K T Tunstall
Cowboy Junkies junky needs to expand
Hey there 'Goners
H, my name is Andrew and I'm a Junkies-aholic. I need a little support from the group if you could be so kind. As a confirmed though never-to-recover Cowboy Junkies fan, I too often find the CJ's playing. My GF is gonna hijack my CD's and my iPod soon and do a little shuffling of her own. Without the thread going too far off course or getting too far from my professed comfort zone, any suggestions on expanding my musical horizons?
Thanks much!
H, my name is Andrew and I'm a Junkies-aholic. I need a little support from the group if you could be so kind. As a confirmed though never-to-recover Cowboy Junkies fan, I too often find the CJ's playing. My GF is gonna hijack my CD's and my iPod soon and do a little shuffling of her own. Without the thread going too far off course or getting too far from my professed comfort zone, any suggestions on expanding my musical horizons?
Thanks much!
26 responses Add your response
Oh, and then theres the guy side of things. Add to the top of your list for the guy side of things that fits your tastes: Alexi Murdoch "Time Without Consequence" (stunning debut) Also among current favorites that might fit the bill, in no particular order: William Fitzsimmons Damien Jurado (can get pretty dark) 16 Horsepower - In this tangent, just the CD "Folklore" Bonny Prince Billy Antony and the Johnsons |
What strikes me is that most of the music above is faster paced than I was expecting. But then I am mostly thinking of the Trinity Sessions when I think Cowboy Junkies. Can anyone recommend some really slow music in the same vein? I will go to Pandora to look - a cool site and thanks for that. And cudos to Awightman1 for making it about music! |
Hey Goners Thanks so much for the response. Keep em coming. Gonna get into a deep sample session this weekend and discover. Sorry to not clarify from the get-go. I do listen to Pandora and many of your suggestions of artist validate my good taste in music J. Also great sources . Radio Paradise Bluebeat My close seconds heavily rotated as well are: Crooked Still The Be Good Tanyas (agree MUCH better than the not bad themselves Po Girl) Emmy Lou Norah Neko Gillian Oh, and then theres the guy side of things. M Ward (fave of the male artists) Lee Harvey Osmond (on Latent Records, Junkies home-grown label) Iron & Wine I guess I like my music a little on the dark side. Deep as a well, richly layered, complex while simple in musicality and of course distinct in its vocals. When I listen, its usually later in the day into the night so this genre suits me. Mix in a bit of new and classic jazz too. Prior to this, Ive got a whole other set of playlists for say ..driving .cooking eating .working .etc. Buts thats a whole nother thread or threads. Thanks again!!!!!! PS ..forgot to mention ABBA. Thanks much Mtl10425. Glad you are a big fan too. They are just so awesome .the end all of music. I kicked myself for forgetting about them. Gonna go get some right now and put it on. |
I'll second the Over the Rhine recommendation - get the "Ohio" album (available on vinyl from their website) you won't regret it! Absolutely..."Ohio" is great. Also by them, if you can find it (some used copies are at the link), "Good Dog, Bad Dog" is outstanding! |
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I've probably listened to more CJ than an other single artist/group. Of those mentioned, I second Be Good Tonya's (better than Po Girl), Lucinda Williams (!), Gillian Welch, and Jesse Sykes, and Brandi Carlisle (but not her most recent). Ollabelle is a neat suggestion, but heavily Gospel. I add Shannon McNally (!), Wailin Jenny's, Jenny Scheinman, Vic Chesnutt (!), Kendall Carson, Julie Miller, Crooked Still. John |
Check out Great Lake Swimmers - self titled. Very much has a Trinity Session feel to it. Recorded in a silo, and they too hail from Toronto. The defunct magazine No Depression was a great source for music, and their web site may suit your purposes. Pandora would help as well, and you may want to check out allmusic.com for recommendations for similar artists. Good luck! |
Love the Cowboy Junkies and have seen them in concert a couple of times. Along with good selections above, I'd highly recommend Over the Rhine, The Innocence Mission (used to open for TCJ), perhaps Gillian Welch if you like to push it a bit towards country/folk/roots stuff...hmmm, maybe The Be Good Tanyas and Po'Girl (also Candadian bands)...Beth Orton, Lucinda Williams, early Trespassers William (Anchor). |
Awightman1, The closest that I have come across is Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter. Sometimes pidgeon-holed as country noir or goth country, they have a beautiful melancholy sounding lead singer, and play slow, moody, dirge-like ballads and the like. Usually pretty dark in tone. Instrumentation is sparse, and Junky-like, and the sonics are really good on both CD and vinyl. The notable lead guitarist is Phil Wandscher who previously played for Whiskeytown. Check out "Oh My Girl" and "Reckless Burning" on their site or on Amazon. BTW, another good searchable "music similar to XYZ" site is http://www.last.fm/ |
It is hard to match the cowboy Junkies laid back sound which I like very much too. I have looked for quite some time and never really found anything. Who can match Margo Timmens? not really similar but nice are: His Name is Alive - Last Night is my favorite of theirs Ida - Will You Find Me? very good and hope you like it fwiw, from the selections above Cat Power may match the mood of CJ the best... good luck |
