Cowboy Junkies

Wow, where to start? i had been a fan of the band since The Trinity Sessions release but had never seen them in concert. I lived in Atlanta in the late '90's and at that time and I heard they were playing in St Louis, so my wife and I went to Saint Louis to see them. Incredible show and then after the show was over, the house lights came on and we saw a small crowd gathering near the stage area. I had no idea that it was Margo and Mike signing autographs and just chatting with the crowd. Needless to say, we went up front and met Margo and Mike and talked with them a bit. That was so kool and neither gave the impression that they were in a rush or hurry to be done for the night. They must have hung out for 20 minutes or so.

As it turns out, they were playing in Atlanta about 2 weeks later. Of course we went to see them again... more prepared; I had most of their CD's so I had them signed by Margo, Mike and Alan. Since then I have seen them at least 4 more times with the two most memorable shows being at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens (this was an outdoor, early evening show) and as luck would have it, the ABG were also having a Chihuly exhibit . Simply a great evening with all the fantastic Chihuly exhibit all around the grounds and the CJ's playing a lot of their well known songs and playing a few songs from their new album "One Soul Now". The next time we saw them was when we lived in Scottsdale, AZ. I heard that the Cowboy Junkies were having a concert in San Juan Capistrano, CA. Road trip!!! The events that made this show so memorable were... visiting the Mission at San Juan Capistrano and the history associated with all of that and the fact that they were playing at the infamous Coach House... a small but great venue for a show. We were quite literally seated at a table in the very front and center of the show... literally 3' from the front of the stage. Taking it all back to my opening line..WOW!

It means a lot that the band is never too busy to talk to their fans following a show. To this very day, if the Cowboy Junkies are playing within 600 miles of where I live, we are going to their show!

Thanks to Margo and her unique voice that I describe as the sound of an angel, Mike for writing most all of the lyrics and music for their songs, Peter for his drum playing (Pete, the little brother), and Alan Anton on bass. Thanks for all of the beautiful music guys and please keep it coming!!

The Cowboy Junkies have an instantly relatable sound to them that comes across when they perform their music live. The band is very skilled at mixing different genres such as country, blues, and rock to create their own brand of sound.
Although the Cowboy Junkies are from Canada, they have a very Americana sound, which draws influence from other Canadian rocker, Neil Young. The lead guitarist and primary songwriter, Michael Timmins, plays rich, open chords on his guitar that create a deep sound. The slide guitar is delicately layered over the long drawn out chords creating a country twang to the music. The Cowboy Junkies are often very fond of the harmonica, which is frequently used and whenever it is played it makes you feel like you are getting serenaded in a saloon in the old west.
The Cowboy Junkies have a name that makes them seem tough and rugged, but their music is actually very pleasing and beautifully presented. Lead singer, Margo Timmins, has the voice of an angel, which is conveyed by her soft, soothing presentation. Her voice is clearly represented in such songs as “Misguided Angels”, which contains a musical platform that really lets Margo’s voice shine. The band jumps back and forth between genres when they perform live. At one moment a mandolin might be featured in a song to create a gentle folk song, and at another moment the organ can be heard roaring over a thumping bass line in such songs as “Miles From Our Home”. The Cowboy Junkies always play an exciting setlist, which encompasses a wide selection from their discography. They have also been known to throw in some cover songs into their setlists by such artists as Vic Chesnutt, Townes Van Zandt, The Velvet Underground, and Neil Young. For years the Cowboy Junkies have been proving themselves to be a delightful and captivating band to see live that can create anything from up tempo country rock songs or beautiful, atmospheric folk ballads.

The appealingly ethereal qualities of alt-country rockers Cowboy Junkies’ sound, which made them so popular in the alte 1980s and ‘90s, are just as haunting and beautiful today. The Canadian quartet, led by female vocalist Margo Timmins, arequite the family affair, with siblings Michael and Peter Timmins on guitar and drums respectively, and long-term friend and member or Michael’s two previous bands Alan Argo playing bass. The intimacy that you might expect from a family band who have been writing music and touring for 30-odd years definitely translates to the Cowboy Junkies’ raw, analog-era material, as well as to their live shows. When I saw them last year at Yoshi’s San Francisco, as part of their ‘Nomad Series’ tour, the intimate atmosphere of the beautiful sit-down venue made this feel like a very special gig, and the quality of their songwriting and musicianship has definitely stood the test of time. With their lilting harmonies and gently visceral guitar riffs on songs like ‘Stranger Here’, ‘Sing In My Meadow’ and ‘Shining Moon’ went down a treat with the crowd, who I could tell were all fellow dedicated fans of the Junkies. For the encore they played their breakout debut success, the cover of the Velvet Underground’s ‘Sweet Jane’, which garnered a huge reaction, as well as a later release, ‘F*** I Hate The Cold’. All in all it was a really enjoyable night of beautiful music, and the rose-bedecked stage setup and Margo’s incredible, definition-eluding vocals really made this show a treat!

I have been listening to Cowboy Junkies since XRT first started playing them. One day I heard they were doing a CD release party for Trinity Sessions after hearing them in studio, and made it to a few song set they played at a local Chicago store.

My schedule and budget have never meshed with them since, until I spent some birthday money my mom sent me in September, and bought tickets to see them 11-21-15 at the Old Town School of Folk Music. I did get a download of a Newport Jazz Fest show of theirs through a membership with Wolfgang's Vault a few years back, and I have listened to that so much I know each and every lyric, and all the between song banter. "We recorded that album in 7 hours and have made a career out of it" and "it's great to be playing here for you at 11:30 am, and we're heading home after a year and a half on the road" are examples.

I only wish I'd bought tickets for both Friday and Saturday evening's performances. The weather was certainly better for Friday's.

It is clear they enjoy what they do, and their audience does as well.

I hope they make a habit of playing multiple nights on all subsequent visits to Chicago. This was also my first performance at OTSoFM. I will be looking for future performances at this venue of performers I like. For me personally, a pretty magical night.

Do yourself a favor and see them if you've never seen them but wanted to. If you have seen them, you already know all of this, but just take every opportunity to do so again and again.

Blues is my ultimate favourite genre of music, so I was very excited to see Cowboy Junkies live who incorporate blues with country music and folk rock. With nearly 20 studio albums, I didn’t know what I was going to hear at the concert, but I knew that whatever it was going to be, I wouldn’t be disappointed.
It turned out that they managed to play a set of almost all of my favourite tracks from over the years, and I knew the words to every single number they bashed out. Margot’s beautiful voice transcended through the audience and caught everyone off guard as her voice hasn’t changed a bit over the years, and it’s even more impressive live. Their music sounds better live than on the recordings, and that can’t be said about many artists these days, so I was extremely impressed.
When they played A Few Simple Words, the crowd erupted into a frenzy of appreciation and excitement – they absolutely nailed it! As well as playing a 90 minute set, the band came back on stage for a brilliant encore which lasted another 15 minutes, and really was the best ending to what was one of my favourite gig’s I’ve ever been to.

Pretty disappointed.
First, their numbers played are vastly so called ‘new songs’ which I never heard of. So stingy on well known songs, I think they only sang like 2-3 songs at the end (including encore). Let’s admit it, this is not Billy Joel or Lou Reed. It’s a mediocre band with strong fan base. We were there to go back time. I would not go to their concert, let alone listen to their music much now.

Secondly, the place, the City Winery, was so cramming, people can hardly turn their bodies. It was just beyond imagination. Ditch the place. Sit like a real person at least and breathe.

Cowboy Junkies were spectacular!!!

Their's is a particular, distinctive sound defined by Margot Timms' voice and the musicianship of the players...

At times they moved easily through the moody sound they're known for, at others they rocked the house with powerful playing on long musical interludes; Ms Timms walked to the rear of the stage, allowing the focus to center on the band and soloists...

A spectacular performance, don't miss them if they come your way...

Saw the show live in Tokyo. Best seats, 10 feet away from Margo. This was unbelievable. Pure emotion, almost brought tears to my eyes. All those beautifull songs, from my Canadian favorite band, with one of my best friend, surrounded of cool Sophiticated Japanese in facinating Tokyo.
What else to say?
Will remember for the rest of my life.
Thanks to my friend Masako for helping me buy the tickets.

Louis from Quebec, Canada

Great show, nice venue. City Winery has great acoustics, it's a very intimate setting. The CJ put on a fantastic show, they are fine musicians and song writers, and their cover of 2 Vic Chestnutt songs was a highlight. Margot's interaction with the audience was enjoyable, her Canadian point of view of our upcoming election was light hearted and funny. I will definitely go see them again.

really a lovely show - only time i've seen junkies live and it was perfect. Margo was very present and fun - she sang beautifully and conversed with the audience. really dug their longer jams - almost The Doors like at times.

huge shoutout to Great American Music Hall for providing such a great, lounge like atmosphere.