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Billy Bragg on recording with Wilco


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I love that you posted this before I even read today's paper :lol

 

I'm pretty sure I'm going to go see him when he's in town Saturday. I don't know too much of his work beyond the Mermaid Avenue discs, but the Watson Twins are opening, and it's in the same great old theatre downtown where Andrew Bird played a few weeks ago, so I think it's worth checking out.

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You know we recorded more than 50 songs, you've only seen half of them so far.

I remember hearing when Mermaid Ave. vol II came out that they planned to release more. Anyone know when or if the others will see the light of day. My guess would be some sort of box set down the road.

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I'm pretty sure I'm going to go see him when he's in town Saturday. I don't know too much of his work beyond the Mermaid Avenue discs, but the Watson Twins are opening, and it's in the same great old theatre downtown where Andrew Bird played a few weeks ago, so I think it's worth checking out.

If you want to do a quick study, pick up a copy of Back to Basics, or maybe Talking With The Taxman About Poetry. The former is a terrific compilation of his early work, and the latter is possibly his finest album. The one caveat about both is that they're not full-band recordings, so what you'll see on Saturday (assuming he's on tour with The Blokes) will have an entirely different sound.

 

I've been a major Bragg fan since 1987. He's one of my all-time favorites. :yes

 

That doesn't seem like a very nice thing to say.

:lol

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You might also consider picking up 'Must I paint You A Picture?' It is a 2 disc with a bonus disc Bragg retrospective. A great primer covering all phases of his career. The 2 mentioned above are great also.

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http://forums.viachicago.org/index.php?sho...98&hl=bragg

 

""Billy Bragg is so full of shit, man," he says, before pausing for a disturbingly long laugh. "That guy is full of shit," he manages again. "I don't know what he's talking about. If he has more stuff, then that's great, but I don't think there's any chance of us having anything to do with it."

More laughter.

"The guy's been saying that all over the place and I have no idea what he is talking about because he has never talked to us about it. There are no other songs that we have. Everything that we did was on the records. But I'm serious. He's full of shit. Nothing against Billy. He's just full of shit."

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Thanks for the suggestions. I don't think I'll be able to track them down before the show, but I've been meaning to ask for some recommendations. After Andrew Bird, Billy Bragg, the Decemberists, and the Avett Brothers within about six weeks, I can't complain about the music scene around here anymore. Ithaca is off the beaten path a bit (we're about 25 miles from the interstate), but it's been great to have so many good artists coming through this fall.

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You might also consider picking up 'Must I paint You A Picture?' It is a 2 disc with a bonus disc Bragg retrospective. A great primer covering all phases of his career. The 2 mentioned above are great also.

 

i love this song.

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http://forums.viachicago.org/index.php?sho...98&hl=bragg

 

""Billy Bragg is so full of shit, man," he says, before pausing for a disturbingly long laugh. "That guy is full of shit," he manages again. "I don't know what he's talking about. If he has more stuff, then that's great, but I don't think there's any chance of us having anything to do with it."

More laughter.

"The guy's been saying that all over the place and I have no idea what he is talking about because he has never talked to us about it. There are no other songs that we have. Everything that we did was on the records. But I'm serious. He's full of shit. Nothing against Billy. He's just full of shit."

Thanks for reposting. I love that shit.

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For a highly politicised songwriter his 'love' songs are pretty great.

 

I defy anyone not to love 'Greetings to The New Brunette'. One of my favourite songs, killer melody, touching lyrics.

 

By the way, has anyone heard Frank Turner yet? Being compared alot to Billy Bragg. Saw him at Glastonbury, he has alot of passion especially when he plays live and a growing cult following.

 

'Sleep Is For The Week' is well worth a listen and I love the opening track on his new album 'Love Ire and Song' a great track called 'I Knew Prufrock Before He Got Famous'. Check it out.

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My guess would be some sort of box set down the road.
I have been saying this for years....the complete Mermaid Ave sessions will be released some decade...

 

Even some day after everyone's hurt feelings stop being hurt they may tour behind a box set....who knows.

 

LouieB

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I love those records, but I would have loved them even more if they would have been all Wilco.
and the answer is....

 

there would have been no Mermaid Avenue recordings with Wilco if Billy Bragg hadn't invited them in....

 

LouieB

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I have been saying this for years....the complete Mermaid Ave sessions will be released some decade...

 

Even some day after everyone's hurt feelings stop being hurt they may tour behind a box set....who knows.

 

LouieB

 

 

So wait...so you think Tweedy's not being fully truthful or that he just misremembers the amount of songs that haven't been released?

 

I will say...that I would love to get the Wilco version of "Birds and Ships."

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I have no idea the real story - but - reading a bit between the lines into what billy said about "When I was in the studio, they carried on with Jeff. When Jeff wasn't there, they worked with me." maybe this is where the split in opinions about how much stuff there is comes from - maybe ALL of what Jeff worked on is out there - and maybe there was more stuff that was put on tape with the rest of wilco backing billy, that jeff/wilco never considered anything other than demo's or rejected material. just a guess. or it could be that billy's full of shit man.

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i couldn't care less (or "could care less" for the resident morons) how many songs they recorded or if another album will come out etc etc. I just want to know if Natalie Merchant and Billy Bragg did it. And if Nora was jealous.

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I completely forgot until last night that I have a friend staying with me tonight. She has a grad school class that meets one weekend a month, and she stays with me so she only has to drive an hour back and forth instead of two. I'd love to see this show tonight, but she's one of the few friends I'll always give up other plans to hang out with. I'm glad I remembered before I bought the ticket. Oh well. I'll see him eventually.

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Billy Bragg is just looking for a new Wilco co-release to knock him into a new tax bracket. It's kind of pathetic really.

You obviously have no understanding whatsoever of Mr. Bragg and the way he does things. :rolleyes

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You obviously have no understanding whatsoever of Mr. Bragg and the way he does things. :rolleyes

 

Meh...it's obvious Jeff doesn't want anything to do with a MA 3,4,5, and 17. Billy would do it all in a heart beat.

 

And don't give me that crap about him being socialist...Almost all of his moves as it relates to working with Wilco reek of shameless self-promotion and an attempt to cash in on a buck with an artist who is significantly more successful than he.

 

For the record I like Bragg's music a lot, but Jeff is right; Billy Bragg is full of shit. He spreads rumors and tall tales about stuff like tours, extra tracks, etc to drum up interest in himself due to his Wilco connection.

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