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| At the End of Paths Taken | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 9, 2007 [1] | |||
| Recorded | June–November, 2006 | |||
| Genre | Alternative country | |||
| Length | 49:15 [1] | |||
| Label | Latent, Zoë | |||
| Producer | Michael Timmins | |||
| Cowboy Junkies chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
| Pitchfork | (3.1/10) [2] |
| PopMatters |   [3] |
| Q | [4] |
At the End of Paths Taken is the tenth studio album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2007.
All tracks are written by Michael Timmins, except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Brand New World" | 5:31 | |
| 2. | "Still Lost" | 4:45 | |
| 3. | "Cutting Board Blues" | 4:05 | |
| 4. | "Spiral Down" | 3:33 | |
| 5. | "My Little Basquiat" | Michael Timmins, Alan Anton | 3:51 |
| 6. | "Someday Soon" | 3:17 | |
| 7. | "Follower 2" | 6:18 | |
| 8. | "It Doesn't Really Matter Anyway" | Michael Timmins, Alan Anton | 4:42 |
| 9. | "Blue Eyed Saviour" | 2:37 | |
| 10. | "Mountain" (Narration by John A. Timmins) | Michael Timmins, Alan Anton | 7:07 |
| 11. | "My Only Guarantee" | 3:29 | |
| Total length: | 49:15 | ||
Per PopMatters, the album's emphasis is on family. The musicians are at the point in their lives where their time is divided between their children and their aging parents. One example of At the End of Paths Taken showcasing family is by having the Timmins' father narrate a segment from his book on "Mountain". [3] Per No Depression, the album does not have a coherent style, with lilting ballads, junkyard clang, gloomy experimentalism, folk, and hymn-like music. Despite the disparate styles, the album is held together by the distinctive voice of Margo Timmins, and somehow the different styles feed off each other, making the album feel like a full and fated journey. [5] Per exclaim!, the album's theme is of slowly unravelling family ties. Margo's voice continues to be the centerpiece of the sound, but on this album it is augmented by the addition of strings to make the sound even more melancholy. [6]
Cowboy Junkies
Cowboy Junkies are an alternative country and folk rock band formed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1985 by Alan Anton (bassist), Michael Timmins, Peter Timmins (drummer) and Margo Timmins (vocalist). The three Timminses are siblings, and Anton worked with Michael Timmins during their first couple of bands. John Timmins was a member of the band but left the group before the recording of their debut studio album. The band line-up has never changed since, although they use several guest musicians on many of their studio albums, including multi-instrumentalist Jeff Bird who has performed on every album except the first.
The Trinity Session is the second studio album by Canadian alternative country band Cowboy Junkies, released in early 1988 by Latent Recordings in Canada, and re-released worldwide later in the year on RCA Records. "Working on a Building" and "Blue Moon Revisited " did not appear on the Latent Records release. "Blue Moon Revisited" was originally released on It Came from Canada, Vol. 4 (1988), a compilation of Canadian independent bands.
The Caution Horses is the third studio album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 1990.
Black Eyed Man is the fourth studio album by Cowboy Junkies, released in 1992. The album continues the band's evolution from a spare country blues style to a more mainstream country rock style.
Pale Sun, Crescent Moon is the fifth studio album by Canadian country rock band Cowboy Junkies, released in 1993. It was the band's last album of new material for RCA Records, although a live album and a greatest hits compilation were subsequently released on the label. Canadian guitarist Ken Myhr appears on every track on this album.
Whites Off Earth Now!! is a 1986 studio album by Cowboy Junkies. It was the band's debut album, and is composed almost entirely of rock and blues covers. Only one song, "Take Me", is an original song by the band.
Lay It Down is the sixth studio album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies. Released on February 27, 1996, it was the group's first album for Geffen Records after the end of their contract with RCA Records. It was the band's first album that could be described as straight-ahead rock, rather than country rock, country or blues. It was also their first album consisting entirely of original material, with no covers. "A Common Disaster" and "Speaking Confidentially" were notable hits for the band on Canadian radio.
Miles from Our Home is the seventh studio album by Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, which was released in 1998. It was their second and final album for Geffen Records. The title track was a significant hit in their native Canada. Following this album, the Junkies were dropped from the Geffen record label. The Junkies moved to an independent label, Latent Recordings, for their subsequent albums.
Rarities, B-Sides and Slow, Sad Waltzes is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 1999. It was the band's first independent release after the end of their contract with Geffen Records. The album is a compendium of tracks that the band had recorded but not previously released on an album. Two tracks have been released earlier as B-sides on Cowboy Junkies' singles, "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" on "Southern Rain" and "Leaving Normal" on "Anniversary Song". It was released on both True North Records and Latent Recordings in Canada, and on Valley Records in the United States.
Waltz Across America is a 2000 album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies.
Open is an album by the Canadian band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2001. It was the band's third independent release after the end of their contract with Geffen Records, and the first of those to feature new material. The album was released on Latent Recordings in Canada, and on Zoë Records internationally.
One Soul Now is a 2004 album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies. It is their first album of new material since Open in 2001. It was released on Latent Recordings in Canada, and Zoë Records internationally.
Latent Recordings is a Canadian independent record label founded in 1981. It was dormant in the 1990s while the Cowboy Junkies were signed to American labels, but began to release independently produced albums in the 2000s. By the late 2000s, it sold downloads and CDs online.
Renmin Park is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2010. It is Volume One of the Nomad Series. The album's name translates in Chinese as "People's Park".
Demons is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2011. It contains eleven Vic Chesnutt covers. It is Volume Two of the Nomad Series.
The Wilderness is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2012. It is Volume Four of the Nomad Series. This volume is the introspection of winter after Sing in My Meadow's joyful visitation of spring.
Notes Falling Slow is a box set by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, containing remastered version of the 2001 album Open, the 2004 album One Soul Now, and the 2007 album At the End of Paths Taken on the first three discs, plus songs worked on during the creation of the three albums but not included. Some of the tracks were not previously completed, some were not demoed, and others were cut but did not make the final set. All these tracks have been newly recorded for this box set and included on the final disc, effectively creating a new Cowboy Junkies album.
The Nomad Series is a box set by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, collecting the four individual albums of the Nomad series, Renmin Park, Demons, Sing in My Meadow, and The Wilderness on the first four discs, and, on the final disc, six of the seven songs from the Demons digital bonus disc plus four previously unreleased songs worked on during the creation of the series.
All That Reckoning is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2018. The album features eleven new songs to focus on "empty hearts, empty nests, lost paths, lost lives, and all the reckoning that brings about the end of things, and the beginnings of something else. [The] songs are about reckoning on a personal level and reckoning on a social level," as stated by Michael Timmins.
Ghosts is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released digitally on March 30, 2020. The album features eight songs that process the loss of the Timmins siblings' mother who died in 2018. The album was also released on vinyl as a limited edition combined package with All That Reckoning on March 10, 2021.
