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As always, it's almost impossible to fully capture the feeling in the room for these annual benefit shows at the Vic that have become such a beloved tradition among the Wilco/Tweedy fanbase. They are (and have been) a combination of delight, awkwardness, comfort, curiosity, generosity, honesty, serendipity and probably 10 other things that I'm failing to think of as I somehow type these words through bleary eyes just before 5 a.m. So that's a disclaimer of sorts, kind of like the one Jeff often puts on his own performance early on in the evening when he declares to the crowd that this show "

I only have my phone with me and I’m in transit trying to get home in time to help out some friends with Record Store Day madness, so I won’t be able to offer a full recounting of this final headlining show of Jeff’s current solo jaunt until later (if needed). But since no one’s posted the setlist here yet, and since tonight was an especially fun show with Jeff playing a couple of Golden Smog tunes with old friend Gary Louris — who I believe now lives, at least part of the year, in North Carolina — as well as singing with support act Ohmme on a couple more, I figure I’ll do at least part of

That song is the one he is calling New Wave Theater, FYI.

Dreamer In My Dreams definitely wasn't played; it was We've Been Had. And d. boony is correct that there is a song missing after New Madrid, which was Bombs Above. Also, the new song that was played between Ashes and Passenger Side was one Jeff said didn't really have a title yet but Jeff said he is calling New Wave Theater. First time I've gotten to hear it — I believe it might have been just the second (or third) time he's played it — and a definite highlight of the show for me. I am currently in transit, so won't have a chance to add anything else until later today, but will try to do so

Thanks for the detailed report, sir, delayed as it might have been. Funny about the border incident. Bands must have to deal with that all the time. And I think I’m pretty sure I have an inkling about who that “somebody” who stuffed the proverbial ballot box might have been...

Hey thanks a lot for the report, man! Guess they were too busy lighting up one-hitters in the Hammer to report back, so I’m especially glad to hear some news. Sorry I’m having to sit out this Canadian run, but I’m glad you enjoyed. Any Sarah Harmer sightings? Enjoy your hometown gig, and definitely fill us in again if anything worthwhile happens...

I think that would almost have to be I Must Be High for a second/third/etc. wedding, no?

I know. Major bummer.

At just about every Jeff Tweedy solo show I've ever attended, and especially at the kickoff show for a solo tour like tonight's in Michigan, there's a bit of suspense at the start as Jeff tries to read the crowd, the crowd tries to read him and we all see how the evening might transpire. There are some shows where Jeff doesn't say anything for quite a while into his set, and there are some when the audience is too polite — or not — and then things take their course. Three songs into this show at the Royal Oak Music Theatre (where, incidentally, Wilco played a memorable one-off gig nearly eig

Oh, certainly not! Cymru am byth! I do have a soft spot for the Scots, though...oxters aboin!

Uhhhh....

This is kind of an amusing review... "The key to the ultimate Jeff Tweedy experience is to meet his standards during the performance."

At least her accent is nice... (And she only got one fact wrong, saying the long song that was requested and which Jeff played the last verse of was One Sunday Morning instead of Remember The Mountain Bed.)

The paper he had on that table wasn't really a setlist so much as a list of songs he wanted to get to (or could potentially audible to) grouped together by various tunings. There's an example of one in the thread about the Edinburgh show. I took a picture of the London one — I think it probably was the one used by Jim Elkington while pseudo-guitar teching for Jeff — that I could probably post at some point. But basically it had quite a few songs on it, some he did play and many others he didn't (including The Ruling Class, Someone To Lose, Someday, Some Morning, Sometime, In A Future Age, Ra

Hey thanks! It was from one of the Vic solo shows in Chicago a couple of years ago. I was a little surprised, but very pleased, that he played it! And glad that they decided to share it on Wilcoworld Radio...

Perhaps Herr Tatlock (always good to see you, sir ) or someone else will already have some thoughts typed in by the time I get a chance to offer a more thorough recounting of the final night of Jeff's all-too-brief UK and Ireland solo run, but I will say that IMHO there was a somewhat weird dynamic between Jeff and audience tonight. Not enough to ruin the show by any means, but probably enough to keep it from gaining much momentum... [edit: Since only one other person has chimed in so far, I suppose I shall endeavour to post some further thoughts now.] As I was saying, a bit of a weird vib

Finally got reconnected, as it were, so I've tried to deliver the promised "detailed report." Hopefully it's reasonably coherent...

Moon songs, baby! Hopefully we can listen to this stuff at a later date...

One reason I still enjoy seeing Jeff perform solo as much as — or even more than...shhh — Wilco sometimes is that there's always a chance he will say, play or do something unexpected. And you never really can predict when that will happen because it usually does when you absolutely least expect it. Such was the case with the show the other night at the venerable Albert Hall in Manchester (where, coincidentally, Wilco had played less than 18 months earlier). Despite its history, you probably wouldn't choose this room as a particularly stellar venue for a solo acoustic show, given its towering

Ooh, I would love to meet Mrs. Tatlock so I hope she can make it! I think I am pretty well sorted for the gig, though I do very much appreciate your thinking of me with regard to your potential extra ticket. Some of the Irish would likely forewarn you against sitting near me, though, so I hope the Welsh are a bit more forgiving. As far as the very genial Mr. Elkington, if you tend to enjoy your singer-songwriters on the folkier, pastoral side with a bit of an Anglo-American twist, then you’d probably enjoy him. He’s got a bit of Jansch in him, as someone mentioned, but his songs have defini

Alas, orange and soda only! I suppose at least some sacrifices were required...#beerplanfail

People often ask me, when I talk to them in person, how a given night's Wilco/Tweedy/Jeff solo show compared to the previous night's or one from earlier in a tour and I'll point out some similarities and differences and offer an opinion. Usually a significant part of that has to do with the venue or the audience, so while setlists might be relatively similar at times from show to show, no two performances are ever completely alike. And that's probably true at solo gigs more than any other. So you might look at the songs played at Jeff's show in Edinburgh — where, remarkably, he hadn't perfor

Well, as is all too often the case with these recaps, I have far too much ground to cover in the immediate aftermath of a show and definitely not enough time to cover it (at least if a modicum of sleep is to be had and sanity is to be maintained). So this will probably be another mediocre attempt at summation, but when it comes to the relatively rare solo show performed by Jeff on this side of the pond, I suppose something is better than nothing... Aside from me being chastised afterwards by a rather passive-aggressive older Irishman sitting in front of me for singing along too loudly and ru

Thanks for the report! Sounds like an excellent evening. One point of correction/clarification, perhaps, is that it probably wasn’t the *first* live performances of some of the If All I Was Was Black songs. She and her band played a couple of them last October in Chicago (and almost certainly elsewhere) whilst opening for Bob Dylan. And of course, they played Build A Bridge on Jimmy Kimmel’s show last week.