Reviews (page 2 of 7)
On va encourager les groupes canadiens. J'aime aussi leur autre album de covers de 2022 Songs of the Recollection.
Envoûtant, j'ai aimé le tone sur les tounes blues (I don't get it, Workingon a Building, Walking after Midnight), et les traditionals. Je l'ai écouté deux fois back à back. Je me serais cru dans un film de David Lynch!
Adoré ça. Le chant presque chuchoté parfois donne une impression d’intimité réconfortante. Me fait par ailleurs penser à Low quand c’est Mimi qui chantait, avec une tite coche plus bluesy. Par ailleurs Low est un des seuls shows que j’ai vu en présence du grand JeanJean, alors c’est tout un honneur!
Loved it, the bluesyness of it is just right. I loved the re-interpretation of Sweet Jane and I'm so sad I could cry. Such a great record.
I love this. It's like...parlor country. Feels like Julee Cruz, not out of place in a David Lynch movie in some songs.
Great loved it.
Not only the album but the whole story of its making is just great
Wow!! This is one of the times that I'm grateful for this list because I wouldn't have found this album on my own. 4.5.
I missed the CJ phenomenon when they came around. Great album, songwriting and sound. All recorded live in a church?! Wild.
A mellow, bluesy album with a lead singer with a voice like an angel. It's a cliche, bit I can't think of a better description.
Zo fijne tunes, rustig, lieve vrouwenstem. 1988 5 sterren
Loved it!
Margo’s voice is a genre all its own. I don’t say this about many things, but if we can’t agree on this point, then we can’t be friends.
It's a 5* album just based on Margo's voice alone.
This was an unexpected offering from the Canadian alt rockers. The sound of the recording space, a Toronto church which gives the album its name, is like an extra band member in its own right and gives this recorded-live-with-one-mic album a rather haunting quality. The whole was not overdubbed or remixed before release. The compelling oddness of the sound and the recording method should not distract from the quality of the performances. You really do feel as if your in a hall watching a very good band rehearse. The whole feels more like folk revivalism than anything else but it’s so skilfully done that it transcends that label.
Это офигительно круто, прям как музыкальная медитация или что-то такое, очень успокаивает
408 albums in. This is the first time I've given 5 stars to an artist I've never heard of before. Very enjoyable.
Surprising excellent!
What a nice surprise find after rows of shit for weeks!
Perfectly lovely.
It was cool to hear a sound from the 80s that probably doesn't come to mind right away. People tend to think back to the new wavey or pop stuff, but as a Xenial i remember these sorts of sounds.
Favorite song: Blue Moon Revisited (Song For Elvis) The Trinity Session is going straight to my get-it-on-vinyl list. Great vibes. Love the western feel without being "country". The covers are great too - Elvis would be proud. 5 stars, no notes.
What an intro! That first track was so beautiful, and then it led to the next track and that harmonica! Ugh. I have no idea who this band is but twas very pleasant listen in the morning. Blue moon cover was chef's kiss. wait...is this another album of covers? walking after midnight has always been a favorite but damn this their version is so sexy. I'm a fan. added to my discogs wish list.
Beautiful and nostalgic for me. Can’t believe how long it’s been since I’ve listened to this album and now I need to add it to my vinyl collection
Great stuff
Great band, classic album.
Really enjoyed this record. I’ll have to check out he revisited version sometime.
That's what I call music. Solid blues from a country band.
I only knew the song from Natural Born Killers before, but wow this album blew me away
My affection for this album is high. I don't know if there's anything objective shot my rating. I love it for too many reasons.
Mmmm
Well known to me 🙂. Brilliantly recorded album.
Surprisingly nice. The voice of the singer, the music. Very good.
Well thought it was a bit naff on first listen but with the second one fell in love with it - subtle, moody, sparse - with the crowning jewel of the Sweet Jane cover. Lovely album.
I honestly loved this. The arrangements were sparse and haunting but it was beautiful in its own way. I have to assume they were heavily inspired by Nebraska because I hear a lot of similarities in the music here.
Holy shit this was different than I was expecting and a real treat. Very calming!
This was awesome. Listened through twice. Favorites were: Blue Moon Revisited, I Don't Get It, Sweet Jane, Walking After Midnight
Laid back indie country/folk, really good but I am also a sucker for good song covers. I like the singers laid back delivery.
One of the few albums I will totally forgive for being incredibly cover heavy, The Trinity Session was a game changer for me. A true masterpiece and contender for greatest debut album of all time, the fact that this trend defying gem was released at the height of the hair metal craze gives it legit punk credentials. And Margot has the voice of an angel. Unquestionably a 5.
I feel like a cowboy from a western when I listen to this. Where is my horse? 5/5
What a fantastic surprise to find this here. This is such a perfect, dreamy album. Love it, love it, love it!
This is one of my favorite albums ever, it's just so hauntingly beautiful and if you close your eyes it's as if the band is right in the room with you or maybe you're in the church while the recording sessions are taking place. Either way it's one of the most intimate recordings I've ever heard. On a more personal level, The Trinity Session was a gateway drug into country music for me, not the only one of course but it played a large part in broadening my musical horizons in that direction.
I was obsessed with this album in college, especially the song I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry and Sweet Jane. Now I find it a tad too morose for my taste - different life stages I suppose. But I recognize the bluesy/jazzy genius of the album.
This is one of my favorites. I have seen them several times over the years including their trinity session tour.
5 stars, should still be on the list.
WOW. Just wow. beautiful haunting singing and guitar work. Torch singing of the highest order. Sweet Jane brought back memories.
Yeah, I can fuck with this. I’ve been on a kick of watching slow burn movies recently, and this felt like the musical equivalent, perhaps even better because The Trinity Sessions was all burn baby, no resolution at all. It’s like the taking the longest ever drag of a post-coital cigarette
4.5/5
blue moon revisited klingt wie mitski very pretty made me very sad 5 punkte weil überraschend!
i didn't think i liked country
Hot take: the Cowboy Junkies are the North American acoustic version of Portishead. I had a buddy in college - hard-edged art major punk - who would play this album nonstop and fight people who didn’t like the Cowboy Junkies. Me? I could sink into euphoric stillness listening to Margo Timmins’ voice. I’m very happy that this album is on this list.
So melancholy. I love it.
I love this record
Oh fuck yeah! What a great album! I love the sadness of the album. It's a perfect soundtrack to a rainy day. Just like today happens to be. I love it front it to back. I've listened to this multiple times. 5 Stars!
Yes, please! Love the spare and hypnotic sound of this album. My personal fave track is "Dreaming My Dreams With You" but everything here is gold.
God, this album felt timeless. Truly, if you asked me to guess what decade this album came from, I wouldn’t be able to. Simple lyrics sung by a beautiful voice , with comforting music to accompany it. I listened to it twice, and will likely listen to it again.
Great version of 'Sweet Jane' and another interesting take on 'Blue Moon'. I played this on repeat all day and never got bored. Soft, dreamy female vocals over a sort-of modern country-type backing. Loved it.
Brilliant. Standouts: Sweet Jane, Blue Moon Revisited, I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, I Don't Get it, Walking After Midnight. 4.5
I love in this project when you get something just so wonderful that you've ignored for 35 years even though it wasn't like you didn't hear of them and didn't have their wonderful version of "Sweet Jane" floating around all that time. You mean we could have been friends all this time?
It’s a beautiful album with special sentiments for me.
With its sparse instrumentation and sultry vocals, this is a stunner from the first notes.
I must’ve heard this somewhere along the way but when I listened I was surprised at how this sounded. They have a beautiful, ethereal take on country with some really nice covers. Fantastic!
My intro to the Junkies and still one of the best. Thanks Jess!
have always loved this album, all time best
The only Cowboys Junkies album that I know. It does not rock but here it does not matter. Atmosphere is perfect (weren't the songs recorded in a church or so) Timeless classic.
Holy shit.
5? 5.
YESSSSSSS mining for gold- shaft. sorry. she has a beautiful voice. um idk 6 misguided angel- harmonica. smile. 6. um i dont have a lot to say it makes me think of red dead. blue moon revisited- im already swaying and shit. 7. i dont get it- they live up to the cowboy part. 5 or 6 i got sleepy im so lonesome i could cry- its nice but can hold my attention. you need to be in a mood for this album. 5 or 6 to love is to bury- 7. its sweet 200 more miles- kinda boring. 5 dreaming my dreams with you- sunday type shit. 6 or 7 working on a building- me in my minecraft. god told her to build a building? bokay. 5 kinda boring sweet jane- YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS 10. i dont need to explain. HEAVENLY WINE AND ROSES SEEM TO WHISPER TO ME WHEN YOU SMILE postcard blues- idk like um its cool i dont know im just tired man 5. ill listen to it again later to see if i like it OW OW SUDDEN CHEST AND STOMACH PAIN I SHOULDNTVE SAID IT WAS ONLY 5 walking after midnight- harmonica. more swinging. 7 or 8. ummmm idk its a good album you just need to be in a certain mood or have just shot up. um yeah.
A very bluesy, atmosphere-setting album. I really enjoyed the from start to finish.
That voice...so ethereal....like it's floating above the room. This album was very cool and one that I'd never heard all the way through before. Loved it and will listen again and again. right now actually.
Ready to listen again
surprised by how much i enjoyed this!
I didn't know much about the Cowboy Junkies before this. They are Canadian - which is a great start. The first track of this album is a beautiful solo acapella by Margo Timmins. This album is right up my alley. Soulful, country/folk music with subtle harmonies.
Timeless beauty
18 year old me knew enough that I was supposed to like this. I’d play Sweet Jane on my college radio station. Or Walking After Midnight. But in all honesty.. as the song said (different tense).. I didn’t get it. 53 year old me gets it. This is really, really good and I’m glad I was reintroduced to it. It’s added to my library and will be listening to it much more.
This was excellent. Atmospheric, kind of distant sounding. Like you were listening to it from the next room, but in a cool way. The originals and the covers blend into each other.
I used to listen to this to go to sleep for years when I was younger. Never not a 5 star!
That was wholly unexpected, and entirely spellbinding and magnificent. One of this music journey's treasures.
Woah I think this is the first time I've ever been seduced by an album, mamma mia. This thing exudes sex appeal in all the right ways.
I’ve never heard of Cowboy Junkies before, but I’d say it’s reasonable to assume a degree of psychedelia. The album art doesn’t give much in terms of what to expect. A quick Google says this was all recorded in a church with all the members stood around one microphone. That’s pretty interesting. Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Blue Moon Revisited, Sweet Jane I’d say that this album could be considered country/folk. I never thought I’d find myself loving an album with country vibes, but this was quite wonderful. The vocals sound genuinely angelic. Considering all of the instruments are supposedly recorded at once around one microphone, it sounds incredible. Perhaps it’s because I’ve been reading a lot about druids, but this felt quite bardic. I loved this.
Get album, ja lyssna de 3 gånger, utrop kopojke musik
L'oracle disait vrai
la voix de la chanteuse c’est un 12/5
Skillfully crafted, beautiful, ethereal... but it's not really foreground music, is it? This is the sort of album you put on to induce a calm mental state while you get something else accomplished.
The Sweet Jane cover is rightfully a classic but I'll always be a sucker for anything that wears its Toronto on its sleeve.
I had a different impression of what this band would sound like. But this album was very sweet.
This was a really great surprise. An atmospheric and moody country album that just really drew me in. Loved the mix of original songs and covers - and that the covers weren't just traditional standards, but drawing from bands like Velvet Underground.
I love Margo Timmins voice. I like how Cowboy Junkies disturbed the alternative rock scene by lowering the volume. I love their music taste that shows in the songs they cover. I love their original music. They are one of a kind. They started a quiet revolution and opened the door for the alternative country scene that stumbled in after them. I saw them play in the 90s at my favorite grubby club and it was the first and only time I saw them put folding chairs out on the floor. The Cowboy Junkies demand that you sit and listen. Please be quiet.
i keep running into this issue with this website of "Yes this is a great album but is it a YOU HAVE TO HEAR IT BEFORE YOU DIE!!!!!!!" And though i like this album this is not that.
Scratched an itch I didn’t know I had. Kind of a Canadian Mazzy Star but uniquely its own thing. Great vocals, great covers.
Finding this in high school really opened my mind to what kind of music I enjoy. I like slow, sad music. This hits.
I love alt country, and I also have an affinity for late 80s indie music. It's so outside what was popular at the time, and the Trinity Sessions is a great example of what non-commercial artists were doing at the time.
An awesome, dense album from a band I’ve never heard of before.
I enjoyed this more than expected. Mellow.
They seemed to have cornered the market on the hushed rock and vocals niche (although Billie Eilish does it now as well). Rock music for the Sunday morning brunch. So easy to listen to; and Sweet Jane is a classic.
Mining For Gold - 3/5 Misguided Angel - 4/5 Blue Moon Revisited (Song For Elvis) - 4.5/5 I Don't Get It - 3/5 I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry - 3.5/5 To Love Is To Bury - 3.5/5 200 More Miles - 3/5 Dreaming My Dreams With You - 3.5/5 Working On A Building - 3.5/5 Sweet Jane - 3/5 Postcard Blues - 3.5/5 Walking After Midnight - 4.5/5
This album has that "moving cross country as a child at 5 AM before the sun has risen and you're looking out of the rear windshield at your childhood home for the last time" type energy. Haunting yet somehow very calming. I can see why so many people are associating this with Lynch.
Lekker maar wel wat gezapig op een gegeven moment
It's ok, sister, I don't get it either. But here we are. The universe doesn't really care, does it? Very pretty. I was expecting country and got blues. Not mad at it. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I went to put out my trash cart this morning before sunrise and there was a chicken walking around my yard and driveway. I live in a city. Where did this chicken come from?
It's an interesting album. I can see why they call it Alternative Country music. It sounds like rock and country with the country sound being more prevalent. It's a pretty good album overall. I like the cover of Sweet Jane by The Velvet Underground.
A chill indie rock album the whole way through. It's not interesting enough to get all the way up to a 5/5, though I enjoyed it from beginning to end. 4/5
Relaxing, pleasant, sleepy
I really liked this, it was very chilled and pretty. Great for an early lazy sunny morning.
Relentlessly lonesome and melocholy, but also imediate and beautiful.
first album i've enjoyed in a little while, i'm a sucker for a harmonica whilst simultaneously fighting the allegations of loving white-boy-blues. Can safely say that the Cowboy Junkies are better than that
This was clearly influential - it was like listening to Cigarettes After Sex but 30 years in advance - and I did appreciate the change of pace. I could have done without Blue Moon (Man City have ruined that song) but, partisan football allegiances aside, it was a good listen and a pleasing bit of variety.
What a nice change of pace this was. For a list that seems to celebrate more maximalist approaches to music, that this was centred on a number of musicians gathered around one microphone and a much more rudimentary approach this was welcome. Slow, but methodical, I’m sure some could see this as being boring but I can really hear the influence of something like this on other slowcore bands like ‘Low’. Sometimes less is more.
3.58
Loved this. I think you have to be in the right setting for it. Rainy day music or nighttime as long as you’re not driving. Beautiful music. The steel guitar was great.
I'd give it 4.5 if I could. Super mellow and nice.
Restrained and quietly beautiful although hardly a toe tapping food time. Their version of Patsy Clines Walking After Midnight is an absolute cracker.
Beautiful voice
Not sure if it’s the lack of sleep or the stress of having my flight rebooked five times but I quite liked this Also the band is canadian! And I’m going to canada! And I’m quite behind of ratings but I’ll use this weekend to catch up
this was a deligtful inclusion, never heard of them before
Beautiful, relaxed music for a sunny day
Good album. The sound is intimate. Margo's voice is great. I liked what someone said about this being somehow reminiscent of some David Lynch stuff. I "don't love" the fact that the song I enjoyed the most is a cover ("Sweet Jane"), but it's still a very good album. I'd say clearly 4 stars. I like this kind of slow music where you can basically hear every instrument an every note. It feels really "jazzy". Some of my favourite songs: "Blue Moon Revisited", "I'm so lonesome I could cry", "To Love is To Bury", . One of the best surprises I've had since embarking on this project.
Das Album lebt von seiner zerbrechlichen Ruhe: Eine Stimme, der warme Raumklang, die entschleunigten Country‑Balladen. Das hat eine hypnotische Schönheit. Gleichzeitig wirkt das Album über die volle Länge sehr gleichförmig, fast zu sanft, um wirklich zu fesseln.
Not super familiar but this was awesome
Very pretty, slow-burning songs, almost with a pastoral feel to it. Individually the songs are really good but as a whole listen it can get a bit tiring. I can easily see this becoming someone's personal favorite. Maybe even mine in the future, who knows.
Loved the singer's voice (finally a woman!). Really liked the sound of the music and the chill vibes. Thought I would maybe give this five stars, my first. But then the harmonica came in... Which is one of my least favorite instruments.
If there’s a genre called “ambient Americana”, this album is its example. Gorgeous, atmospheric, and slow — slow in a good way, a slow that says ‘we’re in no rush here, sink in’. Margo Timmons’ lush voice builds a hypnotic vibe that infuses these songs with sad sweetness. Lou Reed understood that ‘Sweet Jane’ belongs to the Junkies now. I didn’t want it to end.
From the first couple seconds of the first track I was prepared for this album to make me feel sad and melancholy, and it did not disappoint!
Woooah. This was a surprise. I looove dynamic range. Loved the singing, the beautifully recorded, and played instruments, the atmosphere, everything. What a way to celebrate 1000th album. Strooong 4. Might be a 5 with a few more listens.
A one-take “live” album whose slow, relaxed, but sometimes dark Americana (yes I recognize they’re Canadians) remains so compelling even upon repeated listening because of the power compressed in that laconic pace. If feels as if it will explode at any moment.
3.5 stars I knew nothing about this band (except unbeknownst to me their “Sweet Jane” cover). The vibe of this album did it for me. The tone was set and I dug it. Still a bit overlong and I didn’t necessarily love all of it, but all in all it’s a good find and I’d revisit it in the right mood.
Good
Dope
God the mixing on this... If I want to hear the vocals I have have my ears blasted out by harmonica! You absolutely *can* tell this was recorded on only one microphone (in a bad way!) Overall it was really good still and I enjoyed it when I wasn't frantically slamming my thumb on the volume down button
Beautiful vocals and song writing, I especially loved Postcard Blues and To Love Is To Bury
Beautiful Enough said.
nothing mindblowing to me but i see why this was so important for its time. a great mood throughout.
The pedal steel on this is great. The recording is warm and soothing, as are the vocals. Standout (mostly because the others are mixed really low volume) tracks: "To Love Is to Bury", "Sweet Jane", "I Don't Get It"
well now i’m sad
country mit erträglicher instrumentalisierung und tempo.
Ein schönes Album
Intimate and moody, this album was a great sleepy listen in the morning. Strings and steel guitar gave this album a huge boost.
Good lyrics, recording and female singer.
Muy buen álbum. Fue grabado todo de una en una iglesia en Toronto. Se siente la atmósfera serena, muy natural. Es una fusión muy copada de blues + country. Overall, goosebumps, especialmente Postcard Blues.
Okay, so, this was the album that reminded me you really need to pay attention to what activity you're performing while listening to an album in order to properly enjoy it, provided you're not solely listening to the album with nothing else going on.
I loved this
I wonder what I have been confusing this with for the last 30 years. Very glad to be corrected!
4/5
Gear: Moondrop Variations Artwork: 🛋️🔲📸 Production: 😌👂🧈 Music: 🪕👻🌆 Rating: 🤠🤠🤠(🤠)/5
Mining for Gold - 10/10. Stunning voice singing about the life of people from my home (Coal country). Perfection. Misguided Angel - 9/10. Beautifully simple. Blue Moon Revisited - 8/10. A very different take on the Rogers and Hart standard. Again, beautiful. I Don't Get It - 8/10. Very nice. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry - 10/10. A voice like this covering Hank Williams is a choice. It's perfection. To Love is to Bury - 9/10. Hauntingly beautiful. 200 More Miles - 8/10. Very nice. Dreaming My Dreams With You - 7/10. Very pretty. Working on a Building - 8/10. Simple and clean. Sweet Jane - 8/10. A very nice Lou Reed cover. Postcard Blues - 9/10. Incredible. Walking After Midnight - 9/10. Love the intro. Again, a Patsy Cline cover is a choice, and her voice gives it an almost sultry feel, which is not a thing I knew I needed, but, apparently, I did. Overall Rating - 4.29/5 (8.58/10). How have I never heard of this group before? Not only are the arrangements stripped down to the minimal essentials, but the blend is perfection. This almost sounds like country music projected through a lens of David Lynch.
A caring one
Very Interesting
Very beautiful record. Twin peaks minus synths. I love the recording quality. The human performances. Her voice is great. I’m sure Lana del Rey loves this. Surprised I’ve never heard before.
This record is special if you’re a Canadian of a particular age and with particular music tastes if that makes sense. It stood out as a low fi recording in 1988. It reminds me of the Canadian short stories we read in high school that tended to be about rural living that we groaned about but secretly enjoyed. This album was a harbinger that the winds of popular culture were about to shift. It’s the first version of Sweet Jane I ever heard, and for my money the only one I care to hear.
Beautiful alt-country, folk-tinged niceness. It was very much up my street, if a little overly earnest and lacking in grit to get into the really high marks. The vocals were superb though, and it was a lovely album to listen to while I was working. One to come back to on the regs.
I am a self-proclaimed not-a-country fan, but like Americana and folksy music… because I like to be contradictory or something, I guess. This is the soft kind of Americana/country I can get behind. Great for a soft evening.
7/10… melancholy / melow country / *1990
Love it.
Still love this album. Slow everything down, slower than you'd think necessary. Add a languorous voice, dreamy, sexy, inviting. A great combination. It's not perfect but it is better than most everything else. 4 easy stars.
Это лучшее кантри, что я слышала
This has some excellent haunting vocals and the band sounds really good. The church recording seems to have elevated everything, each instrument just seems to pop just a little bit more, not to mention the foot taps on Postcard Blues. It’s definitely a slow burn, an album deserving of a bit of patience. The Sweet Jane cover was really well done too. This was a cool discovery today, accompanied the dreary weather nicely. 4 stars
Really nice and mellow album with a great sound (bearing in mind this was all recorded live on a microphone or two in an old church.
Dreamy! Great sweet Jane cover too
I'm embarrassed to admit that I don't think I knew of this band at all, and I am Canadian and love 'CanCon'. I really love the laid back bluesy, folky sound. I can see why some may call this too slow, or boring, but I dig it. Her voice is haunting and suits this kind of music. Really liked that Sweet Jane cover
This album has a nice atmospheric vibe that is somehow better than the band
A bit slow in places but I enjoyed how chill it is
Liked this a lot, blues, folky, but doesn't sound old
Smooth jazz. Nice voice
I came to the Cowboy Junkies on The Caution Horses — an album that is the better representation of the band's own capabilities and constraints which is something I appreciate (and that prevents, say, Blue Moon). But having said that, when you gather talented folks in the Church of the Holy Trinity to perform originals and covers alike in front of a single mic, well, it can be something special. Margo Timmins's voice breaks my heart wide open whenever she wants and there is plenty of that on this recording. Easily sits next to Springsteen's Nebraska for a two album listening session also which is a vibe I go in for despite all the reasons I shouldn't.
Listened to this while playing Kinfire Delve. I lost. I was immediately mesmerized with this album. The opening a capella track perfectly set the mood for what was to follow. I was completely unfamiliar with this group before, but definitely enjoyed the whole album. Solid.
Lovely sound, lovely voice
A nice surprise. Slow but beautiful and a little bit haunting with the right amount of country twang and a gorgeous Beth Gibbons esque voice. The Elvis tribute is fucking awesome.
Very enjoyable album. Liked the covers and originals from this alt band from college days.
One of the slower CJ albums but I like the mood
Have you ever heard of quiet, introspective blues? That’s what Cowboy Junkies do in this album. Beyond their famous VU cover, this work brings a lovely atmosphere. The voice is so inviting and - my gosh- the guitar tone. Intimate
Oh, these sweet melodies and strumming were a salve to my broken nervous system today. I’d like to return to this. I especially liked the cover of “Sweet Jane.”
Those covers!
swoon
I happen to really like The Cowboy Junkies and I am hooked on their version of Sweet Jane, Album, however is a bit too mellow but still worth a listen to from time to time.
sounds like the david lynch country music
I don’t love the singing in this as it initially reminds me of a better version of Jan from the office, and it is throwing me off. Other than this, the album is genuinely perfect. Some of the tracks sound really hymnal which works really well with the bluesy rock theme, the covers are beautiful, sweet Jane in particular and the originals are just as good. The use of the pedal steel guitar you can hear throughout, for example on I’m so lonesome, gives the album a real old school country feel without being boring. It is seriously impressive in that the entire album was recorded in one day and the final tracks weren’t mixed or edited at all afterwards, the way they’ve managed to make raw recordings sound so perfect and polished is amazing.
Now what do we have her. We are minors 💯. This is interesting. Alternative country huh? Lotta Canadians in this life represent. This is sad wait. Does it pick up I don't wanna be morose at the Oilers game. This doesn't really give me very country vibes but I guess I'm used to more pop country than anything. I like this. Typa thing playing from the jukebox as I'm drowning my sorrows in a run down country bar. What happened to these guys holy moly. Nothing to smile about in my life. This reminds me a little of Mitski actually. I really like the strings. I'm a sucker for strings on an album tbh. This is haunting I really like it. This is more folk than country to me tbh. I really like it. I love her crooning. Favourite: To Love Is To Bury Least favourite: Mining For Gold
As with a lot of things recently, lovely background music with some nice harmonica moments, nothing to write home about but nice enough, 3.5* up to 4!
Cowboy Junkies were part of the soundtrack of my 20’s, so I have a soft spot for this album. Mix of great original music (“Misguided Angel”) and great covers (“Sweet Jane”)
So calm and kind of lazy, i almost fall asleep, but a nice change for those cozy calm days
Country music for a late night smokey night club. Gentle, lyrical, lullaby-esqyes
I really liked her voice. The cover of Sweet Jane might be better then the original. A good album for a grey Monday.
A very good album. The voice is incredible, and the sparse arrangements make it very nice to listen to (if in the right mood.)
Mood hyper cool et chill, j'aime bien la voix qui est très bien accompagnée par les instruments.
Overall: 8/10 It took a few songs for this to click for me, but those vocals are just so gorgeous that I started to really enjoy this. Seeing the name Cowboy Junkies gave me a certain expectation of what this album might sound like, but I was completely wrong. It's very slow and ethereal, not the type of honky tonk stuff I'm used to with country. This is the country I like. Fav Song: Dreaming My Dreams with You
Very cool. Listening to this album felt like being in a David Lynch movie. In a good way. There’s more covers than I expected of old country and bluegrass songs but they sound great in this moody bluesy alt-country style. Great!
Just my style :-)
I went in with low expectations, and came out pleasantly surprised. I thought it sounded beautiful, and all the performances were good. I may have to revisit to really absorb it, but I'm happy to give this a 4 on first listen.
4.5
Wasn’t expecting to like this so much
So fucking sad
It's a vibe huh. Beautiful haunting vocals and instrumentation
This album is an entire vibe. The kind of band you want to catch accidentally in a small jazz club, just ducking in out of the wind and snow, stoned and enraptured. Calm, dark, and confident, like a pulp fiction detective smoking in a midnight alleyway, this album caught me off guard in the best way. I had heard their version of “Sweet Jane” on the Natural Born Killers soundtrack back in the late 90s (still one of the best soundtracks ever compiled), but every one of the tracks on this collection of songs is incredible.
I quite enjoyed this. Didn’t know what to expect but it was pretty decent
A beautiful album, dripping in atmosphere, with gorgeous, sultry vocals and interesting, sparse instrumentation. But like a near-perfect meal with too much salt, it becomes a bit one-note, oppressively slow and somber.
This was quite pleasant
Good stuff; had to pull out the vinyl and hear it on that as well
This is a good one. She has an amazing voice, and the quality of the recording with its reverb and warm tones is fantastic. Put this one on and just chill.
Há momentos interessantes, embora seja um pouco difícil (para mim) se manter totalmente atento durante toda a jornada.
This was not what I was expecting. I liked it quite a bit. They have a really cool raw sound. Nothing sounded overproduced. It felt like I was watching them live in a tiny venue. I loved the way the instruments flowed together and her voice is lovely.
This was cool. I liked it first go around, then kind of got bored on relisten. It was definitely not was I had expected. I really like the raw nature of this. Recording totally live, which is really cool. I also really like the covers. I had a blast with this record, but I’m also a sucker for alt country.
I'd heard Sweet Jane for decades, but never really gave these guys a shot... even when I got really interested in folk and Americana stuff in the past few years. I thought I would love this, but for whatever reason I just didn't vibe with the voice of the lead singer.
I hated this album when I was young. Too slow. Too dull. Now I'm older and wiser and appreciate the fact that they set out to create the best album ever for late 80s proto-hopsters to fuck to.
I liked this, especially her voice
first listen wow there is so much diversity here
I liked this a surprising amount
This was a sensational album.
I really enjoyed this a lot. A relaxed but melancholy take on country blues with a bit of alt rock thrown in there for good measure. The cover of Sweet Jane is great, the lead singer has a wonderfully smokey voice and the playing is very atmospheric. Here is where I have to complain that the five star rating system here is sub par. 4 stars feels too low for an album of this quality, but if I give every album that is just 'very good' 5 stars it feels rather devalued. My personal rule is that I reserve a 5/5 for an album that makes me want to run out and by a hard copy. This one isn't quite there, I will definitely pick it up if I see it in the wild but I'm not seeking it out.
Sultry, quiet covers and originals take this iconic album into a whole new genre that I don't believe the Junkies anticipated. 4/5
Smooth, jazzy blues with a strong bass. I could listen to them all night, every night. 4.5/5
This album blew my nonexistent expectations completely out of the water. A beautiful take on one of my favorite Elvis songs (Blue Moon Revisited) and a solid re-imagining of Velvet Underground's Sweet Jane. And on top of that some great bluesy / country-rock jams. Favorites outside of the covers were the slow blues of I Don't Get It, soft almost Portishead-like I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry, and delightfully jazzy Working On a Building. This scratched a certain itch. High 4.
Melancholy
An album that I forgot about but always enjoy when it crosses my path.
Quiet,slow,haunting vocals. Really good album
Schöne ruhige Musik, "Alternative Country"
Calm, quiet and powerful. Definitely liked it.
Music for a Generation X after-afterparty
Beautiful album, not at all what I expected. I didn't even know to expect a female lead singer. I'll be looking to add this to my vinyl collection soon.
Gorgeous
This is another group I was familiar with but never really dug into. I knew their cover of “Sweet Jane” (which I’ve always loved) and their haunting “Blue Moon” medley, but that was about it. Listening to The Trinity Session now, it’s striking how different it feels from most of the late ’80s style of the time - sparse, intimate, and beautifully restrained. The atmosphere is so natural it almost feels like you’re sitting in that church with them. It’s timeless in the best way: an album that could be put on at any moment and feel completely right.
Does this mean that I like country now? Cracking album, perfect for a late night dog walk
8.5/10 veryyy nice. very soothing as well. haven’t listened to anything like it before
'I don't get it' is not only one of the best songs on this album and best songs I've heard in a while. It is also my response to some of these reviews. I had never heard of the band before but consider me convinced. They used one microphone? They recorded in a church? Awesome. The lead singer does a lot of heavy lifting here, her vocals are heavenly and seem to float on the accompanying arrangement. But the backing band isn't bad by any means, they just aren't the main show and they know it. -1 for being Canadian.
Strange
Half of this album is spectacular, but there are a few songs that drift too close to country for my liking. But I really like the singer's voice, and overall, I like the vibe of the album. I'd love to give it 3.5 stars, but there are too many country-adjacent songs for me to feel comfortable giving it 4 stars - even though half the album absolutely deserves it. Actually, looking back at some of the albums I've given 3 stars that I just thought were moderately listenable, I'm giving this 4 stars because I actually really liked most of it.
Sleepy heaven. Margo’s voice is pure as prayer and Sweet Jane will always have my heart.
This really caught on second listen. I was unfamiliar with this artist. Major Mazzy Star vibes. I dig
Faith by George Micheal and the Dirty Dancing Soundtrack spent nearly a combined 23 weeks on top of the Billboard 200 in 1988. Other notable artists with consecutive weeks on the chart are the likes of Def Leppard, Guns 'n Roses, and Bon Jovi. And then there is the Cowboy Junkies. Tapping into something completely counter to the popular culture. With a sound like Joan Baez on benzos, the Junkies present melancholic yet saccharine melodies that float past you like blue smoke in a haze filled room. Though the slow pace and toned down sound may not appeal to everyone, it is clear that the Junkies had tapped into something special that would echo on in artists like Mazzy Star, Portishead, Chris Issak, and even Radiohead. Songs like "Mining for Gold" tie them into their folk and country roots, but they make it clear that they are doing something new and different with tracks like "Blue Moon Revisited". Lastly, this album hosts probably one of the best covers ever written with "Sweet Jane".
Beautiful, stripped down, permanently enjoyable twangy country but in the best way. 3.5/5
Haunting at times, bluesy at times, beautiful all the times. I love it
This really surprised me. Folk done right
chillig
i’m not a fan of country, yet i liked this one (probably because it’s not really a country album). it’s slow, yet not boring and the sensual blues energy feel so great
enjoyed listening, a few songs I think ill listen to again. To love is to bury reminded me of the Ethel cain song nettles
Recording in a church under false pretenses is the coolest thing you can do in a church, but with a vocalist who sounds like she can be the moody member of your choir, the officials shouldn't sweat it too much. This basically stays in one gear the entire time and could use a bit more variety. But the playing is cool, the sound they got out of the environment works, and Margo Timmins's voice is aces. No mixes, edits, or overdubs. Your fave WISHES.
4.5
I really enjoyed this album
Loved the Sweet Jane cover. Fun to read about the unusual recording process too.
So soothing. I liked having it in the background.
Another pleasant surprise from the algorithm. Really enjoyed this and will look up other albums from this group.
It's actually quite lovely, but I'm in the mood for something more upbeat.
Nice and mellow, beautiful female vocals. 90s version sweet Jane from natural born killers i think. Good album.
There's a lot to like here. Really like the instrumentation and she has a lovely voice but find her delivery just too laid back. Favourite track...Don't Get It...Great harp. Some pretty melancholy stuff.
Отличная запись, с головой погружает в свою атмосферу. Очень романтичные блюзовые мелодии, тягучие гитарные риффы, при этом ненавязчивые, иногда встречается гармошка и слайд, что всегда хорошо. Однозначно ништяк
Good soft blues
4.1/oddly beautiful
I am glad I gave this a couple listens, at first I thought it was beautiful sounding but I didn’t connect with it. Now I get it and think it is a beautiful coherent album full of emotion. The vocals are stunning and works perfectly with the band. I am not typically a country music person but I like this quite a bit.
Sehr smoother Sound, absolut nicht Hausputz geeignet
Toll, 1001 Albumgenerator denkt schon Country sei meine Lieblingsmusikrichtung. Nun kommt ein Country Album und ich finds einfach richtig fantastisch. Kann man nichts machen.
I listened to this on a rainy Sunday morning and it was the perfect soundtrack. I think it's definitely an album where I would need to be in the right mood to really enjoy it but it's definitely worth making the time for.
Never heard of this band before and initial expectations were low. But despite not being my usual style, this is some really high quality stuff. Add to that the pretty cool/impressive way this album was recorded. A nice little gem and the kind of album that makes this project worthwhile.
I quite like this one - can't quite believe it's all recorded on one night on one mic - seems too much stereo for that. Class album though. No nothing about the band, singer has a great voice.
4/5 - surprisingly good
This was a surprise. I'm sure I've heard a few of these songs nestled into a TV show here or there, but I couldn't have told you anything about Cowboy Junkies before today. Now I know they are the foundation of any David Lynch (or David Lynch inspired) project’s soundtrack. It's not music that you'd sit and watch... If they were playing any venue larger than a bar, I don't think I'd go. But as sad background music (especially for drinking), you could do a lot worse. I could easily see myself listening to this on a quiet Saturday morning/evening at home, or while cooking dinner after a long day.
Had heard of them but never listened. I’m into it
Not what I was expecting at all. Cool mellow tunes that have some bite. The sort of laid back music that got bastardised by every shallow advertising exec and slapped onto every fecking advert to show how 'cool' there brand is...I'm looking at you M and S!!!!
The air left my lungs as The Trinity Session swung into gear. Where did this album come from, and how did it arrive in 1988? This is pitch-perfect atmospheric country-folk rock, if such a genre exists. Any of these songs could have been used on Twin Peaks, or a David Lynch western noir movie if he had ever bothered to make one. The plaintive longing you can hear across each of the songs is devastatingly sad, but what a mood it cultivates. I'm so glad I discovered the Cowboy Junkies through this listening exercise.
This is a good album. It's an interesting mix of country, blues, and alternative. I had only ever heard the song "Sweet Jane" previously. There are a few great covers of old songs as well. There is only 1 song I didn't like - the rest of the album is good. The lead singer Margo Timmins has a very soft and wistful voice. The album is very melancholic, but pleasant to listen to. Best Songs Mining For Gold Misguided Angel Blue Moon Revisited (Song For Elvis) I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry Sweet Jane Walking After Midnight
A great collection of classic folk and blues songs sung in an open church create quite a haunting and larger than life atmosphere for this wonderful album. Full of melancholy and sorrow it is sure to evoke the feels. I'd only heard their cover of "Sweet Jane" and was unsure if I would like this album or not, but was pleasantly surprised!
I liked this a lot, spent the whole day listening to it
It's spacious and gives a sense of the space, the event of it being performed and recorded. Perfect low-tempo background for when the lights get dimmed. I put it on while working on photo editing - perfect brain-out listening. I loved it.
Haunting opening track. Just stripped vocals with a little reverb. Emotional use of harmonica. Percussion has a jazz like quality to it.
Great vibes and some great covers, but a little too slow and samey to actively listen to. Porch music but not headphone music.
Very enjoyable album. Beautifully performed and recorded.
Dreamy, great vocals
never even heard of them but actually really enjoyed
This is an album that lives and dies on its vibes and atmosphere. If you're not digging both or either of those things, you're probably in for a bad time. Which isn't to say that there's nothing to admire on a deeper level about this thing, particularly on the technical and performance side. Just consider that everything here was recorded live into a single microphone, with no additional mixing, overdubbing or even editing — so claims the sleeve notes, anyway. There was clearly a lot of work they had to put into playing everything correctly and balancing all of the instruments without the luxury of a console to work with later. That **is** something pretty neat to keep in mind while you're listening. But of course, to most people, that'd just be trivia. A big ol' "Did you know?" to dump on 'em after hearing some of the album and go "Oh, that's neat" about. What's still more important here is, of course, the music itself. And, boy howdy, I sure hope you like melancholic country folk songs at chill tempos,'coz that's what you're getting. The album is a mixture of originals and covers, ranging from a Hank Williams tune all the way to one from The Velvet Underground, and to me, honestly, it doesn't matter which track is what. Which is like, I don't wanna come in here and say the lyrics are wholly unimportant, but like I said above, this an album that relies heavily on its vibes and atmosphere to carry it. To my ears, it's more worth considering this thing in a purely instrumental way, like I would a shoegaze or a straight-up ambient album. Y'know: wallpaper, as I've taken to calling it. A sound to fill the air and make everything less boring. And in that sense... Yeah, I rather like it. It's not my favoritest country album, but there's a fair bit about it I rather like. Margo Timmins is a rather lovely singer, for one. There's some great accordion across this thing, and being the Weird Al fan I am, I tell yah, I do appreciate some good accordion. On a similar level, the harmonica, pedal steel and fiddle that pop up are pretty nice as well... And, heck, let me remind you: I do just generally like country music. I'm never terribly picky about it, and although this is folky alt-country and not the regular stuff... Yeah, no, it still has that sound to it that I like to hear. It ain't no George Jones or Shania Twain, but it still does rather nicely. I'm not gonna tell you I'm over the moon for this album or whatever. It's good, though maybe a bit too close to slowcore for me to fully embrace. Regardless, however, it's a nice, chill little time, and I can't say I didn't enjoy it while it was on. Not bad for a buncha Canadians huddled up in a church.
Just a nice, chill country record to relax to. 4.5 bumped down to 4.
I’m at a 4. I really like the approach this album goes for: sort of an MTV Unplugged vibe, given that these all seem to be recorded live outside of a studio, around just one microphone capturing everything. It leads to a much more intimate feel to each track, but without a crowd & a very minimalist approach to the instrumentation, the enjoyment of this album boils down to “How long can you withstand the style?” That’s where I’m at a 4 – I love this style, but 52 minutes of it does eventually wear its welcome. The vocals are great, but they never really get into a higher, more emotionally-driven register, so her crooning, slower style feels far less effective by Track 12 than it does on the first 6 or 7 tracks. The instrumentation is great, but the minimalist approach feels less effective; this, however, was very easily avoidable had they just stuck to the added sounds of violins & steel guitars that they introduced on Tracks 5 and 6, but they never really use them to their full extent. It leaves very open gaps in the soundscape of each track that just feel empty for the sake of “ambience” that, again, loses its effectiveness. I can’t really speak to the lyrics, since a lot of these are covers, but I do wish they had chosen a few more tracks that leaned into the Americana side of country that I typically enjoy. That’s just personal preference, though. However, for all of those complaints, it’s still a very nice album. Hell, it’s a really enjoyable listen – only a few tracks get that dry to the point of feeling boring, but in terms of the soundscape & overall mood of the album, the intimacy DOES feel really nice at first. I wish it found a way to keep up the mood throughout the entire album, but even when it starts to falter, these aren’t bad tracks. The album experience just sort of drags on, but they’re all enjoyable individually. If you’re the type of person who can enjoy the full 52 minutes without any complaints, then power to you. I think it’s a super unique recording, most of which I did like, and I can’t bring myself to go any lower than a 4. I feel like I need to listen to more of these guys.
Pretty good.
I tend to think of this one as a solid, if unspectacular, alt-country album. But for some reason, it's really working for me this morning. I never realized just how good a song "Misguided Angel" is! The album also sounds so so desolate, which dovetails nicely with my current mood of "it's been weeks since the last time I saw my friends". The only issue is that I've never liked their version of "Sweet Jane" nearly as much as everyone else does, and also their cover of "Walking After Midnight" isn't quite Patsy-level.
⭐️Blue Moon Revisited
4/5. Quite good.
This was not quite what I was expecting based on seeing this was "alt-country." This feels more like old timey gospel and folk ballads to me than anything subverting the country genre. It reminds me a lot of Low. That being said this was great and I really enjoyed it.
One of my favorite versions of Sweet Jane
Looking at the reviews for this I think it's been judged a bit harshly. In my opinion it's a beautifully put together and well considered album. It's not blowing the roof off of any venues but it's not trying to. Even the criticisms about it being 'just another blues/folk/country' album I don't think are fair. There's a lot of nuance in the way it blends those genres, plus others. It's not going to be on my regular rotation but I did really enjoy it
Ambiant, avec juste assez de mordant, et une voix vibrante et veloutée (le mot n’est pas galvaudé ici).
Decent
The last thing I expected this to sound like was Mitski. A phenomenally crafted vibe the whole way through, and the perfect album to show someone who "doesn't like country".
Loved it! The group used their intimate recording circumstances well, and created a record replete with excellent use of space and really nice Americana-tinged soundscapes. For sure a great one for our first country album of the run!
One must not be fooled by the name "Cowboy Junkies"; this defied my expectations of what country music could be. It's slow but never boring, with beautiful instrumental work and a very pleasant singing voice. Super chill 52 minutes. Standouts: Blue Moon Revisited (Song for Elvis) • Dreaming My Dreams With You
Great album of extremely talented people doing their thing. Reminded me positively of some musical styles from Cowboy Bebop, which is always a plus. However, this album basically requires headphones or you will not be able to enjoy it to the fullest! They are very quiet.
Quiet and otherworldly
In a weird coincidence, I'd never heard of Cowboy Junkies before this week, when their cover of "Sweet Jane" came up during a round of Lilith Fair-themed pub trivia. Now here they are as my assignment. I dug this album. I wasn't sure what to expect having only heard the one song, but the overall tone of the album is pretty cohesive. If you like a slow-burn blues/folk album and smooth female vocals, this is the one for you. At times it reminded me of Sarah McLachlan, Paula Cole, PJ Harvey, and Linda Ronstadt. With three of the four members being siblings, I also can't help but think of them as Canada's answer to The Corrs (with fewer harmonies) — not a bad thing for me as a fan of the Irish band. I'm not sure if I'd always be in the mood to appreciate this album, but it's the perfect vibe on this gloomy, rainy day during which I find myself listening to it. I like their take on alt-country (a genre I usually don't enjoy that much), and I like how the tracks are a mix of originals, covers, and hybrids (Blue Moon Revisited uses the melody of that classic song but has original lyrics). The sound production is cool too. Apparently the album was recorded live in a church with the whole band gathered around a single mic, and you can definitely tell (in a good way) — and more impressively, wasn't mixed or edited after the fact. The opening track in particular, a haunting folk dirge about the plight of mining workers, sung a capella by the lead vocalist, makes great use of the space they were in and is one of the highlights of the album for me. If I had a small complaint, it's that the album's tone is so cohesive that it starts to drag ever so slightly by the end. I might have enjoyed it more if it was a touch shorter, but it ends without overstaying its welcome. Glad I had the chance to listen to this one. 4/5
Melancholy, and beautiful. At the start I was unsure but by the end I was hooked. Sweet Jane took me back to watching natural born killers.
Such a great album.
The right venue for these songs. Really good blues, and a great vocal for “Walking After Midnight.”
One of moms favorite albums - the songs aren’t anything exceptional but the vibes of the old church and a single Microphone are pretty special. Great CanCon pick
One of moms favorite albums - the songs aren’t anything exceptional but the vibes of the old church and a single Microphone are pretty special. Great CanCon pick
The Cowboy Junkies have always had a unique style, sitting somewhere between dream pop, folk, and country. I can best describe them as Emmylou Harris on quaaludes. The Trinity Sessions, recorded in a church in Toronto, made the group famous, at least for a while, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Needless to say, The Trinity Session was an unexpected, underground college radio hit. The standout song is their folkified, more chill than chill version of the Velvet Underground's Sweet Jane. With Sweet Jane, they took a drug induced fever dream and made it... more so. The Cowboy Junkies stayed on college radio and eventually Alt-Rock radio, peaking in 1993 with the sublime Black Eyed Man. Since then, they've been putting out more of the same and touring.
Несколько раз послушал, понравилось.
iznenađen! divan vokal, lijepo sve u svemu. iako nije sasvim moj đir čak se i mogu zamislit da ponekad slušam.
Bluesy? Folksy? I really enjoyed this album and loved their sound and the vocalist. It just fit my mood pretty well today and I think I'll look up more of their recordings, especially the 20th Anniversary recording of this Trinity Session album. Definitely a good 4 star album for me.
This album surprised me. Opening the album with an acapella solo is a bold move. It sets the right tone, though. It pulled me in. The rest of the album is a great mix of laid-back blues, country or americana. I quite enjoyed it. 4 stars.
some nice sad storytelling country/folk music, love me a sorrowful sounding harmonica. Honestly I couldnt help but think of the Red Dead Redemption soundtracks listening through this, so it sat very well with me. My only gripe is that it keeps the low energy throughout, you wouldnt make a rock album with only ballads!
A low key country and western album. Maybe too low key at times. I got a little drowsy listening to this one despite enjoying it. That cover of Sweet Jane is great though!
Nice music for a gloomy day. Her voice is killer and the instrumentation is spot on. Love the 'Sweet Jane' and 'Blue Moon' covers.
Today, in not judging an album by the cover (or band name), I was expecting a country record, but this turned out to be closer to blues or folk, with an interesting mix of styles and influences. Save for the first track, the whole album was recorded in one day with no overdubs, using a single microphone set up in a church which lends a unique ambience and live feel to the recording. The highlights are a riff on Blue Moon by Elvis and a cover of Sweet Jane by the Velvet Underground, with vocals from lead singer Margo Timmins being spine tingling throughout.
That was really nice, not what I was expecting at all based on the name of the band. Really cool and calm folk, nicely executed, with a really beautiful voice.
Despite living in Toronto for years, immersing myself in Canadian music and even becoming a Canadian citizen, somehow the Cowboy Junkies have only fallen within my radar today. What a classy & warm recording full of beautiful songs. I loved Blue Moon Revisited; admittedly the album swung too heavily on the woeful side a few times (I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry, Postcard Blues), but altogether worthy of a solid 4.
Beautiful voice, very slow though. Have to be in the right mood for this album