Canadian singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn performed in Eugene Sunday and I’m so glad we went (vaccine cards required, audience all masked). His voice is powerful as ever and the guitar work intricate and evocative, the way he always is. I still remember the moment I first heard a Bruce Cockburn song. I was living in Bellingham and “Waiting for the Moon to Show” came on the radio. I had to stop what I was doing and listen. Been listening to his music ever since. He reminds me of a renegade Catholic priest who doesn’t care what the Vatican is saying or doing because he’s busy feeding hungry people. Last night he played two of four new songs written this year and one of them was just stunning in its sharpness and simplicity. Here’s a link to a video of the four songs. The one I love starts at the four-minute mark, titled “Orders.” Here’s the second verse:

The cynic and the crooked priest
The woman wise the sullen beast
The enemy outside the gate
The friend who leaves it all to fate
The drunk who tags the bathroom stall
The proud boy rushing to his fall,
The list is long; as I recall
Our orders said to love them all