World of Wonders is the fifteenth full-length album by Canadian singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn. The album was released in 1986 by True North Records. It reached No. 7 on the RPM album chart, becoming his first album to reach the top ten. "People See Through" and "See How I Miss You" both charted on the Canadian singles chart, with the former becoming a top 40 hit.
"Call it Democracy" relates to economic exploitation endured by developing countries and perpetrated by the United States and the International Monetary Fund. For the initial United States pressings of the album, the lyrics "You don't really give a flying fuck," and "IMF, dirty MF" were highlighted in bright yellow in the liner notes at the insistence of the Parents Music Resource Center. The label eliminated the yellow highlighting for later editions of the album. A music video for "Call it Democracy" was produced, which was directed by Ron Berti and produced by Total Eclipse Productions. "Lily of the Midnight Sky" features some spoken word passages from Cockburn.
Reception
Billboard wrote that Cockburn "continues his potent growth as an electric stylist" on World of Wonders. They labeled "Call it Democracy" as a "standout" on the album and predicted that radio stations would be hesitant to play the song. Kent Zimmerman of the Gavin Report thought that most of the material on World of Wonders was "a beautifully recorded piece of work." He concluded his review by saying that "the best part of World Of Wonders is its underlying subversive nature".
In a retrospective review, AllMusic critic Brett Hartenbach wrote, "World of Wonders takes you across the globe, through Berlin, Chile, parts of the Caribbean, and North America. Along the way, Cockburn, who has always been intrigued by life's contradictions, is both "dazzled... at this world of wonders" and troubled, "...when life isn't so sweet." Bruce Cockburn is a complex artist writing about complex times, and World of Wonders does a good job of capturing that."
Track listing All songs written by Bruce Cockburn.
Personnel Bruce Cockburn – vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, and charango Fergus Jemison Marsh – bass, Chapman stick Hugh Marsh – violin Jon Goldsmith – keyboards Chi Sharpe – percussion Michael Sloski – drums Michael Alan White – trumpet, flugelhorn, and conch Sharon Lee Williams – backing vocals Shawne Jackson – backing vocals Colina Philips – backing vocals Kerry Crawford – backing vocals Judy Cade – backing vocals
Production Marcel Mousette – translation Jon Goldsmith, Kerry Crawford – producer George Whiteside – photography Bart Schoales – art direction Bernie Finkelstein – direction
Chart performance Weekly charts Chart (1986) Peakposition
Year-end charts Chart (1986) PositionCanada Top Albums (RPM)45
Certifications
References