The way that he sings

[HeatherM]

Hi,

My apologies if I'm duplicating a topic. I'm a fairly new Wilco fan, and I'm struck by how Jeff Tweedy's vocal style has changed over the years. When Wilco was in its early stages, his voice had a swagger and twang to it, it sounded deeper, too. From 'Summerteeth' on, his voice seems a bit higher and more vulnerable sounding, more folky, maybe? I can't really describe it. I've searched this site and googled the rest of the internet but haven't been able to find anything, and I don't have the Greg Kot book. Has Jeff or anyone else explained the change in singing style? Did he just quit smoking?

Thanks!

[Cam Jones]

I think this happens with tons of artists. Dylan, Roger Waters, etc.

Everyone progresses to sort of find out who they really are and all that.

Jeffs done a fine job, i think.

[mus2009]

I've found that his voice has changed a bit since YHF (obviously since Uncle Tupelo), partly due to quitting smoking. Though sometimes I feel he actually sings more now as opposed to almost just 'talking' the lyrics.

[Guest Speed Racer]

I've found that his voice has changed a bit since YHF (obviously since Uncle Tupelo), partly due to quitting smoking. Though sometimes I feel he actually sings more now as opposed to almost just 'talking' the lyrics.

 

Jeff also had surgery on his sinuses after YHF anf before AGIB, which lead to a noticably less nasally singing tone.

[mus2009]

That would explain things also, but it's not like this was a Nashville Skyline-ish change

[Magnetized]

I was going to say that I think he's grown in confidence and maturity and that his voice is much more emotive now.

 

But then I thought of googling the topic and I came up with a very good explanation, from the horse's mouth (so to speak) in an interview with Scott Timberg for Metromix in June of 2009:

 

Through all the different styles and lineups, the real constant over the years has been your singing. Wondering what were your earliest influences vocally and how you think your singing has changed over the years?

I’ve grown from forcing myself to sing in the early days, when I didn’t want to as much, into a guy who really wants to sing. It’s something I’ve tried to get better at; I try to sing in tune, and I try to sing in ways where I feel the lyrics I’m singing. It’s very intuitive. I don’t know what to say except that I really feel I’ve gotten better at it as I’ve gotten older, from a lot of experience I guess. From not smoking over the last four years. I definitely feel like I have a stronger voice on this record than any of the others.

 

What were you hoping to sound like, in your early days, before you started belting it out yourself?

Otis Redding! But that was not in the cards for me, in the hand I was dealt. Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Paul Westerberg, the Beatles, Joe Strummer, Kinks. Not usually country guys, but John Prine maybe—guys who had to struggle with some limitations, I identified with them. Jonathan Richman, for instance. I’ve always liked the guys where you go, “He’s opening his mouth, I should pay attention.” When I’m on onstage, I’m supposed to be saying something to somebody.

 

It’s funny, some of the people you mention are not technically great singers, but they communicate something real. I hear what you’re saying about limitations.

Limitations are really, really good for creativity. A lot of the world’s great technicians have a lot tougher time saying what they want to say. To be honest, I don’t have a lot of options, so I make the best of it. I humbly submit that I have worked hard to get better. Beyond that, I can’t see getting beyond even the first round of “American Idol.”

 

Here's a link to the whole interview--makes for excellent reading, even if it's a little over a year old (and must have been posted on VC already by someone!) He says some very astute things about fan expectations, among other topics:

 

http://tucson.metromix.com/music/article/jeff-tweedy-the-interview/1246346/content

[i'm only sleeping]

Something in the way he sings

Attracts me like no other singer

Something in the way he moves me...

[HeatherM]

Thanks for the link, Wilco Me!

[Magnetized]

Something in the way he sings

Attracts me like no other singer

Something in the way he moves me...

 

Yes! There is some quality in his voice that I just can't get enough of. I believe I could listen to that man sing all day long and not get tired of it.

 

In the Sunken Treasure DVD, during his famous "rant" about people talking during shows, he says "I can sing like a bird!" He says it in an amusing way, but it's true--he's my Tweedy Bird!

[froggie]

 

Not usually country guys, but

 

 

i can easily picture Johnny Cash singing Dash 7

[smells like flowers]

Has anyone else noticed how in practically every recent interview, Jeff disparages his voice on the early records? He's constantly making cracks about how bad he sang. So I revived this old thread to say that although Jeff's voice certainly has changed and improved in recent years, his voice was probably the single-most appealing characteristic of Wilco when I first heard them. From the opening line of "One Hundred Years From Now," he's hoarse, his voice cracks and I LOVE every minute of it! Ditto his singing on BT and AM. The personal lyrics bring the songs right into your psyche, and his voice carries his message perfectly. Granted, he probably couldn't be nailing the falsettos like he does now with his old voice.

 

** If you read this, JT -- your voice on the early records, with all its perceived faults, is precisely what brought me (and so many others) to Wilco!

[Shakespeare In The Alley]

I for one miss Tweedy's rougher, boozier early career vocals.

 

His voice now is no slouch, but there was something even more special in young Jeff's voice.

[The High Heat]

I for one miss Tweedy's rougher, boozier early career vocals.

So do I. I like his vocals best on Being There.

[Queen Amaranthine]

I love his voice on them all, but the other day I was listening to SBS and was thinking how beautifully smooth and rich his voice sounds on recent albums.

 

Does anyone notice an accent too? On the occasions I listen to Uncle Tupelo, I can hear what I think of as mid-Midwestern accent, something I hear a lot where I live. I can't think of an example of a pronunciation offhand but will think about it and see if I can add one soon. It's not as pronounced in A.M. (about the time he moved to Chicago, right?).

 

Plus, I have a boot of a solo show in Chicago 2005, and during banter he says something about the "reyaction" of the audience. The way he says "reyaction" is total Chicago accent, which I hear solidly in my friends who live there (funny it's most pronounced in one of my friends who immigated there from Iowa years ago). However, when he's on the road, I don't really notice it. Not that I'm on guard listening for it, but accents and linguistic things like that tend to leap out at me.

[smells like flowers]

I love his voice on them all, but the other day I was listening to SBS and was thinking how beautifully smooth and rich his voice sounds on recent albums.

 

Does anyone notice an accent too? On the occasions I listen to Uncle Tupelo, I can hear what I think of as mid-Midwestern accent, something I hear a lot where I live. I can't think of an example of a pronunciation offhand but will think about it and see if I can add one soon. It's not as pronounced in A.M. (about the time he moved to Chicago, right?).

 

Plus, I have a boot of a solo show in Chicago 2005, and during banter he says something about the "reyaction" of the audience. The way he says "reyaction" is total Chicago accent, which I hear solidly in my friends who live there (funny it's most pronounced in one of my friends who immigated there from Iowa years ago). However, when he's on the road, I don't really notice it. Not that I'm on guard listening for it, but accents and linguistic things like that tend to leap out at me.

 

Don't know if this is a southern Illinois thing or not, but I've always loved the way Jeff sings "I" as "Ahh." As in, "Ahhh should have been listening, to every word you said."

[choo-choo-charlie]

I don't think he would've sang "eyyyyyyyyyyyeeee shoulda been listenin..."

[LouieB]

Jeff never sounds like a true Chicagoan unliess he is fooling around I guess. He simply sounds like a ;midwesterner. Dennis Franz sounds like a Chicagoan. Dennis Farina sounds like a Chicagoan Tweedy never sounds like that. (nor do I and I have been here for decades.)

 

LouieB

[SarahC]

I love the way Jeff sings, because it's emotional. If the note is sharp or flat, who cares. It's awesome because he feels the music. It's awesome because he's singing the best he can every time he sings. That's one reason I connect with Wilco's music so much.

 

Also, the midwestern accent kinda makes me swoon... I'm weird.

 

 

[camelhead]

had a trancendendant (SP?) moment in Portland 2010 when Jeff opened the show with an acoustic number of Ashes of AMerica and just hushed the entire crowd.