Album ratings for AM and WTA

[gryffe]

Ok, the rank the albums thread got me curious about something. If we agree that WTA and AM are probably the two least favourite albums, do we think they suck in general or just in comparison to the rest? And if we were marking them out of 10 what would we award them?

I dont think they suck but I definitely think they do suffer from comparison, because they fall a long way short of the towering heights of YHF/AGIB/S'TEETH and to a lesser extent BT. AM is the faltering steps of a new group trying to find its way, and to be honest I have hardly played it in years - I bought it when it was released because I was an UT fan and wanted to see where Jeff was heading next - but from memory the first 3 songs are fairly good, especially Casino Queen. WTA is very front loaded and while it never really hits the heights after Bull BN(Country D is pretty great though), the rest of the songs are still well worth listening to.

 

So if I was giving marks out of 10, I would award AM a 6/10, and WTA 7/10

[bleedorange]

I like A.M. and Wilco (the album) more than Sky Blue Sky.

[gryffe]

I like A.M. and Wilco (the album) more than Sky Blue Sky.

 

Yeah, I did think about including SBS, but a post on the Rank The Albums thread reckoned that after collating the votes in that thread AM and WTA were the two least favourites

[rwilson580]

As a relatively new fan, I'm sometimes surprised that there's not more love for AM here. I always suspect there had to be a lot of fans who were really into AM and Being There, were kind of disappointed in the trend that Summerteeth represented, and exited in droves when YHF came out. Those big alt-country fans that came over from UT, I mean. So the people who really preferred that sound have moved on, don't hang around sites like this one too much. And those that hung with the band the last dozen years are those who liked the changes. So almost by definition AM is gonna be one of their lesser Wilco's. Not so much a reflection on the album as much as a fan base that evolved with the band. Am I all wet?

 

I've never been confused about why there isn't more (TA) affection though.

[u2roolz]

I like A.M. and Wilco (the album) more than Sky Blue Sky.

 

Agreed. And I feel like we keep agreeing on this in various threads. And I'll say it again, some of the songs on Sky Blue Sky are better than anything off of A.M. or Wilco The Album, but that doesn't make me rank it higher. Sky Blue Sky to me always suffered from having a few too many songs (ballads) created with the same ingredients, but different creations (horrible analogy. I had a better one last time, I swear.). I love plucking out Sky Blue Sky or Either Way to make it into a playlist, but within the context of the album it seems to create a feeling of sleepiness (or I'm reminded of what Stephen Colbert said to Jeff Tweedy about his energy level and his resting heart rate. Whatever he said is how I feel about that album. I don't need balls out rocking, but for some reason those songs on that specific album stick out more to be in a bad way than say the slower tracks on The Whole Love which I find to be amazing and fits in perfectly with the rest of the amazing songs.)

 

Wilco The Album & A.M. I can listen to front and back and not get itchy to skip anything.

[bleedorange]

I've actually been surprised at the near-unanimous dislike of Wilco (the album). Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's that great. But after listening to it again recently, I think it's pretty solid. I love Deeper Down and Everlasting Everything and Sonny Feeling and Wilco (the song). In fact, my two least favorite songs on that album are One Wing and Bull Black Nova.

[choo-choo-charlie]

I absolutely love A.M. Never skip any tracks. It's just in the unfortunate position of the first record, released quickly after another band's split, and it was followed by an amazing run of albums.

[thingfishp]

"Not so much a reflection on the album as much as a fan base that evolved with the band. Am I all wet?" I think that's a pretty fair assessment.

 

It's not on the top of my list, but I do like AM and it does show a nacent band getting its footing in the wake of an acrimonious break-up. I've never seen them crank up Casino Queen and would love to hear that in a future show. Wilco (the Album) is a great batch of songs with great playing and nuance; it's just a bit mellower than the previous albums. I love them all for what they are and appreciate every incarnation of Wilco. I don't get the nostalgia for what was to the detraction of what is; those bands arent' coming back so it's useless to pine for "the good old days." Love the band your with, eh? I don't know if there are any King Crimson fans here, but it has always been grating to hear the older fans piss and moan about the American members tainting a British band and how much they loathe Adrian Belew (another alien guitarist; I'd love to see Nels and Adrian work up some glorious noise) and it was always so much better in the 69 band or the 73-74 band, blah-blah-blah. It's all good and nobly executed; if you don't like it, listen to the ones you prefer. We all know what they say about opinions, right? And mine stinks, too. Off the soapbox and into the kitchen - a nice bottle of temperanillo and a woman await.

[Autumnteeth]

I am ok with WTA. Really like Everlasting Everything. Not on a par with the rest, bit it stands on its own. Don't understandthe issue with AM. BAck when AM came out, I was firmly in the Farrar camp. Thought Trace was genius. As I got deeper into AM, however, songs like Dash 7 and Passenger Side, and hidden gems like I thought I held you by the hand, are truly great. Just an opinion, but love AM.

[Theremin]

Wilco (the Album) is a great batch of songs with great playing and nuance

If there's one thing missing on W(TA), it's nuance. IIRC they recorded the majority of the songs on their New-Zealand trip whitout Cline & Jorgesson and it shows, couple of songs (Wilco (The Song), You never Know Sonny Feeling, ...) sound blunt and vapid and it has this straightforward production approach that had its merits on the homespun SBS but it makes the poppier W(TA) sound even more flat. I'm afraid there's just not a lot to come back to the majority of the W(TA)-material.

[Wild Frank]

They're both fine records but suffer from being surrounded by a collection of superior releases. I got into the band around '98 but I would loved to have seen the reaction to AM when it first came out. I enjoy listening to the record and it does have a couple of great tracks on. Basically, the band evolved and improved. If they had put out another record similar to AM they probably wouldn't be around today.

 

WTA is ok and, along with SBS, is a good indication of where the band/tweedy were at that period of time. People may look on it fondly in the years to come but I think we were just all clamering for a continuation of the YHF/Ghost feel. These guys are all human and sometimes a record full of simple tunes is whats needed.

 

Using the Dylan comparison, when John Wesley and Nashville skyline came out they weren't loved as much as the classics that preceeded them. With the benefit of hindsight we can all see the greatness of those two records (hell, I even like self-portrait!)

[Theremin]

Ugh, if only people would stop putting SBS and W(TA) on the same heap. First one is an excellent if somwhat uneven (yeah, several songs on its second half aren't that great but the same counts for AGiB) rootsy wind down album and an essential part of the Wilco discog. W(TA) on the other hand sounds like a band with nothing to say phoning it in.

[Wild Frank]

Ugh, if only people would stop putting SBS and W(TA) on the same heap. First one is an excellent if somwhat uneven (yeah, several songs on its second half aren't that great but the same counts for AGiB) rootsy wind down album and an essential part of the Wilco discog. W(TA) on the other hand sounds like a band with nothing to say phoning it in.

I think, bearing in mind what preceeded and has now followed them, they do belong together. I agree that, in my opinion, SBS is alot better than WTA.

 

In terms of what they 'sound' like. SBS sounds like Jeff Tweedy coming to terms with personal/health/depressive problems and WTA just sounds like a group of guys having fun without any excess baggage or regard for what went before. Both fine, although the latter was less successful as a record.

 

And The Whole Love sounds like a group of guys getting back to business and trying to show the world what makes Wilco special.

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

I think, bearing in mind what preceeded and has now followed them, they do belong together. I agree that, in my opinion, SBS is alot better than WTA.

 

In terms of what they 'sound' like. SBS sounds like Jeff Tweedy coming to terms with personal/health/depressive problems and WTA just sounds like a group of guys having fun without any excess baggage or regard for what went before. Both fine, although the latter was less successful as a record.

 

And The Whole Love sounds like a group of guys getting back to business and trying to show the world what makes Wilco special.

 

I think you hit the nail on the head here...While W(TA) is a nice record and shines when compared to its competition, it is a weaker WILCO release. While not completely analogous, it is like comparing LET IT BE to the rest of the Beales catalogue. (except that W(TA) isn't that bad and Wilco isn't the Beatles, but you probably get my point)

[Theremin]

I think, bearing in mind what preceeded and has now followed them, they do belong together. I agree that, in my opinion, SBS is alot better than WTA.

 

In terms of what they 'sound' like. SBS sounds like Jeff Tweedy coming to terms with personal/health/depressive problems and WTA just sounds like a group of guys having fun without any excess baggage or regard for what went before. Both fine, although the latter was less successful as a record.

I agree completely when you put it that way but it's also the reason why imo it's wrong to put them together - both thematically and stylistically.

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

I agree completely when you put it that way but it's also the reason why imo it's wrong to put them together - both thematically and stylistically.

 

I'm not sure if you can compare ANY Wilco records on a thematic or stylistic basis.

Which is the reason most of us love the band.

[Guest Speed Racer]

AM has a youthfulness and innocence and hunger that W(TA) just can't have. The songwriting on W(TA) is subpar because it seems so lazy or disinterested to me, but AM - while much more straightfoward - is just emotionally gutsier. And Brian Hennemen's playing on AM is miles and miles and miles more interesting than whatever Nels phoned in on W(TA). I could listen to That's Not the Issue on repeat all day long and not get sick of a bit of it.

[choo-choo-charlie]

I've said it before and I'll say it again (and you A.M. vinyl owners know) -- the liner notes on the A.M. reissue LP, written by Brian Henneman, are great, and articulate just about everything I love about A.M.

[Wild Frank]

I agree completely when you put it that way but it's also the reason why imo it's wrong to put them together - both thematically and stylistically.

You're probably right but its just one of those natural phenomina that happen in all bands careers. People like to categorise and compartmentise things.

 

Using another Dylan example Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde go together, they form a trilogy. They just do. They are different but, for a variety of reasons, they are viewed as such. Looking at the Wilco career arc SBS and WTA have become one such compartment and YHF and Ghost another etc. Its not right but it just seems to happen.

[DrNo]

I often disagree with the sentiment around here regarding A.M. I absolutely love that record. In fact, I was just listening to it this morning. It may not be sonically adventurous, but it will always have a special place in my record collection--it's a classic in the Doug Sahm/CCR vein, and has aged quite gracefully. To pick up Being There at 17 and hear the leap that one of my favorite bands had made is something I'll always remember as well. Think of it this way--a lot of people love the White Album and Sgt. Pepper's, but that doesn't mean that Help and Rubber Soul suck. They're just different.

[bleedorange]

Is the sentiment around A.M. bad around here, though? I always get the impression that, despite always winding up near the bottom of people's rankings, it's still liked by the majority. I think there is a lot more negativity around the last two albums than there is surrounding A.M.

 

Sky Blue Sky is probably the most polarizing of Wilco's canon, and Wilco (the album) tends to be cast aside as the weakest, most boring, unimaginative, etc.

[choo-choo-charlie]

Dare I say that one of my favorite two-track sequences is "Blue Eyed Soul" into "Too Far Apart?" I love the way the former ends, with just a little bit of guitar feedback, and then the drums for "Too Far Apart" kick in, and it almost sounds like an extension of its predecessor...very close drum pattern. It's awesome.

[Guest Speed Racer]

I've always loved how one of the guitars in Too Far Apart is just slightly out of tune.

[rwilson580]

Sky Blue Sky is probably the most polarizing of Wilco's canon, and Wilco (the album) tends to be cast aside as the weakest, most boring, unimaginative, etc.

 

Well said. We almost have to agree to disagree on SBS. So many of feel that that SBS is an outstanding and essential part of the Wilco legacy. And to others it is quite clear that SBS represents the same nadir as (TA). We can rinse and repeat this discussion until the end of time, and we ain't gonna get anywhere.

 

I guess that at least this means SBS is essential to a forum like this one. It always gives us something to talk about.

 

I have a hell of a time putting my finger on why (TA) doesn't work for me. I agree with what someone said earlier...this is a collection of good songs. They're all Tweedy songs, which means they're built on a solid foundation. They're chockful of interesting ideas...there's lots of entertaining stuff going on. I like every song on the album. But I have no interest in listening to it. I guess there's a lot of "good" stuff out there in the music universe. But very few absolute favorites. And every other Wilco album makes that favorites list.

 

I guess there's quite a difference from "Damn, that's a well-constructed song" to "Man, that song knocks me out."

[Ghost of Electricity]

And Brian Hennemen's playing on AM is miles and miles and miles more interesting than whatever Nels phoned in on W(TA).

W(TA) on the other hand sounds like a band with nothing to say phoning it in.

And these aren't the first two times i've seen it. I think this board is about ready to rename it Wilco (The Phone Call).

 

Anyway, AM>W(TPC). Not even close. While we're at it, AM>SBS, and yes, even AM>ST. So there.