If a Tree Falls: Bruce Cockburn and the Angry, Necessary Songs Nobody Else Would Write

Get in touch! In this haunting and deeply reflective episode, we explore the music of Bruce Cockburn—an artist who persistently challenges our indifference and urges us to reckon with the moral weight of being human. His songs are not just art; they are calls to awareness, rooted in compassion and fierce clarity. We delve into the global injustices that course through his music: the devastation of climate change, and the brutal legacy of capitalism in the Global South, where lives are often sacrificed for profit. Later in the episode, Cockburn’s Postcards from Cambodia becomes a stark meditation on memory, violence, and the spiritual toll of silence. The episode closes with a powerful capstone—an excerpt from Elie Wiesel’s 1999 White House address—offering a final, unforgettable reflection on the dangers of indifference, and the sacred responsibility to bear witness. This is not an episode about despair. It’s about the quiet courage of paying attention. America is going through some troubling times today. I don't need to remind anyone of that. But I do hope that this warning about the dangers of being 'indifferent' stirs - at minimum - a time of deeper reflection. In This Episode MUSIC Bruce Cockburn Sunrise on the Mississippi Shining Mountain (live from Le Hibou, 1971) Call it Democracy Creation Dream False River Radium Rain Postcards From Cambodia John Lennon: God John Luther Adams: Become Ocean SPOKEN Bruce Cockburn Douglas Cockburn Evan Hadfield/ Rare Earth Frontline Interviews with Fossil Fuel Industry Representatives Elie Wiesel