I have been a long-time fan of the Canadian group the Cowboy Junkies since the release of their Trinity Session album back in 1988. Athough I have picked up another half dozen or so of their CDs in the last 20 years, I never seemed to have the opportunity to see them perform live. So when I saw that they would be playing in Davenport, Iowa I jumped at the opportunity even though it was two and a half hours away in the middle of the work week!
I had never been to Davenport for a musical event and was completely unfamiliar with venues in that city. I learned later that the location for the Cowboy Junkies performance - the Redstone Room of the River Music Experience facility - is a non-profit venue which uses concert income to support the music education of Davenport youths - another good reason to have purchased a ticket!
I headed southeast towards the Quad Cities after my last class, filling my car with the deep soothing tones of the Trinity Session as well as later albums during the journey. I used my GPS to more or less randomly pick out a restaurant near the venue and lucked out with a cute little family run Italian place just 1 block away - Antonella's Trattoria and Pizzeria. It smelled just heavenly when I entered, redolent with garlic, sausage and fresh baked pizza crust. Did you ever notice that the chain pizza places like Godfather's just never smell that way??? Although my nose almost made me splurge on a million calorie pie, I went with the Chicken Marsala with Fettucini instead, served with lots of mushrooms and onions. The chicken was yummy but next time I'd ask for light sauce on the pasta. A cannoli topped off my meal (okay,okay - so I didn't save many calories by ordering the chicken, what can I say?).
I walked over to the second floor venue at River Music Experience, just a block or two from the Mississippi River. Before it became a performance venue it had briefly been a music museum, so the halls were lined with bits of music memorabilia mostly from famous jazz musicians. Although the museum had probably been busy during the annual Bix Beiderbecke Festival, I guess the year-round attendance was not high enough to sustain the museum, so they switched it to a performance venue surrounded by music practice rooms for local young people. The Cowboy Junkie show was a sell-out but I heard that, for this facility, that means a mere 130 tickets! It was going to be an intimate evening of music!!
I had arrived just before the doors opened and scored a second row seat when I entered the theatre. I had a nice time chatting with the other Cowboy Junkie fans around me until showtime. An interesting indie performer (with kind of a jazzy-folk vibe) Lojo Russo opened the evening. I enjoyed her set but the back-of-the-room audience was annoyingly chatty. (Quiet down or take it outside guys while the music is on!!).
Then the Cowboy Junkies!! They look somewhat different than the long-haired somewhat hippie images that albums and videos had set in my memory all these years. Leader singer Margo Timmons looks more like a middle aged mom - with short hair and a respectable dress (see clips below). But they sound just as wonderful as ever!! The acoustics of the Redstone Room are not those of the Trinity Church, but the audience was enthralled throughout their approximately two hour set. I wish their mandolin (and miscellaneous other instruments) did not hide out at the back of the stage - I kept craning my neck trying to catch a glimpse of his musical artistry. And I also wish Margo did not sometimes seem to hide her face from the audience. Could she be a little stage shy after all these years?
The Cowboy Junkies played quite a bit of new music, as might be expected, since the first of a multi-CD project will come out in about a month. The new music sounded very good and I will be sure to watch for the album release. But I must say that I personally was a little sorry not to hear more of my favorite Cowboy Junkies' classics. I suppose all musicians constantly struggle with the balance between presenting their newest work versus their old fan favorites. But no "Sweet Jane"? Blue Moon? I'm So Lonesome?
Anyway it was a great evening except for not getting home until close to 2 am with an early class to teach the next morning!!
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