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****Cowboy Junkies

200 MORE MILES

(RCA)

During the last decade, Cowboy Junkies have released five intoxicating albums featuring a mix of folk, blues, and rock that slinks into your unconsciousness and lingers long after the last track ends. Margo Timmins's sultry vocal delivery - soft and slurred, then suddenly sharp and vibrant - is the textural highlight of a band who meld clarinet, tuba, and mandolin with traditional rock instruments.

200 More Miles, a double CD of live performances recorded from 1985 through 1994, showcases the Junkies' diversity and musical growth. The performances range from early club gigs that reproduce the hushed minimalism of The Trinity Session debut to theater shows that feature a larger, louder group stretching their sonic boundaries. Gems abound, including an early cover of Robert Johnson's "Me and the Devil Blues" in which snaky, serrated guitars and violin seem to conjure Beelzebub himself, and an explosive "Murder, Tonight, in the Trailer Park" that gets the full-blown rock treatment.

Some great songs from more current releases are ignored in favor of mostly Trinity-period stuff. Still, 200 More Miles is an essential album for Junkies junkies, and a perfect introduction for those less familiar with the band's haunting sound.

- Mark Klimek

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