Do You Consider Wilco A Jam Band?

[choo-choo-charlie]

I went through a major phase in high school where nothing mattered to me but Phish, String Cheese Incident, Widespread Panic and the like. Now that I'm many years separated from that time, and have consumed quite a bit of music since then -- including Wilco -- I just don't hear how they [Wilco] could ever be considered a jam band. I just don't.

 

That's like, my opinion, man.

[IRememberDBoon]

non "jamband" fans know nothing about "jambands" or which ones are good and which ones suck and so forth. most of them are horrendous but most of them have great intentions

[big bob]

i think labeling music by genre is problematic, PARTICULARLY in the case of "jam bands."

 

what is meant by the term "jam?" does it simply mean improvisation? in that case was Thelonious Monk a member of "jam bands?"

 

i really dislike the term. Improvisation is a skill, not a genre. some improvisation is boring/predictable. some improvisation is extremely impressive and enjoyable and takes the live music experience to a level that otherwise cannot be achieved. unfortunately, so many "jam bands" sound so alike that people group them into some genre and then any band who starts jamming gets unfairly lumped into some category because they improvise.

 

some "jam bands" go on for waaaaaaaaaay too long on every jam and its really boring and totally lacks structure. The best music really contains a dose of structure and improvisation. I think that Wilco's song and performances allow for some improvisation but it mostly is the structured songs that are just beautiful and brilliant.

 

that being said, do not dismiss a band just because they are labeled "jam band" for example, I never really got into Phish, but they are a really good band... The Slip got unfairly labeled a "jam band" because they improvized but what they were doing was miles beyond what bands like Umphrees McGee and Moe and Govt. Mule do.

 

In short, dont try to label any music that you listen to. Music transcends genre and language. Just shut up and listen to it and your whole being will thank you for it.

[Basil II]

no.

 

-robert

[tinnitus photography]

Music transcends genre and language.

 

how many bands that don't sing in English do you listen to on a regular basis?

[LouieB]

what is meant by the term "jam?" does it simply mean improvisation? in that case was Thelonious Monk a member of "jam bands?"

that's silly.

 

I saw LIttle Feat this past summer, a band who's records I always liked, but in concert they are certainly a jam band and boring as hell after a point.

 

As with anything labels are sometimes easy to come by and hard to explain. Any band that allows a song to go on for 10 or 15 or even 20 minutes from what was a three or five minute song in the studio is probably jamming. Wilco rarely stretchs a number out to the point that it is boring or includes superfluous solos, so therefore, NOT a jam band. All bands (at least those who are not punk or the members know how to play) should give some time for individual musicians to take solo breaks.

 

LouieB

[choo-choo-charlie]

Most Tweedy solos are composed and structured. Handshake Drugs, At Least That's What You Said, I'm the Man Who Loves You...those have sounded the same [that is, awesome] every time I've heard them live. Nels improvises far more, but it's still contained within the boundaries of a well-structured song, rather than an endless vamp of two or three chords.

[Shug]

i think labeling music by genre is problematic, PARTICULARLY in the case of "jam bands."

 

what is meant by the term "jam?" does it simply mean improvisation? in that case was Thelonious Monk a member of "jam bands?"

 

i really dislike the term. Improvisation is a skill, not a genre. some improvisation is boring/predictable. some improvisation is extremely impressive and enjoyable and takes the live music experience to a level that otherwise cannot be achieved. unfortunately, so many "jam bands" sound so alike that people group them into some genre and then any band who starts jamming gets unfairly lumped into some category because they improvise.

 

some "jam bands" go on for waaaaaaaaaay too long on every jam and its really boring and totally lacks structure. The best music really contains a dose of structure and improvisation. I think that Wilco's song and performances allow for some improvisation but it mostly is the structured songs that are just beautiful and brilliant.

 

that being said, do not dismiss a band just because they are labeled "jam band" for example, I never really got into Phish, but they are a really good band... The Slip got unfairly labeled a "jam band" because they improvized but what they were doing was miles beyond what bands like Umphrees McGee and Moe and Govt. Mule do.

 

In short, dont try to label any music that you listen to. Music transcends genre and language. Just shut up and listen to it and your whole being will thank you for it.

 

I see your point about the limitations of labeling and categorizing music and also about how listening to music should probably be more important than talking about music, but some folks like to both listen to and to talk about music (hopefully not at the same time, especially when at a concert!)

 

I think the human mind is just built to categorize, so its nearly impossible to not do it. Categorizing music can help (and also hinder, at other times) music to get heard by more people, sometimes. For example, in the mid 90s when the jam band scene was arguably beginning to really proliferate with lots of festivals like HORDE and Gathering of the Vibes and other similar events that were trying to get hippies and jam band fans all in one place; The Mother Hips actively resisted the jam band label because they didn't want to be boxed in. They were on the HORDE tour side stage in 1995 with The Black Crowes and Wilco and their manager also managed Blues Traveller. They played some songs with instrumental passages long enough to qualify as jamming and most of their fans also liked the Grateful Dead. They probably could have been way more popular and sold way more records and had a much more comfortable life financially if they had heeded the advice of their label (American Recordings) and manager and musical compatriots (The Crowes). They have stated recently in interviews they made a big mistake not embracing the jam band scene, all because of some stubborn refusal to be associated with the jam band label. They are still a band these days, but they never had anywhere near the financial success or sizable following that the Crowes or even Wilco still enjoy.

[big bob]

how many bands that don't sing in English do you listen to on a regular basis?

 

Elis Regina; Ali Farka Toure

 

and about half of the music I listen to is instrumental. Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, Marco Benevento, Bill Frisell, Kaki King, John Williams, Thelonious Monk, to name a few.

 

I do however also have a love of lyricism, of which knowing the language is helpful.

 

but what I really meant by "music transcends language" is that music cannot be defined or discussed adequately without the transcendental experience of actually listening to it. If people try to describe what a band sounds like, it generally doesn't really explain much of anything if you've never heard that band's music before...like trying to describe what chocolate tastes like to someone who has never eaten chocolate.

[IRememberDBoon]

do orchestra boabab and tinariwen count?

[Shug]

The Mother Hips wrote a song, Smoke, about touring with Wilco on the HORDE tour (they also opened for them at the Fillmore in SF on New Year's Eve in the late 90s, I forget which year. They mention Wilco in the lyrics.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toD8iuXizwQ

 

Maybe Wilco being on the HORDE tour has contributed to some peoples' idea that they might be considered a jam band?