Tweedy Creek — 3 March 2025, somewhere in the Caribbean Sea (Stardust Theater aboard the Norwegian Gem) [Cayamo cruise]

[bböp]

Taking the opportunity on a port day to catch up on what was probably Jeff’s — and perhaps the entire Cayamo cruise’s — most highly anticipated show of this year’s voyage. That would be the set dubbed “Tweedy Creek,” which figured to be some sort of unique collaboration between Jeff and the indie bluegrass trio of Nickel Creek (aka Chris Thile and Sara and Sean Watkins).

 

It’s the second Cayamo during which Jeff has performed with a string band, following the 2023 “Trampled By Tweedy” set with Minnesota group Trampled By Turtles. I’m sure I have the entire setlist for that one written down somewhere, but I can’t seem to find any trace of it online so I can’t say exactly what was played right now (though a couple of video clips on my phone reveal that Country Disappeared and When You Wake Up Feeling Old were part of that set).

 

There’s a reason that performances like these don’t happen often, and it’s probably only because of being together on a cruise ship with at least a few uninterrupted hours to rehearse that Jeff and his collaborators felt comfortable enough to pull off a full 75-plus-minute set together. That’s what happened the afternoon before the show, as folks from both Jeff’s and Nickel Creek’s camps revealed on social media. But even with an afternoon of rehearsal, I don’t think anyone in the audience could have expected Tweedy Creek (or Nickel Tweedy, if you will) to sound quite as good as it ultimately did.

 

I assume that the format of these sets are established in advance and so that’s why it ends up being all Tweedy-penned songs instead of there being some Nickel Creek material included as well. It was the same with Trampled By Tweedy, though I can’t remember if that “group” ended up doing a cover. There was one cover on the Tweedy Creek printed setlist, Bob Dylan’s Tomorrow Is A Long Time, but it got cut because the set was running long. Hopefully Jeff will come out and sing it with Nickel Creek during their final set of the cruise since they already have it prepared.

 

What was clear during the show, which in a Cayamo rarity extended 10 minutes beyond its scheduled 75-minute slot, was how much fun everyone on stage seemed to be having. Joined by Nickel Creek touring member Jeff Picker on upright bass, the Tweedy Creek quintet proved to be a mutual admiration society. After Jeff thanked Nickel Creek early on for undertaking this set, it didn’t take long for Thile to return the goodwill.

 

Gesturing toward Jeff, Thile told the audience that “one of the reasons this is happening is this fella helped define our band as we were coming of age.” Thile then shared a funny anecdote about going to play a show in Glasgow, Scotland, when Yankee Hotel Foxtrot had just come out and first listening to it on the flight over on a Discman and not being sure if the skip protection feature was working or not. (Not to be outdone, Jeff said he and his wife have a friend who had a similar issue while listening to a CD in their car and took it to the mechanic to see if there was something wrong with the engine.)

 

It's certainly a testament to the talent of Nickel Creek in particular, that the Wilco material sounded so seamless when adapted for their acoustic instruments. The way Thile was able to fill in many of Nels’ guitar parts on mandolin gave many of the songs a different dimension, yet one that worked perfectly. Take Impossible Germany, for example, which sounded so fresh as an acoustic jam. Nothing will ever change the live version with Nels, of course, but even Jeff had to marvel at the Tweedy Creek rendition. “Oh man,” Jeff said. “It was nice to hear that the way I wrote it.” Then after considering how that might sound, Jeff added, “What I say on the boat stays on the boat. I don’t wanna hurt anyone’s feelings in Wilco.”

 

There were many more examples I could cite of songs being reinvented in a way or just simply putting a smile on a grizzled Wilco fan’s face. Take your pick of songs, whether ones you hear a lot or ones that seldom show up on setlists these days, pretty much every tune Tweedy Creek decided to take on came together better and quicker than maybe Jeff even imagined. “I feel like we’re over-rehearsed a bit,” Jeff said, half to his bandmates and half to the crowd, after White Wooden Cross. “We hung out a little bit yesterday afternoon ... (but) I can’t believe it sounds like this.”

 

Toward the end of the set, fun seemed to be the priority as Tweedy Creek romped through Hesitating Beauty (with Thile playing a speedy mandolin part that put a big smile on his face) and Heavy Metal Drummer — with Jeff on 12-string guitar for both — and both Watkins siblings, Sean and Sara, got an individual spotlight on Falling Apart (Right Now) and Jesus, etc., respectively.

 

But there was one more surprise to come during the show-closing California Stars when the band invited Lake Street Dive’s Rachael Price — who is on the cruise with her side project Rachael and Vilray — to join them on vocals. She took the second verse and had a bit of a lyric stumble, but to her credit, she paused, said, “Let me get it right,” and then did just that. It provided a nice sendoff for a set that could easily have gone another 15 or 20 minutes longer. Here’s hoping it happens again someday. (As a side note, I ran into Sean Watkins in the hall later in the evening and expressed those sentiments and he said he "would love that.")

 

Here was the complete setlist, as played, for “Tweedy Creek” (as mentioned above, Dylan’s Tomorrow Is A Long Time was on the printed list as the penultimate song, but wasn’t played; One By One and I’m Always In Love also were on the printed list as possible extra songs):

 

I Am Trying To Break Your Heart

Forget The Flowers

Via Chicago

Tired Of Taking It Out On You

Love Is Everywhere (Beware)

Handshake Drugs

White Wooden Cross

Poor Places

You And I

Impossible Germany

If I Ever Was A Child

Evicted

Hesitating Beauty

Heavy Metal Drummer

A Shot In The Arm

Falling Apart (Right Now)

Jesus, etc.

California Stars (w/Rachael Price of Lake Street Dive on vocals)

[bböp]

Another Jeff-related side note to this day of the cruise was that there was a pretty strong rumor that Jeff would be one of the guest vocalists during the late-night Little Feat And Friends set. He was supposedly going to sing the Lowell George-penned Willin', which I believe was a staple on the H.O.R.D.E. tour during the 90s when the Black Crowes would invite some of the Wilco guys and others on stage for that song.

 

However, for whatever reason, it didn't happen. Little Feat (or the band calling itself Little Feat, which I believe only has one original member left) did perform Willin' during its set, but though there were a couple of other guest vocalists on other songs, Jeff unfortunately did not emerge as one of them.

[kidsmoke]

Thanks for bringing us along on the boat, Paul! another brilliant recap. 

 

[Albert Tatlock]

(Jolly Jack) Ta

[nalafej]

Sounds like an incredible show. Thanks for your reporting, bbop - I can sort of feel how awesome it would have been to catch that one.

[TCP]

Yarrr!! Another fine review matey!!!  

[Brian F.]

"White Wooden Cross" sounds like it would be perfect for this treatment.

 

Maybe this year's Tweedy Largo shows can be Tweedy Creek. The Watkinses have a regular gig at Largo. (The next one is March 18.) I have a friend who sometimes joins them on violin at their shows.