Brian F.

Why don't they send notice of this to their mailing list?

Thirty years ago, almost to the minute, I was walking out of my first Wilco show, at Tramps in New York City. For the full reminiscence, see:

 

 

Happy anniversary to me!

On 5/9/2025 at 11:35 PM, i'm only sleeping said:

I look forward to a "Jesus etc" in an urbi et orbi homily

 

Papal encyclicals are typically named for the first two or three words of the encyclical (e.g., Rerum Novarum or Laudato Si), so there's a nonzero chance there could be an encyclical that starts something like "Jesus vocat nos..." that we could fairly call Jesus etc.

Apple TV+ has an excellent track record of quality over quantity. There are a number of acclaimed shows on the platform. I personally have enjoyed For All Mankind, an alternative-fiction history of the era of space exploration.

On 4/1/2025 at 9:20 AM, Chez said:

My initial reaction to hearing A.M. (at the time WXRT played both "Casino Queen" and "Box Full of Letters" regularly) was that it was quite good, but not nearly as great as Son Volt's Trace or The Jayhawks' Hollywood Town Hall. Being There is what hooked me for life. 

 

I remember that being the prevailing opinion-- that Trace was superior-- although I was an adamant dissenter. I tried to turn a lot of my indie-rock-loving friends on to A.M., but only one-- the aforementioned Music Director of the radio station-- agreed with me. He declared it "rad." Everyone else dismissed it as country music. It wasn't until Being There that the scales fell from their eyes. I still remember listening to the CD of Being There when it came out, and my roommate (who had been one of the dismissers) hearing "Misunderstood" and saying, "What's that?" When I said Wilco, he couldn't believe it. He came to the next Wilco show with me and was blown away. I really wanted to say "I told you so," but I was just happy to add another convert.

Really? Wow! I had no idea. I wonder how many times they played it.

18 hours ago, Boss_Tweedy said:

I was doing a semester abroad in London 30 years ago, and I'd been unaware of Uncle Tupelo. I returned home in May of '95, and about a week later I started summer school. While moving into my dorm room I set up my TV first for background noise. I tuned into MTV and heard "Box Full of Letters." I've been a fan ever since. Happy 30th, A.M.!

 

I'm guessing this must have been on 120 Minutes? The only time I ever saw Wilco on MTV was when they premiered the video for "Outtasite (Outta Mind)" on 120 Minutes. I still can't believe someone talked Jeff into skydiving.

It was thirty years ago today that Wilco released A.M. My first exposure to Wilco would have been on April 13, 1995. Tuning in to CNN's Showbiz Today to see its weekly Thursday reveal of the new top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 while home from college on Easter break, I saw a feature on that year's South by Southwest festival. There was a montage of artists performing that included a 15-to-30-second clip of Wilco doing something from A.M., presumably, and I was instantly hooked. When I got back to school, I asked the Music Director for the college radio station (where I was a DJ and eventually the Programming Director) if we had received the Wilco CD from the record company. He said we had but that he hadn't had a chance to check it out yet. He asked me if I wanted to listen to it and report back. I gladly agreed, took it home and completely fell in love with it. We put it into rotation (which encompassed about 150 albums at any given time), and then I proceeded to call just about every show to request songs from it. It was like payola without getting paid (and also with a vanishingly small audience as our signal strength was minimal at WCHC 88.1, Worcester's Only Alternative Source).

 

So happy anniversary, A.M. You were my gateway drug to Wilco. Without my serendipitous discovery of you, I doubt I would have ever gotten to know the band or to have devoted as much time (and money) to it as I have for the past 30 years.

Thanks to you both. I remembered it being well over $200, so this makes sense. The combined price for the LP set and the CD set from Wilcoworld, with tax and shipping, was $373. I just resold the LP set, which turned out to have basically no value to me (no extra music, no larger artwork) at a loss of essentially 50 percent.

Is there anyone here who ordered this LP set from Wilcoworld and who still has a record of it? I'm trying to figure out what I paid for this, but the only record I have of the transaction is a credit-card charge that includes both the LP set and the CD set. I'm trying to figure out the all-in price, with shipping and tax, for the LP set pre-order.

I think nonplussed was what they were going for. I thought the ending was really powerful.

That "Caught in the Past" couplet is powerful. I look forward to hearing that song.

"White Wooden Cross" sounds like it would be perfect for this treatment.

 

Maybe this year's Tweedy Largo shows can be Tweedy Creek. The Watkinses have a regular gig at Largo. (The next one is March 18.) I have a friend who sometimes joins them on violin at their shows. 

Thanks, bbop. I'm pretty sure Jeff has related the story about the protest and his dad saying he would've crawled through the desert etc., but I don't specifically recall if it was in onstage banter or in an interview he did promoting Cruel Country. I do not recall the "Robert E. Lee Tweedy" detail, though.

The lyrics in the box set say that the line in "Spiders (Kidsmoke)" is "all these telescopic bones." In the original release, it's "telescopic poems."

 

I don't know what to believe anymore...

Something I usually do: pre-order directly from the artist. Something I rarely do: order from Amazon, especially music. For this release, I changed things up.

 

I pre-ordered the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot deluxe boxes and grossly overpaid, especially for the LP set. I have historically bought Wilco LPs along with the CDs (even though it's the CDs I will listen to) because I like having full-size artwork and, in at least a couple of instances (Kicking Television, The Whole Love), there were extra tracks on the LPs. The YHF LP box was such a waste. The artwork was identical to the CD box, and the songs were distributed across the LPs in an asinine way that made it even more user-unfriendly than the typical LP would be compared to a CD. To make matters worse, the sets did not arrive by the release date.

 

So, when the A Ghost Is Born deluxe sets were announced, I decided: 1) I'm not wasting my time with the LP set; and 2) I'll wait to order it, and maybe I'll just get it at the record store on release day. I totally forgot about the release until I got Jeff's Starship Casual email yesterday. I did a quick search to see what my ordering options were, and I ended up ordering the CD set from Amazon (where I have two days left on a free month of Prime). I ordered it last night and it arrived today. This is a long spiel to get to the point of: it's ridiculous that when I order something three months ahead of time, it arrives a week late, but when I order something the night before it's released, it arrives in under 24 hours and on release day.

 

Haven't had a chance to listen yet.

Since you didn't ask:

 

The day before Oscar nominations were announced, I shared the list of my ten favorite films of 2024. Only films released in theaters during the 2024 calendar year were eligible for inclusion on this list. All ten films and the Honorable Mentions were seen in the theater except for Nos. 5, 8 and 10. Incidentally, “Five, Eight and Ten” is a great song by Mineral, the chorus of which is appropriate for this list: “I want to know the difference between what sparkles and what is gold.” Here’s what sparkled in 2024, and here’s what I’d give the gold to:

 

*******************************************

 

1. Anora: The most entertaining film of the year, with rollicking slapstick comedy and deep pathos existing seamlessly side-by-side.

 

2. Hard Truths: A keenly observed, funny and moving look at two working-class London sisters and their families. Marianne Jean-Baptiste’s Pansy is one of the most simultaneously unsympathetic and sympathetic film characters in recent memory.

 

3. Conclave: I think my favorite line of the year might be when Ralph Fiennes snaps, “I don’t want to be pope!” A pleasingly suspenseful potboiler that is catnip for anyone interested in the history and trappings of the Catholic Church.

 

4. September 5: The attack on the Israeli delegation at the Munich Olympics as seen through the eyes of the ABC Sports journalists covering the Games. Suspenseful despite knowing how the story ends, and fascinating to see how much harder it was to report live news fifty years ago because of technological limitations. My favorite billboard of the year: “September 5. In theaters December 13.”

 

5. Saturday Night: A tightly written screenplay that packs a lot more than 90 minutes of action into the 90 minutes leading up to the first episode of what we now know as Saturday Night Live in October 1975.

 

6. The Seed of the Sacred Fig: Filmed in secret under the noses of the repressive Iranian regime, this powerful and terrifying film is kind of a miracle. The footage was smuggled out of Iran after the filmmaker had to flee the country on foot to avoid arrest.

 

7. All We Imagine As Light: Two nurses and a cook navigate daily stresses at home and at the Mumbai hospital where they work. Another beautiful and graceful portrait of working-class folks.

 

8. Thelma: 95-year-old June Squibb goes against type to play 93-year-old Thelma Post—all right, Squibb was probably 93 when she filmed it. Hell hath no fury like a woman scammed out of $10,000 over the phone who has access to a motorized scooter. Squibb and the late Richard Roundtree (in his final role) are an unlikely but very entertaining Batman and Robin. Based on a true story, and so much fun.

 

9. A Complete Unknown: I was very skeptical about Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan but he pulled it off. Strong performances all around in this biopic.

 

10. The Apprentice: Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong as Donald Trump and Roy Cohn, respectively, really nail the essences of the people they’re playing without doing blatant impersonations—Stan especially. This movie actually manages to somewhat humanize Trump for the first hour before we see him transition from terrible person to the worst person.

 

Honorable Mentions: Sing Sing; The Room Next Door; Nickel Boys; I’m Still Here; Emilia Pérez; The Outrun.

 

Best Director: Sean Baker, Anora; also considered: Mike Leigh, Hard Truths; Mohammad Rasoulof, The Seed of the Sacred Fig; Payal Kapadia, All We Imagine As Light; Jason Reitman, Saturday Night.

 

Best Actress: Mikey Madison, Anora; also considered: Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Hard Truths; Saoirse Ronan, The Outrun; Kani Kusruti, All We Imagine As Light; Karla Sofía Gascón, Emilia Pérez; Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here.

 

Best Actor: Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice; also considered: Colman Domingo, Sing Sing; Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown; Ralph Fiennes, Conclave; Hugh Grant, Heretic; Sebastian Stan, A Different Man.

 

Best Supporting Actress: Michele Austin, Hard Truths; also considered: Ariana Grande, Wicked: Part One; Elle Fanning, A Complete Unknown; Monica Barbaro, A Complete Unknown; Jamie Lee Curtis, The Last Showgirl; Renate Reinsve, A Different Man.

 

Best Supporting Actor: Yura Borisov, Anora; also considered: Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice; Edward Norton, A Complete Unknown; Clarence Maclin, Sing Sing; John Magaro, September 5; Ben Chaplin, September 5.

How about we trade Trump for some stale poutine?

We can't afford to lose a blue state.

You forgot to mention at least one show Wilco played at the Higher Ground in Winooski, Vermont, in 1999. I can still remember the smell of maple syrup and politeness in the air, so close were we to Canada.

Just noting that I added a full writeup above.

1 hour ago, Oil Can Boyd said:

I saw it yesterday and really liked it.  My expectations were low (particularly after my local paper (The Boston Globe) panned it) but I was thoroughly entertained.     

 

I also saw it yesterday and enjoyed it.

Ending on "Baba O'Riley" feels appropriate since it's often performed as a show closer by a band I fell in love with at 16 and have seen 82 times since: Pearl Jam.

Feel Free

A Lifetime to Find

Annihilation

Ashes of American Flags

Mine Forever

I Know What It's Like

On and On and On

Either Way

One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley's Boyfriend)

You're Not Gonna Win

Spiders (Kidsmoke)

Cold Slope

King of You

Acuff-Rose

California Stars

Lou Reed Was My Babysitter

Jesus, Etc.

A Shot in the Arm

A Robin or a Wren (with Spencer and Sammy Tweedy)

 

The start was delayed slightly (to 8:43 p.m.) because of what Jeff implied was a throat issue, allowing for an extended opening set by special guest Patton Oswalt. Kicking off with the lengthy "Feel Free," Jeff joked, "Well, that's about all the time we have." He suggested that there's no better way to win over a crowd than with a "17- or 18-verse new song." (The song is so long that Jeff had the lyrics taped to his monitor.) Introducing "A Lifetime to Find," Jeff related that, after he played it for a 96-year-old friend who writes limericks but who was not previously familiar with Jeff's music, she complained that she just couldn't take "all those imperfect rhymes." When "Ashes of American Flags" was greeted with a "smattering" of applause, Jeff scoffed at the appreciation, saying, "Most people like it when people show enthusiasm for their performance; I don't. Your applause means nothing to me."

 

I'm not sure if "Mine Forever" has been performed before. (I don't think it has been performed publicly on stage, at least, but someone should correct me if I'm wrong about that. And they will.) Following "On and On and On," Jeff joked that this was his "Friday night set" of his "happiest songs." During "Either Way," Jeff humorously pantomimed listening to the solo from the studio version in his head while he performed the solo-less acoustic version. At this point, he remarked that, after three-plus nights of basically no-repeat sets, he was "down to the dregs" of his catalog and then launched into "One Sunday Morning (A Song for Jane Smiley's Boyfriend)" (perhaps hoping he could kill the rest of his allotted time with just that song).

 

For those who were not in attendance or who were unable to catch the livestream of Night 3, Jeff has expressed disappointment that no one had left any presents for him under the lighted Christmas tree at stage left, so a couple of fans (Jenny and an unknown second fan) decided to bring him gifts on Night 4. (Unfortunately, it did not occur to me until I was already in line for Night 4-- at 9:30 a.m.!-- that a gift card to Cafe Gratitude would have made a nice gift. Either that or candlesticks.) Collecting these gifts after performing the new song "You're Not Gonna Win," Jeff grumbled that he performed for four nights and got only "two crummy presents." There's no pleasing that guy. As already pointed out below, the set featured a rare performance of the back-to-back Star Wars tracks "Cold Slope" and "King of You" and, rarer still, this was a solo acoustic performance of Wilco's version of "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions," at least if those Queen songs had inscrutable lyrics and were never played on any radio station ever. (I kid, of course-- the true Wilco analogue to "We Will/We Are" can only be "Red-Eyed and Blue"/"I Got You (At the End of the Century).")

 

After performing "California Stars," Jeff asked Susie if there was anything she'd like to hear. Her response was unprintable.

 

Choosing not to shuffle offstage for a compulsory encore break, Jeff remarked after "Jesus, Etc." that this was the point when he would usually do that. The noncore (my word) consisted of "A Shot in the Arm" and a reprise of "A Robin or a Wren" with Sammy and Spencer on backing vocals like Night 1. The latter song was dedicated to George (presumably co-writer Saunders, who was apparently in attendance this night) and, if I heard correctly, "Pablo"-- perhaps he said "Pedro" referring to his late father-in-law, though I'd swear I heard "Pablo" or possibly Paul; I suppose it could have been a shout-out to bbop. The show, and the four-night stand, ended at 10:13 p.m.

 

Thanks for another lovely time at Largo, Jeff. Thanks also to James, Julie, Jenny, Paige, Tom, Jason, Brooke, Allie, Sean, Arlene and Jordan for making the time in line fly by. And thanks especially to the city of Los Angeles for failing to fix the broken parking meter just before the BevMo driveway, allowing me to park for free for 20 hours on Nights 3 and 4 (and a couple of hours on Night 2). At a dollar an hour, it offset two nights' worth of See Tickets' fees.

 

 

Love Is The King

Ambulance

Remember the Mountain Bed

Sunlight Ends

Box Full of Letters

I Am Trying to Break Your Heart

Don't Forget

Everlasting Everything

Country Song Upside-Down

Pot Kettle Black

Normal American Kids

Guaranteed

Passenger Side

Pecan Pie [in F]

Evicted

Love is for Love (new song)

I'm Always In Love

Lou Reed Was My Babysitter

I Found Reason [Velvet Underground] (with Spencer and Sammy Tweedy)

Cry Baby Cry (with Spencer and Sammy Tweedy)

 

Opener: Mike O'Brien

Jeff on stage at 8:32 p.m., off stage at 10:02 p.m.

 

This show was live-streamed. I'm not sure how Instagram works, but it may still be available to be viewed at @stuffinourhouse.