Shug

This is my Christmas Eve dinner menu

Oysters on the half shell with Raspberry mignonette

Scallops in Coconut Milk with Chanterelles ~ Cranberry Walnut Martini

Warm Goat Cheese Salad ~ Champagne

Tomato Soup with puff pastry crust ~ Pinot Noir

Herbed NY Strip Roast ~ Cabernet Sauvignon

Scalloped Yukon Gold Potatoes

Brussel Sprouts with Bacon

French Green Beans with Almonds

Poached Pear Tart with Almond filling ~ Homemade Eggnog

Almost all Petty albums have at least one of what I think is an under-appreciated gem of a composition that I'd freak out to hear live. For Into The Great Wide Open, its You and I Will Meet Again. In addition to Jeff Lynne's production, part of what makes the record what it is is that the entire band was reportedly never in the room at the same time at any point during its making, as the tension with Stan was nearing a breaking point.

Re: Stan Lynch, overdubs and Petty losing his way for awhile: As good as the Heartbreakers still are with Steve Ferrone, they lost a lot, IMO, when they lost Stan. He's got such flair, yet he still remains rather simple, basic and solid in his drumming. Listen to what he could do on the live version of Nightwatchman from the recent live box set, just killer. And he had a great knack for what good rock 'n' roll is. Let Me Up is a rather weak album that didn't stand the test of time, IMO. But word has it that Stan and Benmont wanted it to be more of a hard rock record without the lame 80s keyboard overdubs, and many songs were recorded raw and live in the studio for the sessions that they liked, but Mike and Tom wanted other, more synthy tracks and they, of course, won out. If you have the first box set, Playback, with its outtakes from the sessions, you can create a tracklisting that is probably similar to what Stan and Benmont had in mind for that record (too bad we can't remove the 80s keyboards). It'd go something like:

Jammin' Me

Got My Mind Made Up

Think About Me

Ways To Be Wicked

Ain't Love Strange

Can't Get Her Out

It'll All Work Out

How Many More Days

Let Me Up (I've Had Enough)

Make That Connection

Part of the genius of later Steely Dan (Aja and Gaucho) was that although the music was super smooth and slick (even though the music is complex and full of virtuoso performances that are very difficult to play), the subject matter was still about junkies, whores, drug dealers and other sleazy kinds of characters/experiences. The irony of the contrast between the smooth music and the dirty lyrics, I believe, largely went over the heads of the chardonnay-swilling yuppies who love those songs so much. Steely Dan, IMO, belong in a category light-years beyond Little River Band, Kenny Loggins, etc, even though I have a soft-spot guilty pleasure for yacht rock (first time I've heard the term, but its not bad as a neat short descriptor).

Rich Robinson - Through A Crooked Sun

Circuital - My Morning Jacket

The Whole Love - Wilco

Pressure and Time - Rival Sons

Revelator - Tedeschi Trucks Band

Biggest Disappointment: Mockingbird Time - The Jayhawks Letting Mark Olson take over the band ruined the band, IMO.

She's The One soundtrack, which was the first project after Wildflowers, also has some great Wildflowers leftovers on it. Hung Up and Overdue is a killer song, gloriously weary but determined to not give up, in the vein of Wake Up Time and Crawling Back To You. Supernatural Radio is kinda like Its Good To Be King. Overall its not the strongest album, but it probably deserves more attention than it gets. Its got Walls and Angel Dream on it, both of which could easily have been radio-played hit singles. Its also got more bitter break up songs (Asshole, a Beck cover, and Hope You Never). Its got rockers like Climb That Hill and Change The Locks, too. Fans of Wildflowers should probably give it another listen if they haven't in awhile.

I'm loving that they played You Never Know (love that rockin' piano!) and Say You Miss Me (full of great pop hooks). I was hoping to hear those in January, now it seems at least in the realm of the possible.

^{What Light, nice! I really like that song, didn't think it was likely to be played again. Now I have a chance of hearing in January out west.}

"Fully integrate Nels or let him go" Are you and your pals all high? No, that can't explain it. What are you listening to? I guess everyone hears different things, but I find most of your observations ludicrous and your "I know what's best for Wilco" attitude arrogant and condescending. Maybe you didn't mean it that way, but that's how it came across to me. Its pretty pointless to make suggestions to a band about how they ought to be doing things like how much they move around on stage or who ought to sing harmony in what spot, and when they should do an acoustic song, etc. I suppose its okay to talk about your ideas about how the band is making what you think are mistakes, but surely you don't expect them to take you seriously, do you? And to try to make a campaign of discontent out of it by trying to recruit people from here is, in my judgement, lame. Dude, face it, its not that the band is doing things wrong, its just that you don't like them any more.

Just got a single in Orchestra 5 Row Z6 (almost all the way in the back) for the LA Theater and then it was sold out a few seconds later. Then a minute or two later, tried again and pulled a single in Orchestra 4 (center) Row R, a much better ticket. Its crazy but it almost always happens that way. So I've got three Wilco shows in January (Tempe, San Diego, and LA) stoked! Setlists lately have been looking great. Can't wait for more shows yeah!

Are there any SBDs or SBD/AUD matrix recordings of live Wilco on Owl and Bear? If so, which ones would you consider good sounding recordings of very good performances? I'm particularly interested in 2004 -2009. Thanks in advance for any help from those of you who are familiar with the archive!

The old warhorse sit or stand debate is raging again in the Dallas show thread here. Personally, I feel rock shows are for rocking out. I think the beat is there to get everybody moving and physically involved, even if its just a little sway or clap or something. Sitting still while rock music is being played is very weird to me, but each to his own, I suppose. What I find ridiculous is sitters trying to impose their preferred way of enjoying a show on those who would like to stand and dance.

Being in your alloted space, whether you choose to sit or stand, is what you paid for. Sitting is an option and if you choose to sit you might not get to see what you want. This is not the opera, its a frickin' rock show, people. Its my opinion sitters at rock shows have no grounds to think they have a right to an unobstructed view and its ridiculous of them to angry because someone in front of them wants to stand. I think shows are better when people rock out and I wish everyone would do their part to make the show good and stand up!

I'm going to have to hear that new Rich album. I always thought of him as the lucky guy surrounded by Chris and Marc Ford. Plus he always came across as such a dick. Does his album sound like the Crowes or is it something new?

I'd say Rich's album doesn't sound much like The Black Crowes, which to me is a good thing as I think a side project should be a different side of an artist than you get from their main band. He did write most of the music for Black Crowes songs, apparently.

I wrote earlier: On this record, Rich has come into his own as a songwriter and singer with an introspective set of songs tailored to his own singing voice and bringing together a nice set of less-than-mainstream 70s rock and folk influences (Manassas, Nick Drake, Woodstock-era Dylan, early Pink Floyd and early Fleetwood Mac, etc). He's quietly become a master-craftsman composer and its becoming more and more clear to me how much he's responsible for the Black Crowes' sound. I’d also been following the setlists on the tour, noting all the originals and great cover songs (Neil Young, Velvet Underground, obscure Rolling Stones, Clapton, Procol Harum, etc) that were in the rotation being changed up every night.

As for him being a dick, I think he's just very reserved and tends to show very little emotion which can come across as distant. It'd take a lot of energy to try to get some of the spotlight away from Chris when they are on stage together and I'd guess that Rich really has no interest in doing that, but I don't really know, of course. My impression, based on recent interviews, is that he's a very thoughtful and quiet kind of guy who nonetheless has a lot of great music that comes from his soul. He seems sincere to me.

I'm totally loving Rich's new album. I'm not that excited about Chris' sluggish, mid-tempo Grateful Dead lovefest that is the CRB live show, but I'd go see Rich three nights in a row if I could. I think I'm in the minority amongst Crowes fans, it seems. I hear CRB is going into the studio to do an album.

For what its worth, a post about seeing Rich live on my blog. http://sugartown-shug.blogspot.com/2011/11/i-caught-phoenix-az-show-of-rich.html

The vocals are overdubbed.

Are you sure the vocals on Europe 72 Vol. 2 are overdubbed? The more I listen, the more they don't sound as good as the vocals on the original Vol. 1.

I'd love to hear them play One Hundred Years From Now, but I doubt that will ever happen.

Glad to see they keep adding new songs to the setlists... The first leg was making me a bit nervous about seeing multiple nights next month

Me, too, on both points! I am hoping to hear Misunderstood and At Least That's What You Said, among others, in January. Its looking more promising with these Europe setlists.

Might be surprising to some, but yeah, I like Infidels better than Desire. The combo of Sly and Robbie rhythm section, Mick Taylor and Mark Knopfler on guitars and several of Dylan's best songs (Jokerman, Don't Fall Apart On Me, I and I, Sweetheart Like You) since, well, Blood On The Tracks, IMO, is the reason why. But Desire would be #7 (Isis and Oh, Sister being my faves) and then #8 would be Slow Train Coming. I really like that one, too, as much as some may hate it. I'm not as big a fan of Dylan's pre-electric stuff, just an opinion.

Getting a bit broader than the original topic, I know, but my rankings for Dylan's studio albums are:

1. Highway 61 Revisited

2. Blood On The Tracks

3. Time Out Of Mind

4. Blonde On Blonde

5. Bringing It All Back Home

6. Infidels

for live records, I love Hard Rain and Before The Flood, as already stated

This description intrigues me.

Very, very much.

Nice one. I'll have to check it out!

I'll be curious to hear what you think. Even most Crowes fans don't seem as excited by this album as I am, but its not very Black Crowes-like music. I think its a fricking masterpiece and I've been listening to it every day since it came out about a month ago.

#1. Rich Robinson - Through a Crooked Sun Black Crowes guitarist and music-writer comes into his own as a songwriter and singer with an introspective set of songs tailored to his own singing voice and bringing together a nice set of less-than-mainstream 70s rock and folk influences (Manassas, Nick Drake, Woodstock-era Dylan, early Pink Floyd and early Fleetwood Mac, etc).

He's quietly become a master-craftsman composer and has, IMO, left his more famous brother in the dust when it comes to solo projects.

I don't get the Dawes thing. I know people are giving me e-smacks in the face right now because everyone seems to love him, but I've tried a few times.. Just don't get it.

You are not alone. I tried hard to get into Dawes, and on paper, it sounds like it'd be right up my alley, but after seeing them live last month, I'm convinced I just don't care for them. They are really green, to my ears. Maybe in a few years they'll turn into something I'll like, but right now I'm not digging it. Waaaay too much Jackson Browne in their sound for my tastes, and I like (early) Jackson Browne.

And I'll second the Shout for the 'Hard Rain' live album which is a much under-appreciated Dylan record which contains some really angry reditions of Blood on the Tracks tracks.

Yes, yes, YES!!!! Hard Rain, even with the sketchy sound quality (that high-pitched squeal going through much of it) captures such an impassioned performance, it definitely ranks for me as some of the best Dylan ever. I love that record, such a great track list and magnificently played.

I agree about the greatness of Blood On The Tracks (most Dylan fans do, really) but I disagree about the alternate versions of songs like Idiot Wind being super great, to me they lack the passion of the ones that were originally released. I want to hear Dylan screaming and spitting the words with vitrol like he's trying to raise his voice over a howling maelstrom. Before The Flood is pretty damn brilliant in this same way, too.

Tennesse Jed (Europe '72) - Grateful Dead. The closest a piece of music has ever come to replicating an orgasm, IMO.

My Morning Song - The Black Crowes (studio version)

For San Diego, I was offered a pair in the Mezz way off to the side at 10:03. I turned 'em down and then there were no pairs available at all. About 10 minutes later, I check again and got a pair on the floor in center left section, row V, so I snagged those. You gotta keep trying, part of the scam is Ticketbastard holds back the better tickets for later and unloads the bad tickets in the first few minutes. This is probably unproven, but widely suspected by folks who buys lots of concert tickets. There is little that Wilco or any other band can do about this practice. This problem is compounded by all the tickets that are held back to be given away in promotions, many of which end up in the hands of scalpers. And then when a venue has season ticket holders, all those tickets are already sold and people who don't want to use them probably offer them up to the scalping website. And then there is the problem of the software programs the scalpers use to get through quicker than the normal folks typing away. There are multiple reasons why you get shitty seats even in the first minute of an on-sale.