Cowboy Junkies - “Miles From Our Home”
Tracks:
- New Dawn Coming
- Blue Guitar
- Miles From Our Home
- Good Friday
- Darkling Days
- Hollow as a Bone
- Someone Out There
- The Summer of Discontent
- No Birds Today
- Those Final Feet
- (untitled hidden track)
I had heard of the Cowboy Junkies for a while, but my first exposure to their music was opening up for Bruce Hornsby around 89-90 or so.
(From left): Peter Timmins (drums), Margo Timmins (vocals), Alan Anton (bass), and Michael Timmins (guitar).
The Timmins’ siblings were originally from Montreal, but from what I gather grew up in the Toronto area. (For the record one sibling, oldest brother John, is not a musician.) They formed a band and kept to quieter music given Margo’s soft voice. Most of the 7 albums prior to this were rather quiet affairs. I am sure they got louder as time went on, because there are few tunes on this album that really cook. Or as much as the CJ’s can cook. That is what led me to buy this album, after hearing the opening track and title track on the radio.
Whether the songs are slower more mellow tunes (”Blue Guitar”, “Darkling Days”, and “Someone Out There”), or more upbeat (the two mentioned before and “Hollow as a Bone”), it all good to my ears. They have very catching melodies and rhythms. The album starts out, in my opinion, with the three best tunes, the first two almost melting into each other. “Blue Guitar” is a great tune to play with the windows down on a nice cool summer day, driving on a two lane road, and not being in a hurry to get anywhere.
Lyrically the songs tackle the normal love and loss, but also social issues, questioning religious leaders and even faith and fate, whether subtly or blatantly. Sometimes, even without answers.
It all makes an enjoyable and mellow album to listen to. One I find myself popping into the player quite often.
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