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Cowboy Junkies — Hard To Explain
Album: Pale Sun Crescent Moon
Avg rating:
7.4

Your rating:
Total ratings: 1803









Released: 1993
Length: 4:28
Plays (last 30 days): 0
If it ain't one thing
I tell you it's always another
I wonder why
I started treating you like a step-brother

Love is hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

Sometime's love is like a bitter pill
But we just have to take it like it is
Sometimes life is the sweetest thing
and sometimes it's just naked pain

Oh, it's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

My troubles started when I found you
But that's when I (wrapped?) my world around you
And now my living ain't so easy
I thought that's what a woman was supposed to do

You see, it's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

I went to see my doctor
'Cause I thought I had a hole in my heart
but he said "Girl, you're just wasting my time
Because some man messed up,
went and messed up your mind"

It's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

Oh, love it's so hard to explain
It'll make you forget your name
It'll turn you upside down
It'll make you wish that you'd never been found
Comments (197)add comment
Movin' it up to 9. Fisher tubes + JBL making it shine even more.
love the junkies!
Margo is a great singer with a great voice.  I'd love to hear her really let loose... 
 thewiseking wrote:

Whaddya call blues stripped of all emotion? Utterly lacking in feeling? Without soul? 
Canadian 



This is obviously just a ribbing, a joke.  Made me chuckle and I love Canada and don't dislike this song.  People take themselves way too seriously.
Can't say I've heard this cut before, very much a 9 on the guitar solo. Made me hold the remote's volume up button for a brief moment to really *hear* the recording. 
this leaves me wanting to hear "Banjo and Violin" by the Audreys, despite a bit of  a similar vibe. Always enjoy this band, despite a bit of similarity...
Outstanding Blues Groove!
 thewiseking wrote:
Whaddya call blues stripped of all emotion? Utterly lacking in feeling? Without soul? 
Canadian 
 
Wow, you can paint a whole country with the brush of one band!  2 guesses what country you're from.  So wise thewiseking.
 scrubbrush wrote:
A hint of "The Thrill is Gone"... anyone hear that too? BB King passed today, and either Bill hears it too or i just have BB on my mind.
 
A 12-bar blues progression in a minor key.  "The Thrill Is Gone" is probably the best-known example and this song is inspired by it, though the two progressions are slightly different.
"The thrill is gone, and the living is easy...." 
I really only knew about this band from their cover of Sweet Jane. I've grown to like them, thanks to RP.
Slow, sure, prodding, dull and uninspired. It's pleasant enough for a nothing day.
 Castelfranco wrote:
 scott_bruce wrote:

Waddya call comments full of emotion? Utterly disregarding popular consent? Showing a complete lack of soul?

thewiseass

 

With 880 respondents, only 18 of which think this is a 1, and 80% rating this Quite Likeable or above, perhaps no one cares about your lame, wiseass comments? 


 



Thank you, Bruce!

 
Ditto.  Me thinks thewiseass is rather trollish.
This showcases their talents well, like them or not.  I enjoy the mellow, classy feel.
Most excellent tune , for first listen ! 
 MJMJ wrote:
 Bill just followed CJ "Hard to Explain" with BBK "The Thrill is Gone", so I guess you made your point. I see it now too.

cubaninlondon wrote:
Is it just me or has this tune got BB King's "The Thrill is Gone" written all over it? Starting with the intro down to the bass hook and guitar.

 

 
I concur, but that doesn't make it a bad thing. BBK put in a G7 and F#7 not in this one. I turn it up!
NEVER get sick of this song and I've played it a hundred times.  Amazing!!!!
 scott_bruce wrote:

Waddya call comments full of emotion? Utterly disregarding popular consent? Showing a complete lack of soul?

thewiseass

 

With 880 respondents, only 18 of which think this is a 1, and 80% rating this Quite Likeable or above, perhaps no one cares about your lame, wiseass comments? 


 

Thank you, Bruce!
 MJMJ wrote:
 Bill just followed CJ "Hard to Explain" with BBK "The Thrill is Gone", so I guess you made your point. I see it now too.

cubaninlondon wrote:
Is it just me or has this tune got BB King's "The Thrill is Gone" written all over it? Starting with the intro down to the bass hook and guitar.

 

 
I was thinking all the same as above, had to click on to write a comment and I see your comments.  Nothing else to say.
 
 Bill just followed CJ "Hard to Explain" with BBK "The Thrill is Gone", so I guess you made your point. I see it now too.

cubaninlondon wrote:
Is it just me or has this tune got BB King's "The Thrill is Gone" written all over it? Starting with the intro down to the bass hook and guitar.

 


 thewiseking wrote:
Whaddya call blues stripped of all emotion? Utterly lacking in feeling? Without soul? 
Canadian 

 
Waddya call comments full of emotion? Utterly disregarding popular consent? Showing a complete lack of soul?

thewiseass

 

With 880 respondents, only 18 of which think this is a 1, and 80% rating this Quite Likeable or above, perhaps no one cares about your lame, wiseass comments? 


Whaddya call blues stripped of all emotion? Utterly lacking in feeling? Without soul? 
Canadian 
 Tippster wrote:
Man, If I was stil DJing I'd segue back and forth between this and BB King's "Thrill is gone" for the duration of both songs.

 
Well said
are they cowboys who are junkies? or just really into cowboys?
Man, If I was stil DJing I'd segue back and forth between this and BB King's "Thrill is gone" for the duration of both songs.
For the love of music... possibly slightly formulaic but these truly are heartfelt blues. What a group!
That opening riff would work great on a cover of The Thrill is Gone
Thanks Bill, just arrived home from their excellent show. Once again a true angel on stage with the ability to draw the entire room into an intimate affair. If you can see these Guys they are truly in their prime. 
It's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain
that's why now I play
only non-zero-sum games 
{#Sunny}


 scrubbrush wrote:
A hint of "The Thrill is Gone"... anyone hear that too? BB King passed today, and either Bill hears it too or i just have BB on my mind.

 
Good call. They had to have had in thier mind when this was written. And that's a good thing. 
 Kaw wrote:

Exactly my thoughts!

 
Absolutely!
Ahhh.... the Junkies!  :-)
I don't know, I think Cowboy Junkies are overplayed here.  They are good, but not great. 
First in the office. Easing into consciousness with the aid of coffee. This fits. 
 scrubbrush wrote:
A hint of "The Thrill is Gone"... anyone hear that too? BB King passed today, and either Bill hears it too or i just have BB on my mind.

 
Exactly my thoughts!
A hint of "The Thrill is Gone"... anyone hear that too? BB King passed today, and either Bill hears it too or i just have BB on my mind.
 Stingray wrote:

Your name is "THEWISEKING", right...?

Why not simple and easy "THEDOUCHEBAG"...? 

 
Stingray
" I do not have the IQ to understand Mr. Davis!"

Well, Stingray, you are indeed a humble man and you have alot to be humble aboutt.

 cubaninlondon wrote:
Is it just me or has this tune got BB King's "The Thrill is Gone" written all over it? Starting with the intro down to the bass hook and guitar.

 
It's a pretty standard, minor-key, blues progression, but they are obviously paying homage to B.B. King, especially in the guitar solo. "The Thrill Is Gone" was originally performed by Roy Hawkins in the early 1950s and is loosely based on a song with the same title from the 1930s.  B.B.'s classic version was recorded in 1969.
 cubaninlondon wrote:
Is it just me or has this tune got BB King's "The Thrill is Gone" written all over it? Starting with the intro down to the bass hook and guitar.

 
My problem is only with the vocals. I can't get past the prozac stiffened upper lip. The thrill is all gone. We had some but sold it out. My life coach says more is on back order.
 averybadcat wrote:
started out promising. Technically there. But stopped short of emotional as the martha stewart bummed no botox at the perfume counter blues have arrived. 

 


 thewiseking wrote:
Remember Yuppies? No? Well this and Norah Jones was the kind of marginal crap they used to play at dinner parties back in the 90s.

 
Your name is "THEWISEKING", right...?

Why not simple and easy "THEDOUCHEBAG"...? 
Is it just me or has this tune got BB King's "The Thrill is Gone" written all over it? Starting with the intro down to the bass hook and guitar.


great, classy
 thewiseking wrote:
Remember Yuppies? No? Well this and Norah Jones was the kind of marginal crap they used to play at dinner parties back in the 90s.

 
Funny...but it would have been difficult to listen to Norah Jones in the 90s since her first recording was released in 2001...just saying :-).
Margo jyet does it for me....she sings like an Angel
Bravo! 
Everybody in my mushrooming multitude of homeless camps loves this song soooo much!!!!
Remember Yuppies? No? Well this and Norah Jones was the kind of marginal crap they used to play at dinner parties back in the 90s.
 rharvey658 wrote:
The thrill is gone... 
 

Good call rharvey...but still like it !
The thrill is gone... 
wow, they sounds so lively here! like the heroin has worn off. i like it! nice guitar.
 sirdroseph wrote:
Her voice to my ears is like nails on a chalkboard!{#Stop} Automatic 1 for all songs from them.

 
There should NEVER be an "automatic 1"....except for Coldplay of course
 planet3one9 wrote:
Anyone hear "the thrill is gone" in this song ?
 
Might be intentional ---> Seems like a prequel to me...

If it ain't one thing
I tell you it's always another
I wonder why
I started treating you like a step-brother

Love is hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

Sometime's love is like a bitter pill
But we just have to take it like it is
Sometimes life is the sweetest thing
And sometimes it's just naked pain

Oh, it's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

My troubles started when I found you
But that's when I (wrapped? ) my world around you
And now my living ain't so easy
I thought that's what a woman was supposed to do

You see, it's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

I went to see my doctor
`cause I thought I had a hole in my heart
But he said 'girl, you're just wasting my time
Because some man messed up,
Went and messed up your mind'

It's so hard to explain
I know my loss is someone else's gain

Oh, love it's so hard to explain
It'll make you forget your name
It'll turn you upside down
It'll make you wish that you'd never been found

 

 

I just love the cowboy junkies. They're very addictive!
Some bands grow on me and I find myself changing my initial negative opinion of them. Cowboy Junkies is not one of them. Although I can now listen to 'Sweet Jane' without cringing, so that's progress, I guess :)

Everybody in my churches loves this song soooo much!!!!
I can't help but swoon when I hear this, and love how it cuts so deliciously deeply into the places that matter in quantum ways that remind me ALL IS IN FLUX...  It totally evokes The Thrill Is Gone and that only adds to its power...  This is what got me into all the fine CJ music!
Great voice! 
 
The Thrill Is Gone 

itaish wrote:
I am probably missing something but I find the Cowboy Junkies music very boring.
 


I am probably missing something but I find the Cowboy Junkies music very boring.
Good singin' — Good playin'
One of my favorite bands and deserving of the respect they receive. Her voice is sultry and the music is cascading!
 trissi wrote:
what is up with all of the Cowboy Junkies play of late? They stink no matter which way you listen.{#Razz}
 
Well!!! You don't say....
what is up with all of the Cowboy Junkies play of late? They stink no matter which way you listen.{#Razz}
 pcicatar wrote:

Yes!  I heard the same thing!
 
...me too......but that isn´t a bad thing at all.............like this song......
 icemang wrote:
The thrill has gone away.
 
S'ok.... nice tune anyway. And B.B.'s not hurting from the loss of these royalties.
 icemang wrote:
The thrill has gone away.
 
Yes!  I heard the same thing!
 lemmoth wrote:
Can some big Cowboy Junkies fan out there help me - I don't currently own any of their stuff, but its time to start.

Where should I start?

Thanks
 
Trinity Sessions - eponymous Junkies
Sadly I find the fluent, languid guitar deserves a more interesting and inspiring voice.

The thrill has gone away.
Can we hear "Seven Years" from this cd now and then?  Easily one of my top 5 of theirs.
Wow, she's really got soul in this song!
Can some big Cowboy Junkies fan out there help me - I don't currently own any of their stuff, but its time to start.

Where should I start?

Thanks
 sirdroseph wrote:
Her voice to my ears is like nails on a chalkboard!{#Stop} Automatic 1 for all songs from them.
 

So thrilled to be back to the "completely disagree with sirdroseph" camp.  Been agreeing up with you too much.

She is a very effecting and soulful singer.  Don't get your complaint.
Wow, a CJ song that doesn't sound like suicide is imminent. On it's way, sure, but not yet imminent.
...morning coffee and CJ's - gets no better
Love anything by CJ's!!!!
 pcicatar wrote:
I keep waiting for BB to start singing "The Thrill is Gone."
 
I just came here to post the exact same thing - glad I'm not the only one that caught that...
I keep waiting for BB to start singing "The Thrill is Gone."
One of my favorite tracks of all time.  Been awhile since I've heard it.   Thank you Radio Paradise.
At the height of their powers here a superb track
Have to turn this up.
Her voice to my ears is like nails on a chalkboard!{#Stop} Automatic 1 for all songs from them.
 planet3one9 wrote:
Anyone hear "the thrill is gone" in this song ?
 

Yes, yes, yes, and yes {#Hand}

Anyone hear "the thrill is gone" in this song ?
This is my new favorite Cowboy Junkies song; thanks.
I LOVE the Junkies, this included. 9.
Like the guitar work on this!
ugh....from the biggest 10 ever to THIS..........what a let down..........where's the MUTE!!!!!!!!!!
 rjewyo wrote:
AKA..."The Thrill is Gone"
 

Indeed...
No I don´t think so, it´s not Hard to explain, A great tune.
Yup. Lou Reed even thinks it's better 'n his. High praise indeed.

 
chuck_flacks wrote:


I thought the same thing.  It's very intentional...this is the same group that reworked "Sweet Jane" that is, in my opinion, way better than the Velvet's!
 



Margo Timmins Cowboy Junkies 3 by =rachellcoe
Rachell   ©2010 =rachellcoe

Margo Timmins - Cowboy Junkies

.


 rjewyo wrote:
AKA..."The Thrill is Gone"
 

It starts out a bit that way, but the rest isn't that.
AKA..."The Thrill is Gone"
The CJs were one of the first non grunge/metal bands I got into during my teen angst years. I've been a big fan ever since, and an even bigger fan after seeing them play live a few years ago.
 Frater_Kork wrote:
I'm waiting for B.B. king to step onto the stage and steal the number.
 

I thought the same thing.  It's very intentional...this is the same group that reworked "Sweet Jane" that is, in my opinion, way better than the Velvet's!
I'm waiting for B.B. king to step onto the stage and steal the number.
yeah, I wish I was.

 
siskinbob wrote:
Hmmmm ...Back in that smoke filled blues club again {#Clap}
 


 stkman wrote:
She does sound good but this sounds like Riley Kings The Thrill is Gone when it starts out lol well the middle too

 

How many moose does it take to change a CD?

MOOSE
MOOSE
MOOSE
COWBOY MOOSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hmmmm ...Back in that smoke filled blues club again {#Clap}
 thewiseking wrote:
the blues as sung by a patient medicated for oral surgery
 

Yah, that missed the center mark, but yah . . . a kind of "shrug" on the oomph that could have been there.
 stkman wrote:
She does sound good but this sounds like Riley Kings The Thrill is Gone when it starts out lol well the middle too

 
Right you are, but so be it. It still sounds terrific, given that just about everything we're listening to is derived from something.

One of my favorite recordings...{#Daisy}

This is a wonderful album for the first ten tracks.  Then along come "Hunted" and "Floorboard Blues" and they spoil it — so sour.


 vaiodon wrote:
Wow, that opening guitar break really smacked me, fantastic.
 

Me too.  Had to look and I was surprised it was CJ.  Good song I think.
the blues as sung by a patient medicated for oral surgery
I remember when this recording came out in 1993...it was a real life changer....
She does sound good but this sounds like Riley Kings The Thrill is Gone when it starts out lol well the middle too

Wow, that opening guitar break really smacked me, fantastic. That's another Cowboy Junkies CD on the Amazon wishlist.

( Yeah, go Calypsus, you haven't quite set a trend yet but your comment style is definitely better than that vowel-less excuse for communication that's becoming common)
Very Nice!  I like it!!

 

yes!, that good moments we have in the RP Station hearing the "Cowboy Junkies", and its fabulous lead-singer Ms. Margo Timmins!

** 8 **



Quick!  Somebody call the Eagles and tell them that someone stole their guitarist!
Lou Reed, move over.
Great song from a great album
 jagdriver wrote:
Saw them years ago as a warm-up act to Sting...wasn't impressed. That said, Bill has since made me a believer.
 

CJ's in a large arena is a no-go. Small clubs/venues only.
 ThePoose wrote:


But the Cowplop Flunkies only sing about the loved and lost.
There's no change-up to up-tempo. SCREAM a little, Margo,
and dance a jig once in a while.
 

She has said, probably many times (just like with your mother, you were probably weren't listening), that she tried singing louder early on with disasterous results and learned that she had much more control over her voice when singing low. So they're kind of stuck with a smaller range of tempo. Joan Jett she is not and that's a good thing.