Lovers in a Dangerous Time

About Lovers in a Dangerous Time

"Lovers in a Dangerous Time" is a song by Bruce Cockburn, originally released on his 1984 album Stealing Fire. The song was a Top 40 hit for Cockburn, peaking at No. 25 on the Canadian charts the week of August 18, 1984. According to Cockburn, the song was inspired by seeing teenagers expressing romantic love in a schoolyard. In the song, he contrasts the hopefulness and joy of new love with the despair of a wider Cold War world where notions of the future often carried a sense of foreboding and doom. However, especially in light of Cockburn's next single "If I Had a Rocket Launcher", the song has also been interpreted by listeners and critics as referring to the same Guatemalan refugee crisis that inspired the later song, or to the then-emerging HIV/AIDS crisis. Cockburn stated in later interviews that he was pleased by both of these alternate interpretations. U2 alluded to "Lovers" in their 1988 single "God Part II", with the lyric Heard a singer on the radio late last night/He says he's gonna kick the darkness 'til it bleeds daylight. more »