Suki

I picked one up yesterday at Barnes & Noble.

I don't have the perspective of seeing shows outside of the greater Detroit area (just once) to know about other audiences but from where I was sitting (near the front and to the right) it was fun. Once Jeff made his remarks about sitting/standing (which had everybody around me laughing) several people, including me, stood for the whole show. A bunch around us would sit for a while and then stand up again. I do think it was an older audience than I'm used to seeing which might have been part of the reason for the sitting! Also, when the band started playing Either Way there were quite a fe

I returned from a Father's Day celebration on Sunday and tuned in to get about 40 seconds of I'm A Wheel, and I haven't had time to watch any online videos so I for one appreciate the review! Thank you!

Thanks for the recap -- I'm looking forward to the rest of it! It sounds like it might have been good that I sat a lot farther back than normal due to some Ticketmaster pre-sale problems. I couldn't hear the female admirer; just Jeff's comments to her. Two friends of mine who I never would have pegged as Wilco fans went to the show. They went because one of them thought she had seen Jeff before and that it would be an alt-country show. Turns out she was mistaken and had never seen him and knew nothing about him. Fortunately they both enjoyed the show a lot and they decided he reminded th

Thanks - I always look forward to your recaps! I’m looking forward to seeing the show in Ann Arbor in a few weeks. How is Buck Meek as the opener?

Less Than You Think in its entirety -- although I do like the first part of it. Jesus etc. was my favorite Wilco song for a long time although I've probably heard it enough now to last a lifetime. The "tall buildings shake, voices escape singing sad sad songs" line was so evocative of 9/11 to me. And even though it was written before 9/11 it meant more to me than many songs that were written about it.

What a great show, and as always, I looked forward to the recap! I thought Jeff's remarks about his new persona were great. He started off by asking if people had noticed what was new -- hair, hat, and a little chubby. Also, he mentioned there was only one of his songs that ever was played at weddings. He waited while people called out possibilities and said he wouldn't play until we guessed. Then he launched into You and I.

I add my thanks for the recap! I always enjoy reading about the shows, especially when I'm there, as I was last night. It was a perfect evening, both for the weather and the band. This was my 16th Wilco show since my first in 1999 (20th if I count Jeff Tweedy solo shows) and before the show started, I found myself wondering if I might be getting a bit tired of attending the shows. My answer came about 2 minutes into the show as I found myself smiling and so happy to be there, listening to my favorite band, and bopping along with everyone. I was still smiling as I left the show. What a gre

I'm a big Peter Wolf fan. I've seen him twice at The Ark in Ann Arbor MI and he was great both times. And I'm a somewhat indifferent J Geils fan. He may pull out a few of the old J Geils songs but mainly he will focus on his own songs, which are excellent. He has the same type of appearance as Mick Jagger or Steven Tyler -- longish hair, very thin, flamboyant dresser, still has the moves. His voice is great -- hard to believe at his age he has such a wide vocal range. And he's a great story-teller; lots of quick and witty stories of people he wrote songs with, or what influenced his song

Thank you for sharing the experience. I thought I was done with the tears but shed a few more reading your comments and the band reactions to the shocking news.

Agree the comic was horrible -- probably the biggest and soberest group he's encountered. I was so happy to be the first audience to hear the new material. Like most Jeff Tweedy songs, some were immediately accessible and some will take repeated listening to, to really appreciate. Plus it was sometimes hard to understand the lyrics. Overall I loved the new songs and can't wait to hear more. The backing band was solid but of course couldn't match Wilco. The record will be interesting -- Jeff said he played all of the instruments except for Spencer on drums and a few "friends" who helped

1999 -- I had never heard of Wilco or Uncle Tupelo. I have always loved music but felt like I was in a music void -- too busy with work and home to find interesting current bands. Then I read a review of Summerteeth, thought it sounded like something I would like, listened to the 30-second snippets of the songs on Amazon and ordered it. I fell in love with the whole CD from the first note to the last. It seemed as if I had been waiting for just this sound. I started looking for more information about Wilco on the internet and saw they were coming to our area, opening for REM. I told my h

I still am on a Wilco high. Great show and from where I was standing, a great audience. Jeff thanked the audience more than once -- he said he would like to take us along on to all of the shows; we would have come in handy on this tour but he wasn't naming names. I also thought the set design and light show was awesome. And I loved hearing the new songs -- 9 in total. I've never seen Mike so animated, especially during the encore. He was jumping around like crazy during Standing O and that went into I'm a Wheel as well. When Nick Lowe came out for the encore, Jeff mentioned they were sa

1. I read a review of Summerteeth and it was compared to the Beatles Sergeant Pepper album. I had not heard of Wilco prior to this. I love music but was so busy with work that I didn't have much opportunity for discovering new music. Friends and co-workers were stuck in the classic rock or Top 30 modes. I bought the CD and loved it from the first note to the last. 2. Soon after buying Summerteeth I saw the band was opening for REM at the DTE Energy Music Theater (suburbs of Detroit). I believe this was August 2009. My husband was amused that I wanted to go, not to see REM, but to see

I know there is another thread with Autumn Defense tour dates but thought it worth reminding anyone in the Detroit/Ann Arbor area that they will be playing at The Ark next Monday, November 8. The Ark is a fantastic venue for music. It's on Main Street and close to many bars and restaurants for before and after the show. The stage is very close to the audience, with seating on 3 sides, so it's an intimate atmosphere. And most artists are blown away by how quiet the audience is, even for the opening acts. People who want to talk go out to the bar area, which is separated by glass from the "

And after the Ummmm -- Glenn's drum solo. At the end of Hummingbird -- there's an interplay between what I always think of as sounding like a kazoo and strings. As the song ends, the kazoo fades out, leaving a totally pure and beautiful note on the strings. Wonderful.

Anyone who lives near Ann Arbor, Michigan may be interested to know that Ben and Jay will be playing at the 33rd annual Ann Arbor Folk Festival on Friday, January 29. The headliner for that night is Iron and Wine. Last year the headliner was Jeff Tweedy. General public tickets go on sale December 1st. If you are a member of The Ark (the Folk Festival is a fundraiser for The Ark) then you can get tickets now.

For anyone who missed the Frontgate pre-sale for the Ann Arbor show this morning, I got an e-mail saying that Live Nation will have a pre-sale for the Oct 16 show at Hill Auditorium tomorrow (Thursday) from 10 am to 10 pm. The password for the pre-sale is tweedy.

As others have said, this was probably the best show I've seen. The small venue, the enthusiastic crowd, the incredible setlist, the band seeming to really enjoy themselves -- it all made for a great evening. A couple of other funny moments -- during Kingpin, when Jeff was working to get the audience to participate he told us if we didn't we would regret it when we get old (I think 87 was the age he picked). And then he started mimicking an old man, voice and all, saying his only regret in life was that he didn't shout out at that Wilco concert so many years ago. And I also had to laugh

The theatre is right downtown. There are tons of restaurants -- we usually head over to Main Street, which is just a couple of blocks away, and find something there. I can't remember the name, but there is a fun Mexican restaurant on Main Street that has pretty good food. Small Plates is another favorite (a tapas restaurant).

The theatre web site shows that they are sold out. No surprise as this is one of the smaller venues around (will be all standing) and in the past few years Wilco has played at much bigger venues. I'm going with friends and family and can't wait to hear the new songs.

This show is a fundraiser for The Ark, which is why the members get early ticket priority. For members they are going on sale on Friday the 31st. For the general public they go on sale on December 1. You can become a member for $50. I've never been to the Folk Festival but it gets rave reviews each year. It's two nights -- Jeff headlines the first night, which they call the night for the "up and comers" and the second night is more traditional. Saturday's headliner is Kris Kristofferson and also features Pete Seeger. If you buy the 2-night ticket you supposedly get better seats.

I just got the folk festival line-up in the mail today and Jeff is headlining on Friday January 30. It's at Hill Auditorium. Also playing are Old Crow Medicine Show. The rest of the acts (usually 6 - 8) haven't been announced yet. Should be fun!

Ann Arbor has a lot of bookstores (including used/antique etc). I'm not the best for restaurant recommendations because I'm vegetarian, but there are a ton of restaurants in Ann Arbor. For Chinese I would suggest Middle Kingdom, for seafood most people like The Real Seafood Company (both on Main Street), for vegetarian go to Seva (good value, you can get drinks there as well), for Indian I'd suggest Raja Rani. Just about any of the places on and around Main Street are good -- some are kind of pricey, so look at the menus in the window before you go in.

Ann Arbor is a great place -- it's basically a college town. If you like the outdoors and the weather is good, either Gallup Park (goes along the Huron River) or The Arboretum are good places to go walking or jogging. For museums, the University of Michigan Art Museum is very well regarded and there is a museum called the "Hands-on Museum" that is geared to kids but fun for everyone. For shopping there is a quirky little area called Kerrytown which has lots of nice little shops that are primarily local. And it's near Zingerman's which is an extremely popular deli that would be a good place