Margo Timmins
Her haunting, ethereal voice became the signature sound of Cowboy Junkies, defining a generation's idea of slow-burning, introspective country-folk.
Born 1961 (age 65)·Canadian singer·Birthday: January 27·Baby Boomers
Biography
Margo Timmins didn't set out to be a singer. The Toronto native, one of five siblings, was studying social work when her brother Michael asked her to lend her voice to some songs he was writing. The result was the formation of Cowboy Junkies, a band built around her unmistakable, hushed contralto—a voice of remarkable calm that conveyed deep wells of emotion. Their 1988 album 'The Trinity Session,' recorded live around a single microphone in a church, became a word-of-mouth sensation, turning their sparse, languid covers of songs like 'Sweet Jane' into alt-country landmarks. Timmins, often seated and still during performances, commanded attention not with force but with intimate vulnerability. For decades, she has remained the quiet, magnetic center of the family band, proving that a whisper can sometimes carry further than a shout.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Margo was born in 1961, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Margo Was Born
The biggest hits of 1961
#1 Movie
101 Dalmatians
Best Picture
West Side Story
#1 TV Show
Wagon Train
Margo's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1961Born
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1966Started school
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1974Became a teenager
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1977Could drive
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1979Could vote
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Turned 21
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1991Turned 30
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 40
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2011Turned 50
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
2021Turned 60
January 6 Capitol breach; COVID vaccines roll out globally
Gas: $3.01/galHome: $298,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Levitating" — Dua LipaBest Picture: CODA
2026Age 65 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Provided the lead vocals on Cowboy Junkies' breakthrough album 'The Trinity Session,' recorded in a single day at Toronto's Church of the Holy Trinity.
- Helped define the 'slowcore' and alternative country genres with the band's minimalist, atmospheric sound in the late 1980s and 1990s.
- Sustained a decades-long career with Cowboy Junkies, releasing over a dozen studio albums while maintaining a consistent, cult-like following.
Did You Know?
She initially studied social work at university and worked in a halfway house before joining the band full-time.
Her brothers Michael (guitar) and Peter (drums) and sister-in-law Alan Anton (bass) are her bandmates in Cowboy Junkies.
She is known for her stage shyness, often performing seated and with her eyes closed.
“I never thought of myself as a singer. I just thought of myself as Margo who sings in her brother's band.”
