What can you guys say about Wilco? They've been around for awhile but I've never really tried to listen to them. At about this time last year I gave Ryan Adams a try and can't stop listening to him ever since.

Can anybody reccomend any other good groups out there that specialize in making good roots rock a la Ryan Adams, Over the Rhine, Lucinda Williams? I think I may download a couple Wilco soundboards and see how they are.

Thanks for everything.

Electric Duane

I'm a foremost Wilco fan and expert.

What would you like to know about them?

I saw them once & they were TERRIBLE. Further, the crowd was blathering on & on through most of the show. I've enjoyed some stuff on CD, but that concert was poop on a scoop.

Wilco is amazing, but if you're looking for "rootsy" material, you'll have to go a little futher back in their catalogue. "AM" (1995) is a good rough-and-tumble country/folk/rock album. "Being There" (1996) adds Neil Young-style guitar meltdowns and Stones/Rod Stewart-type rockers to the mix. A brilliant record.

"Mermaid Avenue" (1998) is a collaboration with Billy Bragg in which they take newly discovered Woody Guthrie lyrics and add music. I can't think of a better album from the last decade. Stunning (and 2000's "Mermaid Vol. 2" is almost as good).

i like yankee hotel foxtrot a lot and the double live. Think their latest studio album is a step back.

i saw them after they released "Being There".......liked the show alot.....good musicians..........my favorite record of there's is "A.M."

It doesn't get much better than YHF

electric-duane Wrote:
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>
> Can anybody reccomend any other good groups out
> there that specialize in making good roots rock

dont know if he qualify for the genre but i reccomend bonnie prince billy aka will oldham
Superwolf (with Matt Sweeney) was one of my 2005 fav albums and still gives me thrills

Sure you want to give a listen to all Howe Gelb made in the past 20 years, alone and with the giant sand and even the op8 spin off with great Lisa germano
again, might not fits as regular roots rock but i think is great

x



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2006-12-06 06:59 by Beelyboy.

i remember green on red from the eighties. i guess you could put them at the intersection between roots rock and...stones

at the same crossroads you may found liz phair's exile on guyville i guess!

also, dont know what kind of roots (i think many and different) but i feel Sufjan Stevens very rootsy, and like him a lot

Wilco are fantastic-
'A Ghost is Born' is a wonderful album and the follow-up live document, of the tour 'Kicking Television', is one of the finest live albums of recent years,
'Spiders (kidsmoke)' rocks hard.
- they are one of the best live bands, out there.

Jeff Tweedy's previous band, Uncle Tupelo, are well worth investigating.

He is also a member of the Mineapolis (sic) Supergroup, Golden Smog.
Who's brand new album (and their first in 8 years) 'Another Fine Day', is for my money, the album of the year (so far!), full of cracking harmonies and great lyrics. Golden Smog include Gary Louris (Jayhawks) and various members
of Soul Asylum, Run Westy Run and Big Star.

-All terrific and criminally underrated bands, in their own right.

'Another Fine Day', is, as i say, the best album i've heard this year, but it's not as good as their 1998 classic 'Weird Tales'...check it out- it's wonderful.

[www.goldensmog.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2006-08-25 11:02 by Adrian-L.

Agree with Adrian about Golden Smog: good band, can't wait to get the new one.

Personally I've always preferred Son Volt to Wilco. This is the band of the other half of the Uncle Tupelo songwriting team, Jay Farrar.

Other good roots stuff: Dave Alvin, The Knitters, BR-549, Hank Williams III, or if you want some real tear-in-the-beer stuff, try Dale Watson.

Karl

and, of course, Golden Smog, did a great cover of Backstreet Girl,
on their EP, 'On Golden Smog'.

Jeff Tweedy (whom I got to meet) is one of the great modern lyricists

Jumpin'JackFrash Wrote:
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> Jeff Tweedy (whom I got to meet) is one of the
> great modern lyricists


how did you get to meet the great man?

It was a surreal night.

I go to Indiana University. In April, Wilco came to perform, and the venue at which they were playing was literally right across the street from my dorm. As I saw black tour buses park outside, I decided to wait on the grass, just outiside of security. Well they couldn't block off the whole place because students were walking through there, so I waited patiently until I saw people get off the bus. Sure enough, Jeff Tweedy himself comes off the bus and I said hello, thanked him for his music, and shook his hand.

He seemed kind of distant and nervous, but ah well.

They put on one hell of a show that night - about 32 songs with two encores!

great story!

thought i'd regurgitate an old thread - with some news
for all you Wilco fans out there.

New album in the works, tentatively scheduled for May, next year, and there are MP3's of new live tracks, floating around the web.

report here:- [www.americana-uk.com]

also checkout, the new DVD of Jeff Tweedy live, 'Sunken Treasure'

it's a must for all Wilco/Uncle Tupelo/Golden Smog fans.[www.amazon.co.uk]

I saw Wilco when they opened for the Stones last year....pretty good considering the anticipation I had for the Stones.I may have to check them out further.

Pleased to meet you......

yap yap Wrote:
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> I may have to check them out further.

wise man!

'Yankee Hotel Foxtot' and 'A Ghost is Born',
would be the 2 albums i'd go for, as an introduction.

I love Wilco; got turned on to them in 1997 when the reviews for Being Alive I read frequently mentioned Exile. Over the years, they have gone through some personnel changes. There is a terrific documentary out there that covers the creation of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.

For those who are not familiar with Wilco, I recommend starting with the first Wilco album, A.M., and then continuing in order (Being There, Summerteeth, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, A Ghost Is Born, and then wrap up the journey with Kicking Television, the double-CD live album). Each Wilco album has a unique texture and mood, and you really get a sense of the band's artistic development by listening to the albums in the order in which they were released. Along the way, they collaborated with Billy Bragg on Mermaid Avenue I & II, which are collections of songs composed with verse by Woody Guthrie.

Jeff Tweedy, the band's leader, also has a new live solo DVD. The Golden Smog albums are also terrific, but Tweedy did not perform with Golden Smog when they came to L.A. (but I think he did show up for their Chicago show).

Once you soak up all of this music, while waiting for the next Wilco album you can seek out Loose Fur, a side project involving Tweedy and other Wilco members; a solo album by Wilco's drummer, Glenn Kotche; Autumn Defense, a band led by John Stirrat, Wilco's bass player since the start; albums by Jay Bennett, a brilliant musician whose clashes with Tweedy are captured in the documentary; and tons of work by Nels Cline, Wilco's guitarist.

I could write all day about Wilco. Tweedy has an engaging stage presence, if a little prickly at times. His between-song patter is always entertaining.

Before there was Wilco, there was Uncle Tupelo. I have all of the Uncle Tupelo albums, but I don't know them well enough to spout off on 'em publicly. When they broke up, the other main creative force in the band, Jay Farrar, began Son Volt, and Tweedy formed Wilco.

Finally, I saw Tweedy do a solo show in L.A. many years ago. He was introduced by Fred Armisen (sp.?), a comedian who later went on to join SNL. Fred told the audience that we were about to see a performance by "the man responsible for . . . UNCLE TUPELO!" (applause from the audience), "the man responsible for . . . WILCO! (louder applause from the audience), "the man responsible for . . . COLUMBINE!" (smattering of applause from audience members who weren't paying attention). This introduction has cracked me up for years. Maybe now it will crack you up, too.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2006-12-08 15:59 by Monkeylad.

agreed Monkeylad-
they're all great albums, and as you so eloquenty state,
they do take you on a fabulous, rewarding journey.

The recent Son Volt album, 'Okemah & The Melody Riot', is a joy-
Jay Farrar is one hell of an underrated musician.
His work with Tweedy,especially on Uncle Tupelo's 'Anodyne',
is truly brilliant.

Really enjoyed Golden Smog's newie 'Another Fine Day' - one of my fave albums to come out this year...i just wish they'd tour Europe!
Huge fan of Gary Louris.
The news, that Louris is recording again, with Olson
(and Chris Robinson producing) has got alot of people v.excited.

New Wilco album- and new Louris/Olson colaboration...roll on 2007!

One of the greatest and most significant bands in the last decade.

Great in the studio, terrific live, experimental, groundbreaking. Really can't say enough about them.

Everyone on this board should buy Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. It is one of the greatest of all time. Then move on to the rest of their catalog.

You might also want to download a copy of the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot demos. Some outtakes and demos that didn't make the cut. They're really quite amazing as well.

Great news Wilco fans! :-

WILCO TO RELEASE NEW ALBUM IN MAY - THE DETAILS

Billboard reports:

"Wilco's new album, "Sky Blue Sky," will arrive May 15 via Nonesuch, frontman Jeff Tweedy said on stage last night (Jan. 17) during a solo show in Nashville. Among the new songs Tweedy has been playing are the title track and "We Can Make It Better." As a full band, Wilco has also previewed the tracks "Is That the Thanks I Get," "Lullaby for Rafters and Dreams," "On and On and On" and "Walken" in the past year. "I think people may have an idea in their head about what it will sound like, but it's going to be different than that," Wilco bassist John Stirratt told Billboard.com in November. "Jeff had a lot of creative fire. And also, the way we recorded was so cool because a lot of the arrangements just grew right there with everybody sitting around. I'm over the moon about it. I think it will be a really beautiful record. It's a great time to be in Wilco." "Sky Blue Sky" is the follow-up to 2004's "A Ghost Is Born," which has sold 346,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Tweedy's solo run wraps Saturday in Dallas. The lone Wilco live dates on tap at present are three mid-April shows in Australia: April 16 in Brisbane, April 18 in Melbourne and April 21 in Sydney."

apparently, Golden Smog are set to release either an EP or album,
in March, entitled "Blood On The Slacks"

no other details are known at this time.

Thanks Adrian!!! ..Didn't expect the new album to be out that soon!

Huge fan of Tweedy and Wilco. Sunken Treasure is great!!! YHF and the old stuff (AM and Being There) rank right up there with Mermaid Avenue as must haves. Now my Wilco collection is not as vast as my Stones, Bruce, and Bob, but it is right up there. Torrented Wilco shows are usually great..better than their albums.

Have to check out Golden Smog..sounds great..wonder how I missed that one.

If you like song writers and ones's somewhat in the Dylan mode ..you will love this youngster from Sacramento..Jackie Greene
[www.streamjackiegreene.com]
[www.vervemusicgroup.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-01-24 15:16 by partydoll Meg.

your v.welcome Meg
..YHF and AGIB are mighty pieces of work to try and live up to-
v. excited about hearing the new stuff...
maybe they'll stream some demos on their webpage?

Have you got the new Autumn Defence cd? (Wilco side project)
-has had good reviews, but i haven't checked it myself yet.

i don't have any torrented Wilco shows (no Dime account)
which one(s) would you recommend?

you're in for a treat with The Smog-
they're cover of 'Backstreet Girl' is class

Adrian-L Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> your v.welcome Meg
> ..YHF and AGIB are mighty pieces of work to try
> and live up to-
> v. excited about hearing the new stuff...
> maybe they'll stream some demos on their webpage?
>
> Have you got the new Autumn Defence cd? (Wilco
> side project)
> -has had good reviews, but i haven't checked it
> myself yet.
>
> i don't have any torrented Wilco shows (no Dime
> account)
> which one(s) would you recommend?
>
> you're in for a treat with The Smog-
> they're cover of 'Backstreet Girl' is class

Send me your snail mail addy and I'll send you a few shows...Got a few great ones from the last 2 years when they played lots of the Mermaid Ave. stuff... and check out Jackie!!!

And No I haven't checked out the side project either...so much music out there..so little time....

thanks Meg- that would be gr8....whats your email?