During the 1990's, he would join a country-rock group, the Sky Kings, working on their debut album for release in 1997. The project was dropped by the label and did not see (private) release until 2000. While Cowan could often be found touring with other acts, most notably Sam Bush, he would later form his own group, The John Cowan Band, and would continue to tour extensively, attracting a small, but very devoted, following.
The John Cowan Band repertoire often featured covers of New Grass Revival material and other pop, rock, and country acts, but the majority of the set-lists were comprised of original songs composed by Cowan and the members of the band as well as covers of songs by many composers not familiar to most listeners. The style of music performed by the group has been described as or termed "new grass," "Americana," or simply "eclectic," but none of these terms quite cover the entirety of Cowan's or the band's repertoire. Indeed, the repertoire might often include tunes that were well outside the bluegrass and Americana canons: Jackson Brown's "These Days" and Yes' "Long Distance Runaround" were, for a short time, both on the set-lists. Similarly, many of Nashville's and modern country music's finest young players have found at least a temporary home and laboratory with Cowan's band and each has influenced the chemistry of the unit while they were a member. The John Cowan Band lineup has included in turn a trap-kit player, a hand-drummer, a MIDI banjo-ist, traditional banjo-ists, fiddlers, a jazz guitarist, flat-pickers, mandolinists, and other acoustic instruments often found in bluegrass line-ups. If there was any one constant element in the band, it was the phenomenal harmony vocals that each member contributed.
Additionally, Cowan occasionally fronts a traditional R&B group, Grooveyard, comprised of Nashville session players, including keyboardist Reese Wynans and guitarist Pat Buchanan among others.
As a stage-bassist, Cowan is accurate, capable of playing in the multi-meters found in bluegrass and Irish music, and has the uncanny ablility to sing syncopated vocal parts and play the downbeat on the bass without error. His style is powerful and drives the band, despite the instrumentation. As a vocalist, his range is strongly in the tenor but stretches well above. His voice is powerful and strongly reminiscent of his idol, Mavis Staples. Cowan's ability to sing most any song with conviction and emotion separates him from other capable singers (one terrific example is his version of "The Battle Cry of Freedom" found here on last.fm). His ability to sing harmony is often requested and has resulted in his numerous appearances on dozens of recordings that frequently make the top 100 in the country genre. His songwriting often deals with rural topics, childhood memories, or relationships (both positive and negative aspects), and, while most pieces are sweet or bittersweet, other examples of his songwriting discuss much more difficult topics like immortality ("6 Redbirds in a Joshua Tree" -- written with Darrell Scott) or, perhaps one of the most difficult topics to broach, sexual abuse, as he did in "Drown" (also written with Darrell Scott). "Drown" is probably one of the most dark, difficult, and explicit treatments of the topic ever recorded and unusual for its candor among the songs in Cowan's catalogue.
John has released several albums since the breakup of the New Grass Revival: Soul'd Out (1990, Sugar Hill), From Out of the Blue: The Sky Kings (2000, Rhino/Warner Archives), John Cowan (2000, Sugar Hill), Always Take Me Back (2002, Sugar Hill), 8,745 ft.: Recorded Live at Telluride (2005, Cowvox Records), New Tattoo (2006, Pinecastle), Lost Weekend (a limited edition recording of Grooveyard by Bose), and Come, Messiah, Come (Light).
Call Me
John Cowan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
used to be that I believed in love
It's been a long time since I've had that feeling
I could love someone
I could trust someone
I said I'd never let nobody near my heart again
Darlin', I said I'd never let nobody in
I just might change my mind and let you in my life forever
If you asked me to
I just might give my heart and stay here in your arms forever
If you asked me to
If you asked me to
Somehow ever since I've been around you
Can't go back to being on my own
Can't help feeling, darling, since I've found you
that I've found my home, that I'm finally home
I said I'd never let nobody get too close to me darling
I said I needed, needed to be free
But if you asked me to
I just might change my mind and let you in my life forever.
If you asked me to
I just might give my heart and stay here in your arms forever.
If you asked me to
I will give my world to you, baby
I need you now
Ask me to
I'll do anything for you, baby
for you, baby
If you asked me to
I'd let you in my life forever
If you asked me to
The lyrics of John Cowan's song Call Me are about someone who is hesitant to let anyone into their heart after being let down before. The singer used to believe in love and being with someone, but it's been a long time since they've had that feeling. They promised themselves never to let anyone near their heart again, but since they've been around this special someone, they can't help but feel like they're finally home. Despite their initial hesitance, the singer admits that they just might change their mind and let this person into their life and heart forever, if they asked.
The song is about taking the leap of faith in love and trusting someone again. It's about how meeting someone special can break down the walls that we've built up around ourselves, and how love can be worth the risk of getting hurt again. The lyrics suggest that when you meet the right person, it's worth it to take a chance and let them in, because they can make you feel like you belong and give you a sense of home.
Line by Line Meaning
Used to be that I believed in something
In the past, I had faith in something
used to be that I believed in love
I used to believe in love
It's been a long time since I've had that feeling
It has been a while since I felt that way
I could love someone
I'm capable of loving someone
I could trust someone
I'm capable of trusting someone
I said I'd never let nobody near my heart again
I promised myself that I wouldn't let anyone close to my heart again
Darlin', I said I'd never let nobody in
I promised myself that I wouldn't let anyone into my life
But if you asked me to
However, if you asked me to
I just might change my mind and let you in my life forever
I might reconsider and allow you to be a permanent part of my life
Somehow ever since I've been around you
Ever since I started spending time with you
Can't go back to being on my own
I can't go back to being alone
Can't help feeling, darling, since I've found you
I can't help but feel, my dear, that ever since I met you
that I've found my home, that I'm finally home
I have found my place where I belong, where I finally feel at home
I said I'd never let nobody get too close to me darling
I vowed that I wouldn't let anyone get too close to me
I said I needed, needed to be free
I declared that I needed to be free
If you asked me to
However, if you were to ask me
I just might change my mind and let you in my life forever.
I might reconsider and allow you to be a permanent part of my life
If you asked me to
If you were to request
I just might give my heart and stay here in your arms forever.
I might give you my love and choose to be with you for eternity
If you asked me to
If you were to ask me
I will give my world to you, baby
I am willing to give everything to you, my love
I need you now
I need you at this moment
Ask me to
Just tell me what to do
I'll do anything for you, baby
I am willing to do anything for you, my dear
for you, baby
For you, my love
If you asked me to
If you were to ask me
I'd let you in my life forever
I would allow you to be a permanent part of my life
Lyrics © DistroKid, Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JOHN COWAN, ERIC SILVER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind