jewess_jeans

I feel like Nels is still in awe of the fact that he gets to do this... At the seminar I went to w/him, he was saying that he finds it crazy that people want to take his pic, etc. I also feel like he's just trying to keep his head down & toe the line so he can keep this awesome gig. However, this is all hearsay & conjecture

I agree... and Tommy is incredible, but Quadrophenia is at another level. I appreciated it when I was a teenager, for obvious reasons, but, even as I get older, I find more & more to relate to in it. I've seen them perform it a number of times, including this last time in the UK, and it never fails to give me chills and bring tears to my eyes.

I was going to list Quadrophenia but for whatever reason didnt .... yes it is far better than Tommy in my opinion

I went to the seminar @The Stone NYC... anyone else? It was actually really interesting, even for a non-musician, even in a VERY hot room. He's very charismatic, and spoke mainly about his equipment, solo and session work. He still seems sort of, umm...amazed and maybe a little embarrassed about his new-found fame. All in all, I'm really glad I went. I know someone was there video-ing it...

Quadrophenia, perfect, brilliant, and unmatched to this day.

I grew up w/music biz parents, and basically spent my youth at Dead shows...my first show was as a little baby @ a Stones show. It's a wonderful, special experience for kids...and they'll always have a great story to tell! But, one thing, I'm 32, always wore earplugs as a kid, and I can't hear a damn thing any more!

That makes Nels all the cooler in my book

Part 4 of the Oral History is up:

 

http://www.downbeast.com/

 

“Hot For Teacher.” That’s the official song of the Nels Cline Singers. We’ve played that at almost every single sound check.

I totally remember watching this episode of Unplugged! What a great post!

The best thing that ever happened on MTV Unplugged:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjRWcqxOO6s

 

DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK!!!

First of all, I'm sorry for not checking all the links before posting something that answered the question definitively. Just trying to answer the question at hand...

Secondly, I didn't say that I found the video boring... I just said that it can be a bit boring. I didn't think it was, I was just giving people a heads up. That's why I posted the minute/second count where you could find the answer, so that people who just wanted to know the answer to that specific question wouldn't have to wade through 6 and a half minutes of guitar talk before finding out what they wanted to know. I don't play guitar either, but I am a guitar nerd (to use my own term). I think the stuff Nels does is fascinating, I've never seen anything like it before! His playing blows my mind, and I was thrilled when I first saw that video, because I was dying to know about his pedals, and the fuzz factory, and, of course, his guitars.

Thirdly, just because I (or anyone) want to know certain things about members of a band doesn't mean that A) I'm a stalker or That I think that Wilco are the Jonas Brothers, or something. It just means that I (or anyone) like to know, and discuss, different things than you do about bands I like. I'm more than happy to respect the rules of this forum, and will do so from now on, but I don't think asking who so-and-so is dating is akin to asking the address of their house, or keeping a vial of their sweat around my neck or something (a joke). However, rules are rules, and I won't ask a question like that here again.

Lastly, starting a sentence with "Now, I don't mean to pick on you...", is a good way to ensure that someone feels that you are picking on them. Just sayin'.

Anyway, I'm moving on... I just wanted to respond.

Yes. We've already seen that link ... Upnorth beat you to it earlier today, 3 or 4 posts ago.

 

Now, I don't mean to pick on you or anything, so don't take it that way, but I can't not comment on your "a bit boring" statement above -- I respectfully disagree completely. See, I'm not a total guitar nerd, can't play one at all, and yet the whole video to me was quite fascinating and I didn't want it to end. I find Nels sharing his passion for the Fender guitars he owns and demonstrating the techniques he uses to be infintely more interesting than the identity of some woman on a guitar. But hey, to each her own. I guess there's something for everybody in this thread.

 

Actually, I'm sorta surprised nobody dredged up links to all the old threads that asked this same question over the years.

Nels states that it is, in fact, Kristen McMenamy on the guitar... it's at like 6:25... if you aren't a total guitar nerd the whole video can be a bit boring to watch...

Clearly some people care, and, as MissLaura said, if they talk about it in an interview, why can't we talk about it here? Speaking for myself, when I like a band, I like to know about the people in it. I know I'm not the only one as I've seen people on this forum talk about Jeff's personal life in some detail. Anyway, it's an open thread, and if you don't care, don't read/comment.

@jff - I think that was really cool of Carla! The more I read about her, the cooler she seems...

Personal lives are just that: personal. Who really cares?

 

Carla's European tour kicks off tomorrow. Hopefully some of you will be able to catch a show or two as they're certain to be fantastic.

 

Carla Bozulich Duo w/ Francesco Guerri, cello (Bologna, It)

 

April 16, 2010 Bologna (IT) Si (Teatro San Leonardo)

April 18, 2010 Padova (IT) Pixelle

April 20, 2010 Rimini (IT) Domus di Bacco

April 24, 2010 Dijon (FR) Why Note Festival

April 27, 2010 Zagreb (HR) Zedno Uho Festival

April 30, 2010 Brighton (UK) Freebutt

May 01, 2010 Newcastle (UK) The Culture Lab

May 02, 2010 Hull (UK), Adelphi

May 03, 2010 London (UK), Cafe Oto

May 08, 2010 Umea (SE), MADE Festival

 

EVANGELISTA (US, Constellation)

Carla Bozulich (voice , guitar)

Tara Barnes (bass, Voice)

Dominic Cramp (Keys, Laptop)

Michael Tracy (drums)

Andrea Serrapiglio (cello)

 

May 07, 2010 Krems (AT), Donaufestival

May 10, 2010 Copenhagen (DK), Loppen

May 11, 2010 Oslo (NO), Cafe Mono

May 12, 2010 Bergen (NO), Landmark

May 14, 2010 Goeteborg (SE), Koloni @ Kulturhamnen

May 15, 2010 Rostock (DE), JAZ

May 17, 2010 Berlin (DE) Hebbel am Ufer w/ The Psychic Paramount

May 19, 2010 Groningen (NL), Vera

May 20, 2010 Krefeld (DE), Kulturrampe

May 21, 2010 Brussels (BE), Maison des Musiques

May 22, 2010 Bielefeld (DE), Bunker Ulmenwall

I don't want to dig into anyone's private personal matters, but Nels mentions his wife several times in his diary from the tour on which he met Carla (see below). I've read every interview or article I've come across on Nels since the late '90s, and I've never once seen him or anyone else state that he and Carla were married.

 

I don't know one way or the other, and it doesn't matter either way, but I just found it odd that it was presented as fact.

 

His tour diary from Mike Watt's Shine Box tour is worth a read (as is his diary from Watt's Clam Blow tour):

 

http://www.hootpage.com/hoot_nelsshinebox1.html

 

Excerpt:

 

I keep thinking about Carla and the Fibbers. Listened to the album as I drove today maybe someday I'll comprehend why the opener, "Lilybelle", almost causes me to break down every time I hear it. This morning it was the usual goosebumps, but this time accompanied by the welling up of tears (which has happened a couple of times before). What's the deal? Only later did I sit in the car outside the Mo' 6 and inspect the lyrics which actually are quite intense, with an air of confrontation and tragedy. But it was/is simply the music that destroys me. Godgiven moments.

 

Time to call Darling Wife.

I read the same article Miss Laura linked to... I didn't realize that he had been married before, so I assumed (incorrectly) that his ex-wife & Carla were one and the same...which, I guess, is how rumors get started. Thanks for helping me clear that up! So, to clarify, are he and Carla still an item?

No worries at all... things come across strangely sometimes via computer. Anyway, I'm really not familiar with her/her work other than I know that she was married to Nels. I'll check her music out given your recommendation... and I can totally get behind digging someone because they don't fit in to societal ideas.

Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you. One of the things I've always really admired about Carla is that she's beautiful without to ascribing to the unrealistic stick-thin ideals our society perpetuates. I do wish her work was talked about more, both here and in the rest of the universe, because she's one of the best musicians and songwriters around.

 

Anyway, it's definitely Kristen McMenamy on Nels' guitar.

Awwww... that is so sweet, on everyone's part! That was very nice of Carla, esp.

Nels seems cool as well...the interviews I've read/watched with him always show how humble he is, and how he doesn't take himself too seriously, even though he's probably the greatest guitar player of our time. I wonder what happened between them... they still play together and stuff...

Not only is Carla beautiful and talented, I can speak personally for how kind and sweet she is. Back in November 2004, when I took my daughter Alissa to her first concert (in L.A. at the Wiltern) it was Carla & band she saw first, opening for Wilco. I remember watching Alissa's face then, and thinking to myself how glad I was that she was getting to see a woman rocking out so gloriously! I want my girl to know that the world is open to her & whatever dreams she has, you know? So that was satisfying. Alissa's evening went from exciting to thrilling when, two songs into Wilco's set, Jeff came over to where she was at stage edge, knelt down, and sang her part of Hummingbird. She was beyond dazzled.

 

After the show, a roadie brought Alissa a clutch of aftershow passes for herself and her family (lucky us!) and when we went downstairs, Alissa was bored with the crush of grownups and wandered over to a room where Carla & her band were relaxing. Carla immediately called her in, and sat her in a chair beside herself, and then handed her guitar to Alissa (who went shyer than I'd ever seen her! )! She showed Alissa the right way to hold it, and then spent several minutes showing her some basic chords, carefully guiding Alissa's fingers into place. I stood in the doorway watching, and snapped a couple of quick (& bad & blurry) photos, but my best memories are captured inside my head, remembering how kind she was to my little girl.

 

Alissa is 14 now, and has puttered with a guitar for years. Just the other day, she played me a pretty song she had just written.

 

And just to steer this back on topic, may I add that Nels is every bit as kind and adorable as Carla.

I'll admit I've never seen her play live, but in the pictures that I've seen of her she looked very skinny. Anyway, I don't know that calling someone skinny is an unkind comment, it certainly wasn't meant that way. I'd be happy if someone said that about me. Meanwhile, she's adorable, and seems like she's super cool, which she clearly must be if she was married to Nels, so calm down.

I saw Carla play in February, and she looked healthy and strong. Not that I wouldn't buy her a sundae, because she's rad, but you're way off base there. She's never been rail thin. You might want to fact check before you make unkind comments.

My first Wilco show was last week in Montclair, it was also my first time ever hearing Wilco at all (my friend's a big fan, so I agreed to go with her). I was blown away, not only by Wilco as a whole (I went online & bought 4 or 5 of their albums right away), but by Nels and his amazingly groundbreaking way of playing. I literally could not take my eyes off of him. He is one of the best players I have ever heard in my life, and he has such a crazy range of techniques!

My friend & I wound up driving to Philly to see last night's show, and we were right in front of Nels...what a show he puts on just by himself. And, now that I've become familiar w/Wilco's music (both before and after Nels), you can tell that he's brought them to a whole new creative level. I feel so lucky to have not only found a great "new" (to me) band to listen to, but also to become familiar with one of the greatest guitar players I've ever heard, and, in my opinion, the best guitar player of my time (ie - not Pete Townshend, Jimmy Page, etc.) I can't wait to see him solo in July!

I can relate. The first time I saw Nels was with Mike Watt, touring in support of "Ball-Hog or Tugboat" with Watt's two drummer lineup (one of which was Michael Preussner, from the Nels Cline Trio). That must've been 1994, or something. I had never seen or heard guitar playing like that. I still haven't. It blew my mind. It even blew my wife's mind, and she is NOT impressed by guitar pyrotechnics. Something about his playing transcends all the wankery and finger gymnastics.

Well, he's super tall himself, so... And he likes 'em skinny! His ex, Carla, could also use a hot fudge sundae, or two...

nels likes 'em tall, she's 5' 10" according to wiki.