Willie Johnson, Willie Johnson | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 03:52 | 8 MB | 21 MB |
| 5 | Great Big LoveBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 05:13 | 11 MB | 35 MB |
| 6 | One of the Best OnesBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 06:57 | 15 MB | 38 MB |
| 7 | Somebody Touched MeBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 04:16 | 9 MB | 25 MB |
| 8 | Cry of a Tiny BabeBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 07:31 | 17 MB | 45 MB |
| 9 | Actions Speak LouderBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 03:01 | 6 MB | 17 MB |
| 10 | Indian WarsBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 06:58 | 15 MB | 38 MB |
| 11 | When It's Gone, It's GoneBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 04:19 | 9 MB | 20 MB |
| 12 | Child of the WindBruce Cockburn | Bruce Cockburn | Play | 04:08 | 9 MB | 21 MB |
| 60 mins | 138 MB | |||||
| 60 mins | 343 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christopher Austopchuk | Art Direction |
| 2 | Michael Been | Bass, Guest Artist |
| 3 | Michael Blair | Percussion, Tambourine |
| 4 | Jackson Browne | Guest Artist, Guitar, Guitar (Resonator), Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 5 | T-Bone Burnett | Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Producer |
| 6 | Greg Calbi | Mastering |
| 7 | Bruce Cockburn | Arranger, Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Guitar (Resonator), Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 8 | Anton Corbijn | Photography |
| 9 | Denny Fongheiser | Drums |
| 10 | Ralph Forbes | Percussion |
| 11 | Paula "Max" Garcia | Engineer |
| 12 | Joe Henry | Production Assistant |
| 13 | Blind Willie Johnson | Composer |
| 14 | Willie Johnson | Composer |
| 15 | Booker T. Jones | Guest Artist, Organ |
| 16 | Booker T. Jones III | Organ |
| 17 | Jim Keltner | Drums, Percussion, Washboard |
| 18 | Larry Klein | Bass |
| 19 | David Leonard | Mixing |
| 20 | Pat McCarthy | Engineer, Mixing |
| 21 | Patrick McCarthy | Engineer, Mixing |
| 22 | Edgar Meyer | Bass, Bass (Acoustic) |
| 23 | Mark O'Connor | Guest Artist, Mandolin, Violin |
| 24 | Sam Phillips | Guest Artist, Vocals (Background) |
| 25 | Sam Phillips | Vocals (Background) |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |