choo-choo-charlie Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Many (if not all) the songs on AM are far better than most of the songs on W(TA). There is more complexity and feeling. And for the spur of the moment, Brian Henneman plays up a storm. LouieB Amen to Henneman. His playing is part of why I love A.M. so much -- gives it a unique place in the band's catalog. Brian's liner notes in the A.M. vinyl reissue are great and speak to the vibes of that session...just guys in a room, making music, no pretense. Love it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouieB Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I was going to defend AM by writing something very similar. One thing I always hated hearing is "you had to be there". But, you really did have to be there.I only say you had to be there if you can't imagine how exciting an album this was at the time. Only people who don't get it now maybe needed to be there. Heck it is still pretty cool. This was Tweedy's first solo record after all. LouieB Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 True, but tons of people were there who didn't get it, either. Remember - it was outsold by Trace 2:1 in its debut; ticket sales for the tour were pretty slow. And though I like it, I can't blame anyone for not being into early-90s alt-country - especially if you're into the kind of music like YHF and AGIB; people who aren't into A.M. now probably weren't into that scene then, either. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
caliber66 Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 True, but tons of people were there who didn't get it, either. Remember - it was outsold by Trace 2:1 in its debutTo be fair, though, Trace is a much better album. I like AM a lot, but Trace is an absolute classic. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tinnitus photography Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 True, but tons of people were there who didn't get it, either. Remember - it was outsold by Trace 2:1 in its debut _Trace_ is easily twice the record that _A.M._ is. and W(TS) could be classified as a novelty song, but it's a great one. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I never got into Trace. The "confused twenty-something with a voice like a foghorn and experiences like a 50-something" thing never really got its talons into me. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
caliber66 Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I never got into Trace. The "confused twenty-something with a voice like a foghorn and experiences like a 50-something" thing never really got its talons into me.Clearly, you had to be there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 ETA: A few minutes ago I had the glorious mental image of Jay trying to sing "Passenger Side," and that was some funny shit right there. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Three dollars and 63 cents Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Prior to W(TA), A.M. was my least favorite Wilco album simply because it had the most songs that I regularly skipped (I Thought I Held You, Dash 7, and Blue-Eyed Soul). I love the rest of it. Now I'd much rather be forced to listen to A.M. in its entirety than all of W(TA). Like others have said, it's not an album I find myself going back to very much, and when I do, I always skip Deeper Down and You and I and usually skip Country Disappeared and either I'll Fight or Sonny Feeling. Too much of W(TA) feels familiar to me, and not in a good way. Deeper Down reminds me of Black Eye. Country Disappeared rehashes a lot of what I think Jeff dealt with vastly better on Ashes of American Flags, Sonny Feeling has the same vibe and appears at more or less the same point in the album as Walken did on Sky Blue Sky. Everlasting Everything feels too much like On and On and On. There are four songs I really like--One Wing, Bull Black Nova, W(TS), and You Never Know--but aside from those, both the songwriting and the arrangements feel much too safe to me. It's the musical equivalent of leaving a really good drink with ice in it for too long--it still sounds like Wilco, but it's too watered down. The simplicity of Sky Blue Sky made sense in a way, since it was the first album with Pat and Nels, but W(TA) sounds like an album plenty of other bands could have recorded. That's not what I want from a band that's so good at reinventing itself and testing limits. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
nodep5 Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 If you had to be there to appreciate AM, all I can say is that I'm glad I was. Brian H's playing and vibe on that record are sweet. I miss the vibe of early Wilco, more fun less pretense. Man that was the time, Wilco was growing into a monster, Son Volt was making a true classic, man o man. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
calvino Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Brian Henneman plays up a storm. LouieB Especially on "That's Not The Issue". Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Sweet Papa Crimbo Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I never got into Trace. The "confused twenty-something with a voice like a foghorn and experiences like a 50-something" thing never really got its talons into me. For me, Jay was able to pull it off in Trace where it became a bit insufferable later on. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 If you had to be there to appreciate AM, all I can say is that I'm glad I was. Brian H's playing and vibe on that record are sweet. I miss the vibe of early Wilco, more fun less pretense. Man that was the time, Wilco was growing into a monster, Son Volt was making a true classic, man o man. Every time I spin A.M. I always wonder how Wilco might have progressed if Henneman took the gig as full-time lead guitarist. Some very, very tasty playing. I love every track. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Doug C Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Every time I spin A.M. I always wonder how Wilco might have progressed if Henneman took the gig as full-time lead guitarist. Some very, very tasty playing. I love every track.I am a huge Henneman/BRox fan but I'd figure that he'd have left around the time Max did. I can't imagine Brian Henneman wanting to make Summerteeth, much less Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and sure as hell not A Ghost Is Born. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ih8music Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I am a huge Henneman/BRox fan but I'd figure that he'd have left around the time Max did. I can't imagine Brian Henneman wanting to make Summerteeth, much less Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and sure as hell not A Ghost Is Born.I guess the inherent assumption behind "I wonder how Wilco might have progressed" is that if Henneman stuck around, there would have been no need for Jay to enter the mix... thus no Summerteeth, etc. As much as I love A.M. (and no, I wasn't a fan at the time ) I'm happy that Wilco evolved in the manner it did. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I am a huge Henneman/BRox fan but I'd figure that he'd have left around the time Max did. I can't imagine Brian Henneman wanting to make Summerteeth, much less Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and sure as hell not A Ghost Is Born. I realize this is all silly speculation -- but would Tweedy have grown or progressed in the same fashion had Henneman joined the group? What if he'd continued to explore the alt-country more? What if they continued to do more songs like "Sugar Baby" or "James Alley Blues?" Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I think if he hadn't have left, they wouldn't have progresed. He's kind of a strong personality and if I recall, the Bottlerockets are still doing the alt-country thing pretty exclusively, right? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Lammycat Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Trace is certainly a more jowly album than A.M.... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dtram Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 To be fair, though, Trace is a much better album. I like AM a lot, but Trace is an absolute classic.I was in the weird position of not being familiar with UT but getting AM and Trace when they came out and seeing both tours. At the time, it was obvious to me that Jay was the real talent and Jeff was minor. I liked the AM tour but the record, except for I Must Be High, Box Full and It's Just That Simple I could never really get into. I thought Trace was a classic from the minute I heard it. When BT came out and the reviews were so positive and I went out and got it and was blown away. Trace may have been better than AM but BT crushes Trace, imo, and it hasn't even been a contest since as Jay just kept making, more or less, the same record. I actually tried ot put on Trace a year or so ago and was kind of bored. Interesting to see how one artist evolved and the other didn't. Would also be interesting if Jay B. hadn't been in the band, if Jeff's music would've evolved at the same rate. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Doug C Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I think if he hadn't have left, they wouldn't have progresed. He's kind of a strong personality and if I recall, the Bottlerockets are still doing the alt-country thing pretty exclusively, right?I am a big enough person to thank someone for making my point much better than I did. So thank you, Laminated Nap. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DiamondClaw Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Reading over this thread, W(TA) gets a pretty bad rap; worse than I think it deserves. I really think there are a lot of very good songs as individuals- "Wilco (the Song)" (gimmicky, but actually a very good song), "One Wing" (masterpiece), "Bull Black Nova" (masterpiece), "Country Disappeared" (smooth and beautiful), "I'll Fight" (great lyrics)- but the general/overall impression of the album always seems to be low. IMO, the biggest misstep they took was not including "Dark Neon". A common complaint about W(TA) is that it gets sort of slow and safe in the second half, which I understand. The first half of the album is rock solid, to me, but the second half, which still has quality songs, could use some spicing up. "Dark Neon" would fit well a lot of places on the album, but I would probably slot it between "Country Disappeared" and "Solitaire" to inject some different flavor in that section. I've heard people say "Dark Neon" wouldn't "fit" with the rest of the album, but W{TA) already feels like a "little from here, little from there/smorgasbord" style record, even Jeff describes it that way. So I think "Dark Neon" would add a nice new dimension to the collection of songs. At 11 songs, its not like the album was over-long anyway; adding a 12th song would be fine. The one other thing about W(TA) is the last song- "Everlasting (Everything)" feels very rushed and compressed and doesn't leave the listener with a great final taste in their mouth, which I think affects impressions of the album as a whole. It's one of the weaker songs on the album, but if they want to make it the final track they should have let it breathe much more. There are a couple other very minor edits I would make if it were mine, purely out of personal taste (As much as I like Nels, I don't like his parts on "Sonny Feeling" at all) but otherwise I think the album is solid. Also, I think my impression of the album was aided by not listening to any of it until it was released, which kept it fresh and interesting. Just my .02. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I think "One Wing" and "Country Disappeared" are two of the weakest songs they've written, especially lyrically. I can see how people would like "I'll Fight," but it does absolutely nothing for me. I heard "One Wing" in the grocery store the other day. I didn't realize how grating the vocals are until that - I didn't initially recognize it as "One Wing," I just heard the opening lines and cringed, then heard the riff and recognized it. Not a song that should ever be played over a PA system. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
choo-choo-charlie Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 As much as I love A.M. (and no, I wasn't a fan at the time ) I'm happy that Wilco evolved in the manner it did. I think if he hadn't have left, they wouldn't have progresed. Agreed on both counts. Thanks for letting me think out loud... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
tinnitus photography Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I'll fight for one wing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Speed Racer Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 But you'll never, ever fly dear. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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