Cowboy Junkies (from the album Songs of the Recollection

Cowboy Junkies (from the album Songs of the Recollection available on Latent Recordings/Proper Music Publishing) (by Bryant Liggett)
Commercial radio gave Cowboy Junkies plenty of love back in 1988 when they covered The Velvet Underground’s “Sweet Jane”, arguably the only time mass U.S media touched the Canadian Folk Rock band. It was a sweet nod to a big influence, with Cowboy Junkies currently dropping even more hero worship and influences on their latest in Songs of the Recollection.

For the most part they play it straight while nodding to mostly Classic Rock and Folk heroes. They take very few liberties on David Bowie’s “Five Years” and The Rolling Stones slowed down, twangy “No Expectations” while giving Gram Parson’s “Ooh Las Vegas” a dreamy, Psychedelic touch.

They toss in a double-shot of fellow Canadian Neil Young covering “Don’t Let It Bring You Down” while giving a lounge vibe to “Love in Mind.” They then keep things North of the border with a nod to Gordon Lightfoot’s “The Way I Feel,” turning the folk bit into a psychedelic-grunge tune.

They add Flamenco guitar to Bob Dylan’s “I’ve Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You”, from his excellent 2020 release Rough and Rowdy Ways, before turning to the more obscure, closing with a dreamy take on Vic Chesnutts “Marathon” and adding some screeching guitar to The Cure’s “Seventeen Seconds”.
Many younger music fans likely don’t know the cuts originally done by the Classic Rock regulars in Bowie, Young, and the Stones, and this could end up in the late Chesnutt earning some new fans. That’s what cover records should do, which is honor, emulate, and perhaps even educate.
For more information and purchase options, please visit the Cowboy Junkies website