The Civil Wars: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert 

Oh that's heartbreaking. So much chemistry. I would have liked to see more from them.

Yep:( except this hurts more

What a shame

Omg this! You win!

What a great analogy.

So am I!

Well said!

Same 😢

💔🎯

I mourn their demise as much as ‘The Sundays’.

I was convinced they were a couple !!

Truly incomparable. They are the definition of mesmerizing.

I almost wish they’d have left their spouses, run off together, and continued making music…

@@user-ln9zo2ji4dwell joy divorced hers. So..maybe an indication of what happened to create all this tension.

Absolutely yes!!!

Me tooo

Does anyone know the real reason for the split??

@@kenjohhson613 I think there were creative differences, and Joy said that problems were coming up in her marriage where the Civil Wars was coming first before her husband. People also began to speculate that Joy and John were having an affair (which wasn't true at all), so they decided to break off the band. That's all I know to my knowledge--the only people who really know are Joy and John

Blake B stupid husband

@@MozTroniquz1 It's easy to blame someone like that but in all honesty, would you feel comfortable watching your wife or husband perform day after day the way John Paul and Joy did? Bear in mind that there is a lot of creative process we don't get to see, a lot of personal time for Joy and John Paul, from which they come out with lyrics like 'I don't love you but I always will'... I personally empathise with their partners and can imagine that this must have put a strain on their relationships. The Civil Wars made magical music, that's true, but would you want your other half to have this sort of connection with someone else?! Of course, not... I mean, these two were just starting their careers, they were winning Grammys for goodness sake, and then bam! A split. Not on speaking terms for 8 years already. This breakup was definitely emotion-based. It wasn't about 'professional creative differences'.

+Mina May Couldn't agree more... they had such magic together.

+Mina May Damien Rice + Lisa Hannigan...

+Mina May sam palladio clare bowen do the civil wars songs justice but your right there was something super special here

+Mina May Then you may have never listened to First Aid Kit or Simon & Garfunkel. Try 'em. :D

+Mina May well said ! they are Unreal

Yeah you're absolutely right. But it makes it hard to sing by myself somehow. You have to kind of switch back and forth between each of their melodies to make it sound right

Throw in Paul McCartney's songwriting skills...

Dylan Bailey truth. if men could have babies

Dylan Bailey I

@@kaComposer, Paul Stookey (Peter, Paul, & Mary) as well as Paul McCartney, for his vocal abilities, especially with ballads.

I know man it hurts😭 they were my entire teen years

Imbra Kim Her husband told her quit the band or get a divorce

In one of Joy's songs that she put out on her own, she more or less hinted that he made a move on her. So yeah, something was definitely going on.

@@Kayabc which song are you talking about?

@@lowellcalavera6045 Pity she didn't tell him to ****** off then.

@@lowellcalavera6045 Source? Her husband was their band manager and was on the road with them so I don't think that happened. It feels more likely that JP was feeling strain in his marriage since his wife couldn't travel with them, she was basically dealing with the stress of being a single mom, and he was missing out on his kids' growing up too.

and "Girl with the Red Balloon"

... plus “Falling” and their collab song with Taylor Swift “Safe and Sound”

I still remember the first time I heard Poison & Wine. Its always fun finding that song that makes you stop and excitedly ask WHAT WAS THAT.

And “Dance Me To The End of Love”

... and Dust to Dust

I met John Paul in person last weekend at a Music festival and when I asked him if there was ever a slight possibility of them getting back together he politely yet powerfully said “No” while shaking his head.

@@theycallmekris169sadness🥲 also I met JP in LA when he released Beulah, was honestly the best concert I’ve been to because of how intimate it was, I was like 5ft from him, and he stayed after the show and we got to talk for a bit. Just wish I could’ve seen them together

Yep... not here but even more obvious on Same Old, Same Old which, to me, is their absolute best song.

I thought it was stoya. 😂😂😂

I think you're spot on. A lot of people fantasize about them being Johnny and June, and their "forbidden romance" being the proximate cause of their professional breakup. I personally don't think there was ever anything romantic between them. But as a musical duet, they have phenomenal chemistry. I have heard their individual work, and together they are far better than either of them is alone. I think that artistic chemistry is what people see and mistake for lust. Unfortunately, I get the impression it was actually the opposite of what people think---I don't think they ever got along well personally. They just put up with each other for a few years because the musical synergy was too explosive to pass up.

@Sean Crandall Honestly, I think you're spot on with everything. I've been closely following both of them for about 6 years now, and I think you have the exactly right idea. I think John found Joy a bit annoying, actually, and John likes having things his way, but Joy also wanted to have things her way, too which didn't work out too well. John has said himself that he enjoyed making his latest album cause he could do everything his way. Joy wanted to shine in the limelight, but John just wanted to keep making music their way.

Maybe that chemistry is what did them in. She is and has been married before they formed the band and her husband was the band manager.

Sean Crandall I don't agree. I mean I'm not sure they had sex or anything. But it seems they genuinely liked each other. I'm sure you've had a crush or fell in love...that's what I see with their banter and looks and just seemed like they had something for each other

Someone who commented here pointed out JP's desire to do things his way as being what did them in. That can very well be but I'm not sure. As far as I know, to this day Joy is still dumbfounded as to what happened. If there was some kind of rift between them I'm sure it would have been clear to her what the reason was for the break. I haven't dug too deeply so this is very well just my imagination but I believe John did have something for her. He at least appeared to. And it may not have been reciprocated because I think I see a little something more in the way he looks at her than in the way she looks at him. But, as someone else pointed out, the looks very well may have been nothing more than 2 artists basking in each other's artistic energy. Although, would that make sense to a jealous partner? There is also the way I've heard John and Joy speak in an early interview about how they began working together. They both described it as he "asked her out" as a songwriter or that they asked each other out after meeting in a songwriter's group. Between the eye contact and the way they played with the romantic tension as an image and identity for the duo I have a sneaking suspicion John's wife was jealous and eventually put her foot down and presented him with an ultimatum: "It's either her or me." In an effort to spare his wife backlash or judgement maybe John felt it would be better to never tell the truth about what was behind his leaving. Maybe I just have an overactive imagination.

It makes me wonder if they were so loud that they were overdriving the microphones or something. The recorded sound quality is not very good; too much midrange and not enough hi and lo.

@@user-bg2oi4bz3p Very possible!

Vaughan Lusk Lol right ?!

Which one?

Yeah, early days of Tiny Desk seemed to be pretty much "hey can you press the red button when we're ready and keep them in the frame in this cramped space?" You can see people in the background working haha...

Probably the intern

I think they've come a long way since then and upped their game.

Olivia Ceja but they said in many interviews that it happened naturally from their first meeting and they DIDN'T have to "work" at it.

👏👏👏👏

❣❣❣❣

Yeah, that's what I figured myself. Might be wrong, but, people are people and they sing some intimate stuff.

Spot on both of you. Joy was pregnant just before they disbanded. I'm sure we all know who's child it is. Nothing can ruin a relationship like a baby.

What was their last song?

@@emilywood6830 The song is called "Poison and Wine," and the haunting chorus is, "I don't love you, but I always will..."

They still make music...just not together. They both have great solo projects even though I do miss them together.

To be fair, Joy appears like a very naturally sensual and flirty person. Seeing how she obviously had a connection with and affection for John, she felt comfortable being herself around him. They did put on a performance, I don't think the glances or gazing was staged, but if you want to give a powerful performance of a romantic song, you will get into the right mood, you want to create a certain vibe so that the song affects the audience in a real way. However, I love and hate that John often gives Joy the cold shoulder. For some reason it has always made their performances more authentic to me.

Excellent post!

Never say never.

💯👍

2 albums

I guess is me. But please be gently, I already knew them few months ago.