Thursday, 29 Nov 2007
A couple days ago a friend and co-worker, when prompted by my inquisition, responded that he was listening to Anodyne, the fourth and final album from Uncle Tupelo. Long overdue for a round with my ears, the album was a welcome trip down memory lane, reminding me just how important Uncle Tupelo (and their resulting branches) are.
Most good things eventually come to an end and the marriage/power struggle of Jeff Tweedy and Jay Farrar reached the boiling point plenty of times leading up to their last show at Mississippi Nights in St. Louis on May 1, 1994. Now, thanks to YouTube, we’re able to transport ourselves inside that venue, on that night, as the band plays what would be their second to last song, only to be joined by the Bottle Rockets for an encore performance of the Skynyrd’s “Gimme Three Steps.” It took a couple seconds for my eyes to adjust to a long-haired, bass playing Jeff Tweedy, but once he flubs sings his part, it’s recognizable to say the least.
Enjoying Anodyne again was a pleasure, though still far from unseating Still Feel Gone as my all-time favorite album and first exposure to the band. The opening track “Gun” remains my favorite Tupelo track, which is directly associated with repeated plays in a dark basement in the aftermath of some drunk stranger’s house party in college. No house party before or since had played such and important and memorable role in expanding my musical palette. I can clearly remember walking to Atomic Records the following day and picking up Still Feel Gone based on the opening track (”Gun”) and that it was the only album they had. What a course those two days would lead me on.
I’ve seen Jeff Tweedy play solo a handful of times, but watching him play “Gun” always brings a big smile across my face. Though I always resist the temptation to scream it out as a request like so many others at his live shows, it’s always the one song I hope to hear going into his solo performances.
Anybody ever catch Uncle Tupelo live? Favorite albums or songs? Leave ‘em in the comments.
Myspace: Uncle Tupelo
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Download: eMusic
Buy: Strictly Discs
November 29th, 2007 at 7:53 am
R.I.P. Mississippi Nights.
November 29th, 2007 at 9:13 am
I caught those final two concerts and picked up the “4th best country band” poster you have up above (they finished 4th in the local weekly newspaper’s year end poll). I remember the “gimme three steps” for being sloppy and fun, but also the John Fogerty/CCR classic “Effigy” performed as the closer the first night - with both Farrar and Tweedy screaming “Why?” over the crunchy guitar. A lot of people were wondering why that night, but with the great wilco/son volt output over the years that all seems a like a long long time ago…
November 29th, 2007 at 9:57 am
I love UT and Anodyne is a great album. If you get a chance and have not already done so, pick up Greg Kots great book, Learning To Die, which talks alot about the album and the last days of UT. But, don’t do to EBay looking for UT vinyl, you will end up spending loads, like I have.
November 29th, 2007 at 10:23 am
Great post! I first heard Tupelo on the No Alternative compilation, and then heard Anodyne when I worked at my college radio station. Tupelo has had more of an influence by far on my music listening than any other band. Glad to find someone who feels the same about Still Feel Gone - I think it’s their best also, and it’s one of my favorite records of all time.
November 29th, 2007 at 2:15 pm
I remember their show at Shank Hall on that final tour as an amazing live show - especially their cover of “Effigy” as someone else mentioned. I was surprised to read in the Greg Kot book that Tweedy and Farrar weren’t even speaking to one another at that point. How could they be THAT amazing live and not be connecting on a personal level? The music was electric that night.
November 29th, 2007 at 8:43 pm
Never seen em live, but I’ve seen Tweedy do some of the songs live in recent years. Just like all his songs, those Tupelo songs stand the test of time. They are always great.
December 3rd, 2007 at 1:24 pm
Wow, another great post. Glad I found you (through Aquarium Drunkard). I’m a big fan of all of Uncle Tupelo’s work, never saw them live, though. Lately, I’ve been digging the acoustic “March 16-20, 1992″ a lot. Something about songs like “Grindstone”, “Moonshiner” and “Atomic Power” is just doing for me lately.
Hey, I’d love it if you would take a look at my site and consider maybe linking to me from your blogroll. I incorporate non-music topics, but about half my posts are music and/or mp3 posts.
Here’s a couple you may like:
http://www.chrisdellavedova.com/2007/11/12/zachs-music-monday-rem-reconstruction-of-the-fables/
http://www.chrisdellavedova.com/2007/08/30/how-do-you-afford-your-rock-n-roll-lifestyle/
Thanks for taking a look. I’ve added a link to you on my site.
Chris