Vicki Peterson and John Cowsill Long After The Fire 2025

Vicki Peterson was in the Bangles, Psycho Sisters and Continental Drifters (the last two with Susan Cowsill). She played lead guitar, wrote songs and sang with the all three bands. John Cowsill played drums in the Cowsills starting when he was ten years old. Later he played in Dwight Twilley's band (also with Susan Cowsill), and toured for twenty years with the Beach Boys, contributing vocals, keyboards and drums. The couple married in 2003.

And now we get their debut as a duo. The songs were written by Bill and Barry Cowsill, two of John's older brothers and Cowsills members, both deceased. The record was produced in Nashville by multi-instrumentalist Paul Allen, who plays guitars, bass, keyboards, and drums. Dave Pearlman adds pedal steel guitar, and Jimmy Calaire adds keyboards to two songs. Cowsill sings, plays drums, keyboards, and harmonica, and Peterson sings and plays guitar and mandolin. 

Fool Is The Last One To Know is classic country rock featuring hot lead guitar, great harmonies, and Cowsill's country twang of a voice (which he doesn't use on all songs). Vagabond is more solid country/rock with nice pedal steel guitar and verging-on-cliche lyrics that's a solid song. Peterson takes the lead and most of the glorious harmonies on Come To Me, a sweet keyboard driven rocking mid-tempo ballad. Is Anybody Here has another fine vocal from Cowsill. They actually rock out on the driving Sound On Sound with big loud guitars and a hot lead courtesy of Peterson. Peterson provides fine lead and harmony vocals on the folky acoustic Don't Look Back.

Peterson sings lead on You In My Mind, a power-pop gem that sounds like it could have a been a Bangles hit. Country sounds return for the two-step A Thousand Times with more pedal steel, a fine lyric, Cowsill's twangy lead vocal and great harmonies from Peterson. Embers is a slow country heartbreak waltz that gives the album it's title, and Cowsill blows some skillful harmonica. Downtown is a solid rocker that almost sounds like a Tom Petty song. The record ends with two ballads. When Hearts Collide sees the duo trade lead vocals, and Peterson wraps things up with the gentle acoustic of Ol' Timeless.

Cowsill gets 7 lead vocals, Peterson 4, and they share one. John Cowsill has an excellent voice, but then so does Vickie Peterson. They sound great in harmony. Some of the songs have almost cringy lyrical cliches (not many), but the melodies are strong, the musicianship is good, and the pleasure that Peterson and Cowsill share together is infectious. They're having fun and honoring John's brothers at the same time, and it works.