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Your Top Ten Wilco Guitar Solos.

Jayson

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Jayson

Jayson

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Number one is your favorite. Have a ball. Don't skip live stuff!

 

10. Side With The Seeds ~ (SBS)

9. You Are My Face ~ (SBS)

8. You And I (ending)~ (W:TA)

7. Hell Is Chrome ~ (KT)

6. Spiders (Kidsmoke) ~ (KT)

5. Ashes of American Flags ~(Ashes)

4. Impossible Germany ~(Ashes)

3. On and On and On ~ (SBS)

2. Shouldn't Be Ashamed ~ (A.M.)

1. At Least That's What You Said ~(AGIB)

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hwllo

hwllo

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interesting topic!

 

this is tough though, i'm not going to pick specific versions or put them in any order, but these are my favorites. it was hard leaving some off

 

ashes of american flags

in a future age (especially live versions over the last few years)

at least that's what you said

spiders

shake it off

everlasting everything (love the ending, absolutely beautiful)

one wing

hell is chrome

theologians

muzzle of bees

 

honorable mention goes to one by one

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mpolak21

mpolak21

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Everything listed is the studio version, unless noted.

 

At Least That's What You Said

Muzzle of Bees

Not For The Season (live versions 2002-2003)

Spiders (Kidsmoke)

I'm The Man Who Loves You

Forget The Flowers (live Bennett era)

Handshake Drugs

Hell is Chrome

Barnyard Pimp

So Long (technically Loose Fur, but way too good not to include)

Edit: More Like The Moon

 

--Mike

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Guest Speed Racer

Guest Speed Racer

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Not ranked:

 

I Got You (Bennett-era only)

Barnyard Pimp

Spiders (Kidsmoke)

Hell is Chrome

Handshake Drugs

I'm the Man Who Loves You

That's Not The Issue (the lead part)

Summerteeth (the lead)

Box Full of Letters

I'm Always in Love (live versions, July 2000-era)

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lamradio

lamradio

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Not ranked:

 

I Got You (Bennett-era only)

Barnyard Pimp

Spiders (Kidsmoke)

Hell is Chrome

Handshake Drugs

I'm the Man Who Loves You

That's Not The Issue (the lead part)

Summerteeth (the lead)

Box Full of Letters

I'm Always in Love (live versions, July 2000-era)

 

Not a fan of the Cline?

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Jayson

Jayson

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Not a fan of the Cline?

 

Apparently he wasn't! He still made great choices. But my top 2 (top 3? who played On and On and On?) weren't Cline. I'm a bigger fan of Jeff's lead work. I wish I knew how much of the old stuff was him.

 

EDIT: Also, every single one of you needs to go back and listen to Shouldn't Be Ashamed.

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Guest Speed Racer

Guest Speed Racer

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Not a fan of the Cline?

 

So much of what he does with Wilco is "oooooooh, shredding!!!," and that's just not as technically interesting to me.

 

CHRIST! And how could I have forgotten - More Like the Moon. Tremendous guitar work in that one.

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lamradio

lamradio

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So much of what he does with Wilco is "oooooooh, shredding!!!," and that's just not as technically interesting to me.

 

 

I can dig. I happen to like "the shredding". There is a time and place for a little shredding here and there, and he does it very well. A great guitarist must have a big old bag of tricks, and he certainly has one.

 

You can't beat the twangy JB style of lead (especially on Forget The Flowers) but Nels can really tear it up on that song live as well.

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W(TF)

W(TF)

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Wilco just isn't a guitar solo kind of band, to me. Even with the Cline.

 

But I'd go with Jay on Via Chicago, and Nels on Everlasting Everything, both for the unique sounds.

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Muzzle of Dan

Muzzle of Dan

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Pick pretty much any live version you want of any of these tunes and the solos will be phenomenal. I had the pleasure of hearing In A Future Age at my first show this past summer in Los Angeles - one of my favorites and has stellar guitar parts the way they do it live. Ashes of American Flags from the same-ly titled DVD is a particularly awesome version... as is the one on Kicking Television.

 

in no particular order:

 

Spiders (Kidsmoke)

Impossible Germany

You Are My Face

Ashes Of American Flags

Hell Is Chrome

Handshake Drugs

Muzzle of Bees

At Least That's What You Said

In A Future Age

One Wing

 

I'm ashamed to leave off Side With The Seeds... also Bull Black Nova. And Far, Far Away. And Hoodoo Voodoo - especially with the dueling guitar solos at the end that were played this summer. So badass. There are just too many to pick only ten. I tried.

 

Edit: More Like The Moon is killer. Especially the few live versions there are.

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choo-choo-charlie

choo-choo-charlie

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Aside from Hoodoo and Seeds, are there any other songs that feature dueling guitars?

 

"Kingpin," in the old days, Tweedy and Bennett would make some noise on that during the breakdown towards the end of the song. And Bennett/Bob Egan would play harmonized leads during the intro to "I Must Be High." Dueling guitar work aside...

 

...I love the shredding just as much as anyone, but I'm also a big proponent of the "less is more" school of guitar playing. Tunes with good, subtle guitar work. I think "You Are My Face" is a tremendous example of Nels Cline finding a balance between technically-impressive playing and something tasteful and melodic.

 

The very-similar in tempo and feel with gorgeous reverb-drenched, country-inflected solos "Far, Far Away" and "Sky Blue Sky." Nels' whining lap slide work is becoming sort of a trademark, isn't as flashy and sounds good on "Airline to Heaven" and "One by One." I've always enjoyed Jay Bennett's solos on live renditions of "Christ for President" and "Forget the Flowers."

 

"Monday" is a good example of an understated, tasteful but gnarly guitar solo. But I also love Jeff's noisy, messy solos on the outro of "Ashes of American Flags" on 2001 live recordings, which can be extremely grating on the ears or like sweet, sweet music, depending on the mood/day (at least for me).

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barbkm

barbkm

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Love your "Do I Give a Damn" thing. Where'd you get, I need to send to a co-worker.

 

 

Any who, my list in no particular order, but Spiders is definitely Number 1. You can assume that they are all live and feature Nels. NOTE: I always wanted to start a forum about how I think Wilco are at their best when Nels, Jeff and Pat

are going at it ... with guitars, I should point out.

 

Spiders

Hand Shake Drugs

Impossible Germany

I'm the man Who Love You

Too far Apart

In A Future Age (I always think solos in terms of Spiders, but never these nice, soft ones)

I'm A Wheel -- pretty simple, but rocking

Bull Black Nova

Muzzle of Bees

Ar Lest That's What you Said

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ThisIsNowhere

ThisIsNowhere

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ALTWYS

Spiders

Monday

Via Chicago

Muzzle of Bees

Hell is Chrome

Handshake Drugs (KT)

Impossible Germany

Kingpin (live)

I Got You

 

I like most of the live versions, but the ones from ABIG have that classic take feel, so I prefer the studio versions of them (except for Handshake Drugs, which absolutely rocks on Kicking Television).

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ginandcigarettes

ginandcigarettes

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In alphabetical order:

 

At Least That's What You Said

Bob Dylan's Beard

California Stars (Jay live)

Forget the Flowers (both studio and Jay live)

I'm the Man Who Loves You

Remember the Mountain Bed

Secret of the Sea

Summerteeth

Theologians

That's Not the Issue (Jay, live)

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Jayson

Jayson

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8. Hotel Arizona....not sure if this counts

 

Not a solo, but absolutely this counts. The three note melody in the midst of that is one of my favorite musical moments ever, and is literally the moment that makes Being There so ethereal to me.

 

I'd have put it if I thought it was a solo, lol.

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  • 13 years later...

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