Rarities, B-Sides and Slow, Sad Waltzes | ||||
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Compilation album by | ||||
Released | October 12, 1999 [1] | |||
Genre | Alternative country | |||
Length | 47:04 [1] | |||
Label | True North, Latent (Canada) Valley (United States) | |||
Producer | Michael Timmins | |||
Cowboy Junkies chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [2] |
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. [3]
Rarities, B-Sides and Slow, Sad Waltzes was developed after the tour for Miles from Our Home . Geffen Records had gone through a merger, and in the process had stomped and squished Miles from Our Home, which caused the Cowboy Junkies to stand back and start making changes to take control of their music. They revived their early label, Latent Recordings, and set up a web-site for the label to share their music and thoughts with their fans. One of the first things they did was gather up several of their "orphaned" songs to release them to the world. The compilation album of rare and never before heard tracks, Rarities, B-Sides and Slow, Sad Waltzes, became the first release on Latent Recordings since The Trinity Session . [3]
The hidden track on the album, My Father's House, is an a capella rendition of a Bruce Springsteen song that the band occasionally performed live. The version on the album was recorded during the Sharon Temples recordings sessions. As Michael Timmins states, "Margo was singing to help Peter Moore find his mic placement. The rest of us had obviously been sitting around too long and were getting bored so we spontaneously joined in. Just one of those weird, beautiful moments...and the tape was running." [4]
All tracks are written by Michael Timmins, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "I Saw Your Shoes" | 3:15 | |
2. | "Five Room Love Story" | 5:19 | |
3. | "Sad to See the Season Go" | 5:15 | |
4. | "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" | Bob Dylan | 3:07 |
5. | "Love's Still There" | Michael Timmins, Margo Timmins | 3:32 |
6. | "To Lay Me Down" | Jerry Garcia, Robert Hunter | 5:16 |
7. | "A Few Simple Words" | Michael Timmins, Margo Timmins | 3:39 |
8. | "River Waltz" | 4:04 | |
9. | "Leaving Normal" | 3:59 | |
10. | "The Water is Wide" | Traditional | 5:15 |
11. | "My Father's House" (Hidden track) | Bruce Springsteen | 4:23 |
Total length: | 60:19 |
Cowboy Junkies
Additional musicians [5]
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.
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.
The Radio One Sessions is a 2002 album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies. The compilation album was released only in Canada and the United Kingdom, and compiles tracks that the band recorded for BBC Radio One in the UK. The Radio One Sessions was released on Strange Fruit Records in the UK, and Latent Recordings in Canada.
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.
Early 21st Century Blues is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2005. The album features two original songs and covers of material by Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, George Harrison and Richie Havens. The record has a very strong anti-war message, while also protesting public apathy towards the political process.
At the End of Paths Taken is the tenth studio album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2007.
Trinity Revisited is an album and a film by the Cowboy Junkies, released on October 8, 2007. It is a remake of the Junkies' most famous album, The Trinity Session. The new album was recorded in the fall of 2006 at Toronto's Church of the Holy Trinity, the same venue where the original album was recorded.
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.
Sing in My Meadow is an album by the Canadian alt-country band Cowboy Junkies, released in 2011. It is Volume Three of the Nomad Series. The album was recorded at The Clubhouse in Toronto, Ontario. This volume of the Nomad Series brings the band's live shows into the studio, employing their touring musicians as the only recording musicians for the sessions.
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.