REVIEW: Cowboy Junkies, The Fire Station, Sunderland
The Timmins family band never sounded better
Margo Timmins, the ethereal frontwoman of alternative country disruptors Cowboy Junkies, boasts a haunting tone that’s somehow perfect for wringing every last drop of emotion out of her brother Michael’s reassuringly melancholic songs.
Hers is a voice undiminished by time and untouched by trends. Timmins and her family band might be 40-years-old but there’s still something remarkably fresh and relevant about the Canadian group’s prescient content and familiar sound, even after all this time.
That Timmins has grown comfortably into her flowing silver locks (she jokes midset about sharing that characteristic with so many of her audience these days) only serves to amplify a sense of mystery and magic as she glides effortlessly onto stage. Imagine Gandalf recast as a wistful wizardess.
Taking a sip of her tea, adjusting her stool and delicately touching the fresh flowers placed in a vase next to her mic stand, Timmins takes the time to take in her surroundings and appreciate the moment. What follows is a career-spanning set, replete with carefully chosen covers and life-affirming anecdotes, that gently stirs the soul.
The Timmins — Margo, Michael (guitars) and Peter (drums) — are joined on stage by Alan Anton (bass) and Jeff Bird (almost everything else) and if there’s no wild leaping around, waving of arms, shouting or screaming then the band’s collective energy is, nevertheless, intoxicating. A 19-song set is electrifying in its emotion as a series of reassuringly relatable stories are set against a beautiful soundscape where every note matters and none is wasted.
During their formative years Cowboy Junkies were lauded by everyone from fellow countryman Neil Young to Townes Van Zandt — the latter even penning a tribute to his new favourite band in the shape of Cowboy Junkies Lament. The Timmins returned the favour with the ‘tour diary meets gambling handbook’ of Townes Blues and that popular live cut jostles with position alongside a cover of Young’s Powderfinger for performance of the night.
Of course, the standouts are many. Margo offers her thoughts on the declining health of aging parents — and their ultimate passing — as a preamble to the deeply personal What I Lost. It’s a song that celebrates the life of the Timmins’ late father and, at the same time, raises the difficult and deeply upsetting onset of dementia. As such, it’s perfect material for a band that excels in confronting the truth head on, often without compromise.
Even the breakout success of 1988’s The Trinity Session, its fabulous follow-up The Caution Horses and the beautifully bleak Black Eyed Man didn’t earn the Timmins a life-changing fortune but in many ways commercial success might have tainted the Cowboy Junkies’ legacy. By earning critical acclaim, rather than pots of cash, Margo and her siblings have always been treasured by the alt country crowd and this tour celebrates their 21st century output — there’s not a top 30 album anywhere to be found and yet the songcraft remains richly rewarding.
Listening to Margo float through the band’s evocative cover of The Velvet Underground’s Sweet Jane, breathe new life into ‘Cause Cheap Is How I Feel and shine brightly on an acoustic version of Shadows is a genuine treat. Silver haired and silver tongued, the most beguiling of frontwomen continues to set the standard for live music at its affecting best.