Jeff Tweedy — 30 December 2024, Los Angeles, CA (Largo at the Coronet) [Night 2 of 4]

[Brian F.]

Story to Tell

Radio King

I'll Fight

Company in My Back

Ice Cream

Enough

Having Been Is No Way to Be

A Bowl and a Pudding

Kamera

One True Vine

Laminated Cat

She's a Jar (with harmonica)

Family Ghost

This Is How It Ends (new song)

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Please Tell My Brother

Kingpin

Someone to Lose

I'm the Man Who Loves You

Lou Reed Was My Babysitter

Evergreen (with Spencer and Sammy Tweedy)

Heroes [Bowie] (with Spencer and Sammy Tweedy)

 

On Night 2 at Largo, the special guest was Nikki Glaser, who continued a tradition established by Judd Apatow at prior Largo runs. Two times, Apatow used his pre-sets to test out material for the Directors Guild of America Awards which he was going to be hosting, and Glaser did the same on Night 2 for her upcoming stint as emcee of the Golden Globes. I'm not really a fan of Glaser's, but I thought this was a really good set, but then again I was inclined to like it as part of the "media-savvy" (Glaser's word) Largo clientele.

 

Jeff took the stage for the second straight night at precisely 8:34 p.m. He apparently felt he was a little too harsh about Cafe Gratitude on Night 1, stating "I Am Remorseful." Opening with "Story to Tell" followed by "Radio King," Jeff then said, "Might as well get this out of the way. Happy birthday, fucker," and proceeded to play "I'll Fight" for I'll Fight Guy, with Eric stepping into view sidestage just in case things got out of hand. Unlike last time, Jeff remembered all the lyrics. Returning to the overarching comic theme of the run, Jeff tossed out a few more potential Cafe Gratitude dishes  that would be better suited to his personality, including I Am Ambivalent and I Am Bitter ("just a plate of rinds"). Following "Company in My Back," Jeff asked who had been in attendance on Night 1, and informed the Night 2 audience that they picked the right night to be there because Night 1 had featured only the deepest cuts and "nobody left happy." The Largo debut of "Ice Cream" was delicious, and followed by the new song "Enough," which I believe is the most-played song of 2024 at Largo Jeff Tweedy shows after having been played at three of the four shows in April. Ending "A Bowl and a Pudding"-- a song still yet to be performed by Wilco-- ambiguously, Jeff remarked that he likes the idea that a song would continue even after it seems to have ended. He added that this is also how he feels about democracy, that he'd like to believe that it will continue.

 

To the disappointment of Sean when he finds out, "Laminated Cat" was featured on Night 2. (Sean missed Night 2 and predicted it would be played in his absence.) No cats were harmed in the performance. Donning the harmonica for "She's a Jar," Jeff complained that the instrument gets more applause than he does and it's not warranted. He further griped that no one has yet invented a harmonica holder tat doesn't cause pain, especially for someone such as he who is "not well-kempt." The main set closed with a new song whose lyrics described a date at the fair, including a ride on a Ferris wheel (or, as I consider it, the wheel of terror). The apparent title of the song comes in the couplet, "We were never friends/This is how it ends." Jeff sidled off stage at 9:33 after only 14 songs, one fewer than Night 1 (a set which Jeff described on Night 2 as containing only 12 songs because he talked too much).

 

In the encore, Jeff started "Kingpin," commenting, "This is a stupid song to play by myself." After singing the first line, he asked if anyone knew where Pekin was. He said that, into the 1970s, the mascot of the Pekin High School team was a slur for Chinese people. (Ed. note: it's now Dragons.) They still use a "faux Oriental" font for their sports teams so, Jeff said, "we still have work to do." Introducing "I'm the Man Who Loves You" as a dedication to Susie and receiving only a smattering of applause, Jeff coerced a louder reaction by insisting that his wife deserves more applause than "a nice putt" to make par. The only repeated song from Night 1 was "Lou Reed Was My Babysitter," seemingly because Jeff enjoys the crowd participation on the barking parts. The evening closed with Spencer and Sammy joining their dad to provide backing vocals for "Evergreen" and a cover of David Bowie's "Heroes." I expect that we will see the return of this terzet after the new year and, yes, I am just writing this so I can use the word terzet. The show ended at 10:02 p.m.

 

See you in 2025 for Night 3.

[TCP]

Great recaps Brian F!!! Happy New Year to you and to all my fellow VCers.

[Albert Tatlock]

Ta 2