Song · Cowboy Junkies
“A Common Disaster” by Cowboy Junkies
From the album Lay It Down (1996)
“A Common Disaster” by Cowboy Junkies appears on 6 radio countdowns from 6 stations between 1996 and 2025. It was first released in 1996 on the album Lay It Down. Its best result is #75 on the WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1996. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #185 alternative song of 1996.
Michael Timmins wrote "A Common Disaster" for Lay It Down, the Cowboy Junkies' sixth album, released in February 1996, and it caught the Canadian alt-country band mid-shake-up. It was their first record for Geffen after their time with RCA ended, their first made up entirely of their own songs, and the first you could honestly call straight-ahead rock rather than country, country rock or blues.
Timmins produced it with John Keane, who also recorded and mixed it, and the song became a notable hit on Canadian radio, as did "Speaking Confidentially" from the same record.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 75 | WHFS Washington, DC / Baltimore, MD | WHFS Top 99.1 Songs of 1996 | 99 |
| 1996 | 77 | WBCN Boston, MA | WBCN Top 104 Songs of 1996 | 104 |
| 1996 | 88 | Radio & Records United States (national airplay chart) | Radio & Records Top 96 Songs of 1996 | 96 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 405 | WYEP | WYEP 913 Essential Songs | 913 |
| 2022 | 475 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 900 Songs of the '90s | 900 |
| 2025 | 393 | WFPK | WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '90s | 500 |
Comments
Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "A Common Disaster" by Cowboy Junkies.
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.