An extended Reading the Bestsellers review of a 2024 book by M. D. Dunn
Note: Our print issue contains a shorter version of this review. Faith Today welcomes your thoughts on any of our reviews. We also welcome suggestions of other Canadian Christian books to review: Contact us.
Fermata Press, 2024. 246 pages. $19 (e-book $10)
Bruce Cockburn should really need no introduction in Canada. The Ottawa-born singer-songwriter is tied with Nickelback, Shawn Mendes, Shania Twain and Gordon Lightfoot for number of Juno Awards received. With Cockburn approaching 80 years of age in May 2025, M.D. Dunn’s new biography is well timed to help people recognize his significance and his many accomplishments.
The book’s title comes from lyrics of a song by the same name and provides an indicator of what the author aims to reveal – how Bruce Cockburn has grown in impact and as an artist over the years. Author M. D. Dunn, a poet, musician and writing instructor based in Sault Ste Marie, Ont., says the book is “for people who love music” and that, for those familiar with Cockburn and his music, “only the perspectives are new.”
Dunn did extensive research, interviewing Cockburn’s longtime manager Bernie Finkelstein, fellow musicians and producers, renowned guitar maker Linda Manzer, representatives for non-profit agencies that Cockburn partnered with and five interviews with the singer himself between 2015 and 2021. The result is a book that is detailed with meaningful stories and insights from those around Cockburn and from the artist himself.
The book opens with entertaining anecdotes of how Cockburn’s music has affected people – a folk club owner or manager who detests Cockburn’s music, a fan who breaks down in tears after a concert and the author’s own interactions with people in the music industry. Dunn speaks of “The Bruce Effect” – a certain level of nervousness and incoherency that comes upon a fan when speaking with the musician and acknowledges this occurring to himself at least once. All of this helps illustrates Cockburn’s enduring influence that the book’s title references.
The first third of the book is broken up into “Who is Bruce Cockburn,” “Persona and Perspective,” “On Writing,” “On Activism” and “On Guitar.” Each of these give a helpful overview and are greatly served by Dunn’s knowledge of poetry, writing and guitar playing. “On Guitar” elaborates on Cockburn’s profound level of skill, and how he has evolved to accommodate changes that have come with age. Dunn includes a step-by-step tutorial on Cockburn’s playing technique that guitar players will appreciate. An account of Canadian guitar maker (luthier) Linda Manzer and her work on behalf of Cockburn and other artists is a very worthwhile inclusion as well.
The earlier sections provide a foundation for the latter two thirds of the book which separates Cockburn’s career into three periods: Becoming: Developmental Period (1970–1988), Being: Maturity (1991–2011) and Into the Now (2017–Present). In these Dunn goes through every album and looks at the musicians, producers, and artists who were involved and reflects on the meanings behind Cockburn’s lyrics. Some songs might get a brief paragraph of analysis, while others, like “The Coming Rains” from The Charity of Night are given a page and a half. It initially felt daunting to work through every Cockburn album this way, but there is no need to rush. One can enjoy the journey, listening to songs while taking in the insights and accounts of that Dunn offers on each of the artist’s releases.
You Get Bigger As You Go also traces the origins of Cockburn’s faith, how it is given expression, how it shifts over his many albums, and where it arrives. Cockburn’s latest album, O Sun O Moon, with songs like “Orders” (“The list is long – as I recall, our orders say to love them all”), offers faith expressed as “embedded Christian philosophy” that the listener need not recognize “in order to participate in the music.”
Those who want to a deeper look at the spiritual resonance of Cockburn’s music can check out Kicking at the Darkness by Brian J. Walsh (Brazos Press, 2011).
Dunn has clearly journeyed with Cockburn and his music over the years, yet he is willing to offer critique, pointing out songs that haven’t held up over time, weak lyrics and albums, and seeming inconsistencies in Cockburn’s ethics. Anecdotes and quotes from a wide variety of sources, including the artist himself, adds vibrancy and illustrates Dunn’s analysis. In You Get Bigger As You Go the author brings together a thoroughly researched and meaningful exploration of Bruce Cockburn’s life and music that will prove rewarding to longtime followers (who may already have Cockburn’s 2015 memoir) and to new fans alike.
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