Music / alt-country
Interview: Michael Timmins, Cowboy Junkies
Cowboy Junkies return to the UK for live dates in July as they continue to promote their latest album All That Reckoning. The disc is their first new recording since The Wilderness back in 2012 and recording coincided with the 30th anniversary of their classic album The Trinity Session. The band are in town at (synchronicity alert) The Trinity on Tuesday 16th July. Meanwhile guitar player Michael Timmins submitted to Bristol 247’s vinyl enquirer, find out who he thinks would have been Frank Sinatra’s ideal backing band and more below:
What was the first record you ever bought and where did you buy it?
I’m not sure…but it would have been a 45. I know that I had Johnny Cash’s Boy Named Sue in high rotation on my portable turntable. Whether I bought it or my Mom bought it for me I can’t be sure. I probably would have bought it at the local Macy’s or Woolworth’s store near my home in Montreal. They had a few racks of the top selling singles in most department stores in those days.
What was the most recent record you bought and where did you buy it?
I bought a vinyl reissue of Plastic Ono Band from Amoeba Music in San Francisco. As exciting sounding today as it was back then.
What album do you stick on the deck to sooth your soul?
All music that I like soothes my soul. If I have time to sit on my couch and put on an album of my choosing and just sit there and listen, my soul is soothed.
Have you bought a recording based on a great single and then been disappointed by the rest of the album? If so, dish the dirt…
I’m sure that I have in years past, but they are so quickly forgotten, because they suck! But with streaming services these days, I usually do a bit of reconnaissance before I commit to purchasing…. won’t get fooled again!!
What records do you turn up to maximum to get into that party mood?
Love to hear those classic Bowie albums cranked to 11: “Ziggy played guitaaaaah..aaah!!”
What’s the greatest live album of all time? (You may skip this question if you’re under 40)
Replacements, The Shit Hits The Fans…captures the true essence of the band in all its ramshackle glory and you need a cassette deck to play it…or Frank Sinatra and Count Bassie, Live At The Sands. I think The Replacements would have been a good backing band for Sinatra: “What are you people doing in my room?”
What’s your favourite record sleeve? Tell us all about it (and whether the music gives you as much pleasure as the sleeve).
So many great record sleeves…I have probably bought more albums because of the sleeve rather than a single that I’ve heard…especially in the late 70’s at the height / inception of the indie label scene. It’s pretty hard to beat Unknown Pleasures for a revolutionary and eye-catching sleeve…at the time the music definitely lived up to the sleeve.
Ever bought a record solely because you liked the sleeve? If so, what was it and did it delight you or disappoint you?
See answer above. I use to make a weekly journey to the local indie record shop here in Toronto (The Record Peddler) and browse through that week’s UK imports: more often than not I bought an album because of the cover and also because of the label that it was on. Often they delighted….and I still have most of those first runs.
is needed now More than ever
The resurgence of the LP has seen all manner of coloured and multicoloured vinyl, yet some purists believe a record should only ever be black: what’s your opinion, and what are both the most delightful and the most obnoxious coloured records you own?
I’m not a coloured vinyl fan….it doesn’t feel right if it’s not black. I do own a handful of coloured vinyl, but usually because I didn’t notice the warning sticker before I bought it, it’s all a bit obnoxious.
Back in the olden days there were all manner of shaped discs, got any cracking examples in your collection? And if you had freedom of design, what song of yours could be best represented by a shaped disc?
I probably have some non-round discs in my collection, but it’s been awhile since they were played or pulled out of the collection so I can’t think of any that I own. The second part of the question is way too conceptual for me, I’ll have to pass!
If we had the ability to land you at the recording of one classic LP so you could witness the whole recording process, what would you choose and why?
Holy shit…it would be a very long list. We had the great pleasure of working with John Leckie who started his life in studios working as a Tape Op at Abbey Road. His first session was All Things Must Pass and the list grows from there. I truly envy him. I guess I would have to go with one of the greatest albums of all time, Kind of Blue. It’s kind of an unoriginal choice, but as you sat in the studio you would hear the whole album going down and not have to sit through endless tedious overdubs.
Oh no, your house is burning down, and you can only rescue one record! What would it be and why? Back to Kind Of Blue, I guess…because it’s Kind Of Blue, maaan.
Morbidity alert: what records would you like played at your funeral?
Greg Allman’s version of These Days…because it’s such a great song, and version…. “Please don’t confront me with my failures, I’m aware of them”…hard to beat that as a final line as you are heading out the door.
Image by Heather Pollock
An Evening with Cowboy Junkies The Trinity on Tuesday 16th July
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