The Mississippi Sheiks were a popular and influential American guitar and fiddle group of the 1930s. They were notable mostly for playing country blues but were adept at many styles of popular music of the time. They recorded around 70 tracks, primarily in the first half of the 1930s. In 2004, they were inducted into the Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame .
45-710: Their 1930 blues single " Sitting on Top of the World " was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008. In 2018, it was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The Mississippi Sheiks consisted mainly of members of the Chatmon family, from Bolton, Mississippi , who were well known in
90-526: A Christian . Many of his albums from the 1970s refer to Christian themes, which in turn inform his concerns for human rights and environmentalism . His references to Christianity include the Grail imagery of 20th-century Christian poet Charles Williams and the ideas of theologian Harvey Cox . In 1970 Cockburn became partners with Bernie Finkelstein in the music publishing firm Golden Mountain Music. He won
135-518: A Kay archtop with flat wound strings and a DeArmond pickup. Later he was taught piano and music theory by Peter Hall, the organist at Westboro United Church which Cockburn and his family attended. Cockburn had been listening to jazz and wanted to learn musical composition. Hall encouraged him and, along with his friend Bob Lamble, a lot of time was spent at Hall's house listening to and discussing jazz. Cockburn attended Nepean High School , where his 1964 yearbook photo states his desire "to become
180-559: A Miracle . His first greatest hits collection was Anything Anytime Anywhere: Singles 1979–2002 , released in 2002. Cockburn performed a set at the Live 8 concert in Barrie, Ontario , on July 2, 2005. Speechless , an instrumental compilation of new and previously released material, was released on October 24, 2005. His 22nd album, Life Short Call Now , was released on July 18, 2006. Canadian senator and retired general Roméo Dallaire , who
225-532: A Tree Falls" ( Big Circumstance )—one of Cockburn's best-known songs—decrying the deforestation of the Amazon . Cockburn wrote and performed the theme song for the children's television series Franklin . He composed and performed, with Hugh Marsh , the music for the National Film Board of Canada documentary feature Waterwalker (1984), directed by Bill Mason . He also composed two songs for
270-561: A career spanning five decades, of which 22 have received a Canadian gold or platinum certification as of 2018, and he has sold more than one million albums in Canada alone. In 2014, Cockburn released his memoirs, Rumours of Glory . Cockburn was born in 1945 in Ottawa , Ontario , and spent some time at his grandfather's farm outside of Chelsea, Quebec , but he grew up in Westboro , which
315-733: A co-member of The Children. Cockburn left 3's a Crowd in the spring of 1969 to pursue a solo career. Cockburn's first solo appearance was at the Mariposa Folk Festival in 1967, and in 1969 he was a headliner. In 1970 he released his self-titled, solo album. A single, "Going to the Country", appeared on the RPM Top 50 Canadian Chart. Cockburn's guitar work and songwriting won him an enthusiastic following. His early work featured rural and nautical imagery and Biblical metaphors. Raised as an agnostic , early in his career he became
360-847: A musician". After graduating, he took a boat to Europe and busked in Paris. Cockburn attended Berklee School of Music in Boston, where his studies included jazz composition, for three semesters between 1964 and 1966. That year he dropped out and joined an Ottawa band called The Children, which lasted for about a year. In early 1967 he joined the final lineup of the Esquires . He moved to Toronto that summer to form The Flying Circus with Marty Fisher and Gordon MacBain, former Bobby Kris & The Imperials members, and Neil Lillie, ex- Tripp member. The group recorded some material in late 1967 (which remains unreleased) before changing its name to Olivus in
405-408: A popular crossover hit, and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008. "Sitting on Top of the World" has become a standard of traditional American music. The song has been widely recorded in a variety of different styles – folk , blues, country , bluegrass , rock – often with considerable variations and/or additions to the original verses. The lyrics of
450-571: A rare look into Cockburn's music, life and politics. In 2018, Cockburn contributed the song "3 Al Purdys" to the compilation album The Al Purdy Songbook . A number of artists have covered Cockburn's songs, including: Cockburn was made a Member of the Order of Canada in 1982 and was promoted to Officer in 2002. In 1998, he received the Governor General's Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement, Canada's highest honour in
495-414: A series of rhyming couplets , each followed by the two-line chorus. The structural economy of the song seems to be conducive to creative invention, giving the song a dynamic flexibility exemplified by the numerous and diverse versions that exist. The song has a strophic nine-bar blues structure. Bar nine provides rhythmic separation between stanzas, the end of one stanza and the relatively large pickup at
SECTION 10
#1732783791193540-549: A visit in 1995. Cockburn is affiliated with the Unitarian Service Committee of Canada, twice visiting Nepal with the charity, in 1987 and 2007. Songs on these themes include " If I Had a Rocket Launcher " ( Stealing Fire ), an angry response to the plight of refugees in Central America; "Stolen Land" ( Waiting for a Miracle ), about the land claims of British Columbia's Haida people ; and "If
585-467: Is active in humanitarian fundraising and promoting awareness, appeared on stage at the University of Victoria with Cockburn. The October 4, 2008, concert was held to aid the plight of child soldiers. In 2009 Cockburn travelled to Afghanistan to visit his brother, Medical Officer Capt. John Cockburn, and to play a concert for Canadian troops. He performed his 1984 song "If I Had a Rocket Launcher" and
630-709: Is notable for his sexually suggestive songs, and this tone carried over to some extent to the group. They primarily earned their income as Robert Johnson and Skip James did: they toured throughout the South but also traveled to Chicago and New York . Their first and biggest success was " Sitting on Top of the World " (1930), later recorded by Doc Watson , Bob Wills (numerous times), Howlin' Wolf , Nat King Cole , Bill Monroe , Harry Belafonte , Frank Sinatra , Bob Dylan , Cream , Grateful Dead , Jeff Healey , John Lee Hooker , Bill Frisell , The Seldom Scene , Jack White , and Australian combo, The Bona Fide Travellers. It
675-549: The Air Canada Centre in Toronto. In January 2003 Cockburn finished recording his 21st album, You've Never Seen Everything , which features contributions from Emmylou Harris , Jackson Browne , Sam Phillips , Sarah Harmer , Hugh Marsh , Jonell Mosser , Larry Taylor and Steven Hodges. Some of Cockburn's previously published material had been collected in several albums: Resume , Mummy Dust , and Waiting for
720-673: The Canadian Broadcast Hall of Fame on October 22, 2002, in Vancouver . On November 27, 2002, the CBC 's Life and Times series aired a special feature on Cockburn titled The Life and Times of Bruce Cockburn . In 2007 Cockburn received three honorary doctorates , the fourth, fifth and sixth of his career. In early May he received an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario , and later in
765-506: The Mississippi Delta . The father of the family, Henderson Chatmon, had been a "musicianer" (someone with good technical ability on his or her instrument, adept at sight-reading written music) during slavery times, and his children carried on the musical spirit. Their most famous member (although not a permanent member) was Armenter Chatmon, better known as Bo Carter , who managed a successful solo career as well as playing with
810-399: The 1920s, " I'm Sitting on Top of the World ", written by Ray Henderson , Sam Lewis and Joe Young (popularized by Al Jolson in 1926). However, the two songs are distinct, both musically and lyrically. Similarities have also been noted between "Sitting on Top of the World" and an earlier song by Tampa Red . Lyrically, "Sitting on Top of the World" has a simple structure consisting of
855-822: The Environment Award in 2010, and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012. On November 19, 2012, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada , at the 2012 SOCAN Awards in Toronto. On February 15, 2017, he received the People's Voice Award in Kansas City from Folk Alliance International . On September 23, 2017, Cockburn
900-629: The Juno for Canadian Folksinger of the Year, three years in a row, 1971–73. He was nominated for Canadian Folksinger of the Year and Male Vocalist of the Year at the 1974 Juno Awards. While Cockburn had been popular in Canada for years, he did not have a big impact in the United States until 1979, with the release of the album Dancing in the Dragon's Jaws . The album's first single, " Wondering Where
945-721: The Lions Are ", reached No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US in June 1980, earning Cockburn an appearance on NBC 's TV show Saturday Night Live . Cockburn's label, True North Records, also signed a distribution deal with Recordi Records in Italy. Through the 1980s Cockburn's songwriting became increasingly urban, global and political as he became more involved with progressive causes. His political concerns were first hinted at on
SECTION 20
#1732783791193990-610: The Mississippi Sheiks . Sitting on Top of the World " Sitting on Top of the World " (also " Sittin' on Top of the World ") is a country blues song written by Walter Vinson and Lonnie Chatmon. They were core members of the Mississippi Sheiks , who first recorded it in 1930. Vinson claimed to have composed the song one morning after playing at a white dance in Greenwood, Mississippi. It became
1035-554: The Mississippi Sheiks, in 2009. The album contains contributions from seventeen artists, including Bruce Cockburn , Bill Frisell , the Carolina Chocolate Drops , Geoff Muldaur , Kelly Joe Phelps and John Hammond . In 2013, Jack White 's Third Man Records teamed up with Document Records to issue The Complete Recorded Works in Chronological Order of Charley Patton , Blind Willie McTell and
1080-467: The Sheiks, which may have contributed to their success. When the band first recorded , in 1930, the line-up consisted of Carter, Lonnie and Sam Chatmon , and Walter Vinson . Papa Charlie McCoy (not to be confused with Charlie McCoy , a later American musician) played later, when Carter and Sam Chatmon ceased playing full-time. Lonnie Chatmon and Vinson formed the core of the group. Carter's solo work
1125-686: The Vues d'Afrique Film Festival in Montreal . It was also invited for competition at the International Festival of Environmental Films in Paris. In 2007 Cockburn's music was featured in the movie adaptation of Irvine Welsh 's best-selling novel Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance . A documentary film, Bruce Cockburn Pacing the Cage , was released in 2013 on television and a brief theatrical showing; directed by Joel Goldberg, gave
1170-497: The World". As with several of his songs, it was adapted by rock groups during the 1960s. Some rock-oriented versions showed considerable variation: a version by the Grateful Dead was played at a very fast tempo of 252 beats per minute (bpm), while Cream performed it at a very slow 44 bpm. Jack White recorded an acoustic version for the soundtrack to the 2003 film Cold Mountain . An AllMusic review included "For
1215-515: The albums: Humans , Inner City Front and The Trouble with Normal . They became more evident in 1984, with his second US radio hit, " If I Had a Rocket Launcher " (No. 88 in the US ) from the Stealing Fire album. He had written the song a year earlier, after visiting Guatemalan refugee camps in Mexico that were attacked by Guatemalan military helicopters. His political activism continues to
1260-411: The beginning of the next. After the Mississippi Sheiks original, renditions of "Sitting on Top of the World" were recorded by a number of artists. Following a recording for Bluebird Records by Milton Brown and His Musical Brownies, the song became a staple in the repertoire of country and bluegrass artists, such as Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys and Bill Monroe . Howlin' Wolf reworked
1305-534: The classic English-Canadian film Goin' Down the Road (1970), directed by Donald Shebib . In 1998 Cockburn travelled with filmmaker Robert Lang to Mali , West Africa , where he jammed with Grammy Award -winning blues musician Ali Farka Toure and kora master Toumani Diabate . The month-long journey was documented in the film River of Sand , which won the Regard Canadien award for best documentary at
1350-595: The death of songwriter Mark Heard , a close friend of Cockburn and Burnett. Cockburn frequently refers to Heard as his favourite songwriter and he was one of many artists who paid tribute to Heard on an album and video titled Strong Hand of Love . In 2001 Cockburn performed as part of the Music Without Borders concert, a benefit for the United Nations Donor Alert Appeal, which raised funds for refugees from Afghanistan, at
1395-623: The environment and the welfare of indigenous peoples. Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians writes, "Cockburn always risked an outspoken stand in his work, taking on issues and morality to the detriment of his popular appeal. No artist since Phil Ochs has taken such strong political stands." He has worked with relief agency Oxfam , travelling to Central America in 1983, and with the International Campaign to Ban Landmines . The song "Mines of Mozambique" ( The Charity of Night ) reflects his observations of that country during
Mississippi Sheiks - Misplaced Pages Continue
1440-1007: The month he received an Honorary Doctor of Letters at the convocation of Memorial University of Newfoundland for his lifelong contributions to Canadian music, culture and social activism. He was then awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Victoria in Victoria, British Columbia. Cockburn previously received honorary doctorates from York University in Toronto, Berklee College of Music , and St. Thomas University in New Brunswick . He received an Honorary Doctorate awarded by McMaster University in 2009. In June 2014, Cockburn received an honorary Doctorate of Letters from Laurentian University in Sudbury, and Doctor of Laws, Honoris Causa, from Carleton University, in Ottawa. Cockburn received Earth Day Canada's Outstanding Commitment to
1485-803: The most part, the White Stripes frontman successfully transplants himself into the [traditional country and Americana] genre, utilizing his throaty warble on Howlin' Wolf's 'Sittin' on Top of the World' like a dust-bowl carny." Bruce Cockburn Bruce Douglas Cockburn OC ( / ˈ k oʊ b ər n / KOH -bərn ; born May 27, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist. His song styles range from folk to folk- and jazz-influenced rock to soundscapes accompanying spoken stories. His lyrics reflect interests in spirituality, human rights, environmental issues, and relationships, and describe his experiences in Central America and Africa. Cockburn has written more than 350 songs on 34 albums over
1530-479: The original song convey a stoic optimism in the face of emotional setbacks, and the song has been described as a "simple, elegant distillation of the Blues". In 2018, it was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The title line of "Sitting on Top of the World" is similar to a well-known popular song of
1575-559: The performing arts. He has received thirteen Juno Awards , and in 2001, during the 30th Annual Juno Awards ceremony, Cockburn was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame . The Cockburn tribute during the awards included taped testimonials from U2's Bono , Jackson Browne , Cowboy Junkies ' Margo Timmins , and Midnight Oil 's Peter Garrett . That year he was presented with a SOCAN Folk/Roots award. The Canadian Association of Broadcasters inducted Cockburn into
1620-570: The present. His internationalist bent is reflected in the many world music influences in his music, including reggae and Latin music . In 1991 Intrepid Records released Kick at the Darkness , a tribute album to Cockburn whose title comes from a phrase in his song " Lovers in a Dangerous Time ". It features the Barenaked Ladies ' cover of that song, which became their first Top 40 hit and an element in their early success. This lyric
1665-453: The song as a Chicago blues , which Chess Records issued as a single in 1957 and later included on the popular compilation series The Real Folk Blues (1966). For the recording, he was backed by a typical blues ensemble consisting of electric guitar ( Hubert Sumlin ), piano (Hosea Lee Kennard), bass (Alfred Elkins), and drums (Earl Phillips). During performances later in his career, Howlin' Wolf often closed his sets with "Sitting on Top of
1710-468: The spring of 1968, by which time Lillie (who changed his name to Neil Merryweather ) had been replaced by Dennis Pendrith from Livingstone's Journey. Olivus opened for The Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream in April 1968. That summer Cockburn broke up the band with the intention of going solo, but ended up in the band 3's a Crowd with David Wiffen , Colleen Peterson , and Richard Patterson, who had been
1755-488: The topical "Sales Tax" (1934). Sam Chatmon made more recordings in the 1960s, and Walter Vinson contributed three selections (under the name of the Mississippi Sheiks) to Riverside's 1961 series Chicago: The Living Legends . Rory Gallagher recorded a tribute song, "The Mississippi Sheiks", for his album Photo-Finish , in 1978. Black Hen Music released Things About Comin' My Way , a tribute album to
1800-482: Was a suburb of Ottawa when he was a teenager. His father, Doug Cockburn, was a radiologist , eventually becoming head of diagnostic X-ray at the Ottawa Civic Hospital . He found his first guitar in his grandmother's attic around 1959, adorned it with gold stars, and used it to play along to radio hits. When his first guitar teacher, Hank Sims, declared this instrument unplayable, his parents bought him
1845-511: Was also referenced by U2 in their song " God Part II " from their album Rattle and Hum . Also in 1991, three of Cockburn's songs were listed in a Toronto Star survey among Toronto's top songs of all time. In the early 1990s, Cockburn teamed with T Bone Burnett for two albums, Nothing but a Burning Light and Dart to the Heart . The latter included a song, "Closer to the Light", inspired by
Mississippi Sheiks - Misplaced Pages Continue
1890-458: Was also the theme music of the film A Face in the Crowd (1957), produced by Elia Kazan and starring Andy Griffith . During their five active years, the Mississippi Sheiks recorded over seventy songs for Okeh Records , Paramount Records and Bluebird Records . Their last recording session as the Mississippi Sheiks was in 1935. Carter made a few more sessions on his own, but by 1938 he too
1935-616: Was dropped. When the band dissolved, the Chatmon brothers gave up music and returned to farming. The Sheiks and related groups, such as the Mississippi Mud Steppers and the Blacksnakes, recorded about a hundred sides in the first half of the 1930s, among them original compositions (probably by Vinson), such as "The World Is Going Wrong" and "I've Got Blood in My Eyes for You" (1931) (both recorded by Bob Dylan ), and
1980-580: Was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame at a ceremony held at Massey Hall in Toronto. On June 14, 2024, Cockburn received an Honorary Doctorate in Music from Wilfrid Laurier University . Cockburn was married from 1969 to 1980 to Kitty Macaulay and has a daughter Jenny, born in 1975, from that marriage. In his memoir, he describes the moment he became a Christian. While on vacation in Sweden with Kitty, he experienced
2025-501: Was temporarily awarded an actual rocket launcher by the military. Cockburn has stated that, while unsure of the original Invasion of Afghanistan , he supported Canada's role there . Cockburn released the studio album Small Source of Comfort in 2011. In 2018, Cockburn's album Bone on Bone , was named Contemporary Roots Album of the Year at the Juno Awards. Cockburn's songwriting is often political, expressing concern for
#192807