I guess people remember things differently... In my case, I do recall a lot of animosity towards Wilco at the time for "abandoning alt-country". Whatever that meant....
Wow, that's really interesting.... I guess it is like my love for Led Zeppelin Presence.... I didn't witness it in time, so I just don't see the issues that fans of the day did.
I wasn't on the scene. I was off with my own band. I didn't even hear about alt-country until probably 2010.... I rarely pay attention to genre labeling
The main differences for me are (1) the way the songs seem more structured from a compositional standpoint; (2) the more oblique lyrics and dark subject matter; and (3) the dense, claustrophobic studio sound that doesn’t often sound like the playing of a live band. These are the things that, far more than the change in musical style per se, have made it my least liked Wilco album (that I’ve heard - jury’s out on the last three for me). Two of these three things were mostly gone on subsequent albums, and the lyrics were never again quite as dark and desperate, at least that I recall. Anyhow, I’ll just stick mostly to commenting on the songs the rest of the way through this album. There are some I do like quite a lot later in the running order. I don’t want to continue to be the cold water to everybody else’s heat. I’ve basically stated my reasons for not liking this album as much as most of you and don’t want to become a broken (Alt-Country) record.
But haven't we all noticed while revisiting the songs for this thread that Being There (and some of Mermaid Avenue, + some outtakes like Blasting Fonda) were indeed leading the way to that new sound via a very natural organic process ? We all know, the alt. country vision of Uncle Tupelo was not Tweedy's. He was a punk rocker, he was a pop music geek, only incidentally working in the alt. country idiom. I'm pretty sure Jeff enrolled Jay Bennett to help him break the alt. country mold because he feared being pigeonholed. Almost every Wilco record to this day has been a reaffirmation of artistic freedom and true ownership of their artistic direction, be it against their fan's confort zone. Jeff is/was better when he is able to identify a preconceived idea about himself that he'll be able to fight and prove wrong. It's just creative fuel for him.
Only in a couple of songs (and those tended to be among my least liked on those albums), but the lyrics and mood were different. I guess your last two sentences are what I’ve found somewhat troubling about Tweedy over the years. That sort of “I’ll show you” thing. I don’t get it, have never felt it, and it just seems unnecessary. I also think that part of what he fancied himself as “rebelling” against was manufactured in his head.
Apologies. I don't read it that way. The whole interpretation hinges on pop quiz kid, and I don't see that the way you do, but that's cool.
Yes, for me. Not on Blasting Fonda, but on a few of the other songs. But I didn’t catch it at the time. In fact, it’s only because of this deep dive now that I’m picking up on it. Hmm. Possibly. But Jeff leaves a track record of picking up people (and they never even know they’re in the band until they’re in it—-both Egan and Bach experiences this) and then discarding them. Jeff didn’t even know that Jay played the piano when he came on board so I tend to doubt Jeff had anything devious (!) in mind. But it’s possible.
Two things I’ve read over the years... I can’t remember the source but something to the effect of “we needed a guitar player and got a keyboard player too!”, and then in Jeff’s recent memoir finding Jay had a shared love for deconstructing things. In that light, I definitely see the continuity. Being There has a lot of deconstruction, plus Jay adding in a lot of Hammond, piano, etc. With Mermaid, the production gets beautifully layered. And then with Summerteeth Jay begins gathering a lot of pop-rooted instruments and then continues down the road of densely layered arrangements and moments of deconstruction. We’re Just Friends is definitely a Jay moment. Feels a bit like Red Eyed and Blue... a slight and somewhat incomplete song that serves as an appropriate palate cleanser. The arrangement suits the album perfectly.
Just want to give more credit to the piano playing of Jay Bennett. Since yesterday it keeps playing in my head. Completely agree, it sounds alike Beach Boys Surf's Up.
Sorry, actually it's the melody line of the music where Jeff's is singing: "I'll come back to you It'd would be brand new" which has captured a place in my ears. In fact just where the piano is more holding back.
Next: I'm Always in Love It's weird to me that the record company requested 'Can't Stand It' when this song was sitting right there, an obvious single if ever there was one. That being said, I do actually personally prefer 'Can't Stand It.' 'I'm Always in Love' has never been one of my favorites. It's the high squealing synth. It's catchy, but in an annoying way. I'm a weirdo who isn't really a big fan of music that is really hooky/earwormy and usually prefer subtler melodicism (there are exceptions, of course). But this one is just a little bit too poppy for me and that synth line has never been something I like. So here I'm agreeing with those of you who think there is too much going on in some of these songs! I'd prefer this one stripped down a bit, as the verses are pretty interesting and I like how the song pairs the peppy 'I'm always in love' with the anxious 'I'm worried' at the end. And 'I hope I do my best' in the bridge. That's pretty interesting. The song itself is one of the lesser tracks on the album for me.
I’m Always In Love: Tweedy/Bennett From the depths of insecurity (as expressed in We’re Just Friends) out comes a burst of pure Beach Boys pop. Impossible not to head bop or toe tap—“I’m worried, I’m worried, I’m worried I’m always in love.” An interesting twist on musicians: Jay plays bass guitar (along with keyboards) and John is on piano. And both Ken Coomer and Jay are listed as playing the drums.
"Palate cleanser" is a great way to describe "We're Just Friends." Kind of like "Sunloathe" as track 3 on The Whole Love after the epic "Art of Almost" and bouncy "I Might." There's only so much bombast Jeff Tweedy can dole out before he needs to shift gears!
"I'm Always in Love." The song that got me into Wilco! I remember hearing this song on the radio a lot (WXRT in Chicago was and is always happy to promote new Wilco) and thinking the synth part sounded a little like one of my favorite songs of all time — "The Song is Over" by the Who, which I was really into at the time. That's what piqued my interest. The rest is history!
This song and “How Do You Fight Loneliness” are my two favorites on the album. The “squealing synth line” is also in the demo, so it’s a big part of the song in the band’s mind apparently. Such unbridled optimism in the music though - I love to hear it. The lyrics seem a bit more ambiguous in the optimism department if you sit down and read them on paper, but my ears and heart always perk up with this one, making it a winner in my book.
Yes, the first "wiiiiiii/weeee" synth riff could be an updated version of the intro of the Beach Boys' song Wild Honey, even if the keyboard sound is very seventies (almost Wings !). After that intro, it's pure power pop, something Brendan Benson or Jason Falkner might've written (or might've tried to write). The sugary easygoing melody is a joy, and I like Jeff's singing a lot on this (well, I like Jeff's singing a lot on this LP !). But the tempo is a little bit too slow, this song called for something faster, the way they do it in the I am Trying to Break Your Heart film, or as an encore in many concerts (where it becomes a cousin to Outta Sight). If you really like it slow, then some solo acoustic renditions are the way to go, the song being an absolute highlight on the Together at Last album, for instance. Clearly, this is one of the best Wilco pop songs, but it's a case where the original LP cut is the version I like the less.
I'm always in love. To me this song, being placed here, is a good example of why this album works for me. We have had all sorts of heavy themes, musically and lyrically, and then the devastated vocal of Just Friends... Suddenly the oppression is lifted for a couple of minutes with a bouncy bright bit of pop-rock. Lyrically it is again quite obtuse to me. I can only share how I relate to it. It reminds me of being a teen, to be honest. I was terribly hyperactive and really just not a guy that girls would be interested in (that way LOL).... that much energy is a little intimidating to most folks, and impossible to control. So i was always friendzoned . When I was fifteen I started working in the bank as a ledger clerk, and it was me and about 10-15, 20-25 year old girls/women.... they would take me to nightclubs and stuff .... And I was always in love with most of them, but essentially their little mascot or something..... It was a strange time in life. Anyway, that is what this song means in my strange little head, and thinking about it this morning, just gave the song a strange disconnected nostalgia.
I'm Always In Love is a fun track, and quite a pick-up after We're Just Friends. It's not my favorite on the album, but it's a good one.
WOW, they sound like a mighty machine. I love that. Reminds me of the mother of the ‘engine’ sounds VU’s What Goes On, though that was less massive and more rattling.
You've summed up my feelings in your posts about the last two songs, actually! That's good for me since I fell behind on this thread yesterday
"I'm Always in Love" and "A Shot in the Arm" were the two Summerteeth songs played at my first Wilco show. I'm not sure it stood out to me on the album before that night, but only because I was catching up on the back catalog at the time. From then on, it quickly became a favorite, and another Wilco song that I learned on guitar. The chord changes are really cool; going back and forth from B to E, setting up a typical power pop song, before sliding up to a descending series of minor chords, implying the anxiety and moodiness of the lyrics. I'm worried that I'm always in love. Jay's screaming synths flying across the top. John's buried and distorted "smoke pot" backing vocals suggesting a way out of the anxiety. It's just perfect.
