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Jason Isbell, Sturgill Simpson, Chris Stapleton, and Other Good Stuff

Seasick Sailor

By Seasick Sailor
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Buzzrock
Buzzrock

This is blowing up today.

tbone_
tbone_

Not sure if this is the right thread or not but any Billy Strings fans? Kid is fantastic.

strangulation!
strangulation!

getting real close to wearing an outfit

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jimmyjazz

jimmyjazz 46998

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I grew up in Missouri.  I had long since moved to Austin when the floods destroyed multiple towns along the Mississippi River in 1993, but I was well-connected to Uncle Tupelo and other similar bands by that time.  When Son Volt released "Tear Stained Eye", my heart broke.  That song nailed it.

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12618

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7 minutes ago, Shoxthemonkey said:

My introduction to Son Volt was Cherokee Street Girl but I had a similar thought.

I had been diving into the alt-country thing for a few months when I got to Son Volt.  Drive-By Truckers were my first deep dive (I'd loved Old 97's "Too Far to Care" a few years prior but it didn't take me immediately down the rabbit hole).  I loved DBT's fierce regional-ity, but not being from the South, I felt a little on the outside of it.

Then I hear these guys hammering out Stones riffs, with a nod to country, a little punk snarl, and a heavy dose of Midwestern fatalism and pragmatism and I was hooked.  Hard.

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12618

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1 minute ago, hullabelew said:

When the first Wilco and first Son Volt records came out, I really thought Son Volt was going to be the more successful and 'better' of the two.  Damn, I love that record.

Trace is still the best album either of those guys ever put out.  Tweedy obviously "won" the more lucrative and lauded career, but Trace is just on a little different level.

At the end of the day, what Jay Farrar wanted musically was never going to have that wide of an appeal.  Tweedy always had more pop sensibility and was more connected to what the critical community would embrace.

And I say this as someone who loves the first 5 Wilco albums dearly, and has seen Wilco many times live.

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Celery Man

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2 hours ago, hullabelew said:

When the first Wilco and first Son Volt records came out, I really thought Son Volt was going to be the more successful and 'better' of the two.  Damn, I love that record.

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/uncle-tupelos-anodyne-at-25-oral-history-wilco-733327/

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Coomer: Jay put out Trace. That was an amazing record. I don’t know if I can tell you this story, but when we all first heard Trace, you know, we’re in the vans. And it’s Tony and the whole band in one van and the crew is in the other van. … Some people in the van had edibles. A cookie. A pleasurable cookie. And so, then, Tony says, “I’ve got it! I’ve got his record.” Tony pops it in the CD player. Nobody says a word. An absolute word. Tony is driving. We’re running down the highway, the record ends, nobody says a word. Ten minutes. Tony rolls down the window, pops out that CD and throws it out. I thought I was going to pee my pants.

2 hours ago, Shoxthemonkey said:

I gotta be honest, I don't get the Wilco love. I'll also be honest and say that the first few tunes I heard didn't hook me and I never dove any deeper.

Next time you're cooking or something put this album on and just let it go. Trying to link to the playlist for "Kicking Television", their live album that I think is mostly songs from A Ghost is Born and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.

 

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Rip76

Rip76 5009

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20 hours ago, Al_4_ISU said:

The first time I heard “Drown” I thought “every fucking song should sound like this”.

I remember my first time too.  And I agree.

Saw them twice, not too long after "Trace," came out.  Once at Satellite Lounge in Houston.  (Great freaking show, loud as F, and got a pair of drumsticks afterward)

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12618

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Next time you're cooking or something put this album on and just let it go. Trying to link to the playlist for "Kicking Television", their live album that I think is mostly songs from A Ghost is Born and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.
 

If I was sending a Son Volt fan to Wilco, I’d suggest something more similar to Son Volt, I guess. I LOVE KT, but not sure that the best starting point.

I’d recommend the following Wilco tracks for SV fans:
Box Full of Letters
Casino Queen
Monday
ELT
I’m Always in Love

Pretty accessible and kinda moves you from Uncle Tupelo towards peak Tweedy
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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12618

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1 hour ago, jimmyjazz said:

I think Being There is a great jumping off point.  It's also their "best" record in many ways.  Deeper than AM but no less hooky.

My fave Wilco tune at the moment is "Jesus, Etc.".  Such a smooth vibe.  Ask me later today and I'll say something else.

Spot on.

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Chad Fuck

Chad Fuck 18104

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1 hour ago, jimmyjazz said:

I think Being There is a great jumping off point.  It's also their "best" record in many ways.  Deeper than AM but no less hooky.

My fave Wilco tune at the moment is "Jesus, Etc.".  Such a smooth vibe.  Ask me later today and I'll say something else.

Having been a Wilco fan from AM days (as well as Son Volt), this is the correct answer.  As a double album, Being There has more of what makes AM great - accessible alt-country/rock tunes - and the songs that are headed in the more experimental directions of YHF and a Ghost is Born (both of which I love) aren't so experimental as to be alienating.  Rather, they're different enough to be engaging. I mean, Outta Mind Outta Sight is fantastic and it has a similar bendy hook in it to "Drown."    Well alright/I know you don't love me but you still been thinkin of me/  Well alright, I know you probably hate me/ that's OK with me...

That said, I've always had a soft spot for Summerteeth.  Maybe because I love mellotron.  Maybe because it reminds me of good times at UT and a sweet sweet girl I was dating at the time.  Either way, it's a good record. 

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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12618

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11 minutes ago, Chad Fuck said:

Having been a Wilco fan from AM days (as well as Son Volt), this is the correct answer.  As a double album, Being There has more of what makes AM great - accessible alt-country/rock tunes - and the songs that are headed in the more experimental directions of YHF and a Ghost is Born (both of which I love) aren't so experimental as to be alienating.  Rather, they're different enough to be engaging. I mean, Outta Mind Outta Sight is fantastic and it has a similar bendy hook in it to "Drown."    Well alright/I know you don't love me but you still been thinkin of me/  Well alright, I know you probably hate me/ that's OK with me...

That said, I've always had a soft spot for Summerteeth.  Maybe because I love mellotron.  Maybe because it reminds me of good times at UT and a sweet sweet girl I was dating at the time.  Either way, it's a good record. 

Summerteeth is really good too.  It has some of their best power pop moments.

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Chad Fuck

Chad Fuck 18104

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That doc "I Am Trying To Break Your Heart" is terrific, too.  I wanted to slap Jay Bennett for being such a douchebag, but then he died several years after getting the boot, so I sorta felt bad.

That doc confirmed for me Tweedy was kind of an asshole to work with and Jay lacked the awareness of his insistence upon himself. That guy was super talented. But you could just feel the other guys in the band being done with him. After reading Tweedy’s book, apparently they were enabling each other’s worst tendencies. It’s a shame because I think they were also a great creative team.
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Al_4_ISU

Al_4_ISU 12618

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43 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

I just kept thinking "shut the fuck up, Jay, shut the fuck up".  Bands are rarely democracies, and he way overestimated his value.  That said, I do prefer his contributions to Wilco over Nels Cline's.

As an arranger, I agree.

The solo on "Impossible Germany" is probably the pinnacle of Wilco's musicality though.

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hullabelew

hullabelew 3730

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17 hours ago, Al_4_ISU said:

I don't hear it, but that's a pretty good song that I'd never heard before.  So thanks for that!

@Al_4_ISU If you can't find any of the Reivers stuff, let me know.  Their first album was under the band name, Zeitgeist.  That band in one of my very, very favorites of all time.  From 87-91...right in my wheelhouse.  

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