Wilco for President

I meant to write this last week.  Better late than never.  First a little back story.

I'm 45 years old.  I have two kids.  I'm a film editor by trade, but I started out wanting to play music for a living.  (Like a million other kids.)  I run my own business, so needless to say, I don't go out to live shows as much as I use to.  But last week I went with my lovely wife Caitlin and some business friends to see Wilco playing out in Brooklyn's McCarren park pool.  What a god damn joy!  Honestly, the best gig I've been too in like forever.  I kept running into people I knew, (I haven't been around that many people from my demographic in quite a while) and we all discovered how much we love music and how much we missed it.  I really can't explain what a great night it was.  Truly wonderful.  

Oh, the actual show.  Well, I was honestly afraid that Jeff was gonna' be in an experimental phase and just jam.  I'm an OLD Wilco fan.  That is, AM, Being There, Summerteeth.  I LIKE the new stuff, and I think Jeff  Tweedy is the most consistently brilliant songwriter alive.  (With the possible exception of Elvis Costello along with Ryan Adams running a close third.)  But I really thought Wilco ceased to be a band after Yankee Foxtrot.  I saw them in around 2003 last and was less than impressed.  They just didn't seem to gel in the same way they did when I saw them TWICE on the Summerteeth tour back in '99/2000.  And since '03 I had heard rumors that they were sort of becoming the new Dead/Phish style jammy band.  Ewww!  (Sorry jammers.)  That's just NOT how I thought of Wilco.  To me they were more of a perfect rock band that had learned how to write perfect pop songs while bathing them in the warm glow of Brian Wilson meets Radiohead sonic experimentation that helped make Tweedy's wonderful melodies shine while never obscuring the sweet simplicity of the music.  And now they had become a jam band?  

Anyway, I'm glad to say that's not the case.  At least not on the night I saw them.  Even though the bass player is the only original member besides Tweedy, Wilco are now quite a tight unit. Yet loose enough to excite a jaded aging hipster crowd in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.  They played new stuff, old stuff.  It was all wonderful.  A couple long arty guitar or keyboard solos here or there, and there was most certainly a wiff of mary jane in the air.  But I didn't see any tie-dyed people spinning their heads off.

My wife and I didn't make it to the end of the second encore, (babysitter), but we saw most of the show and it was inspiring.  Made me want to pick up my guitar again.  Who new?

I really miss those alt-country bands.  And finally, I fell in love with the (not-so new) drummer!!