Wilco at The Greek

"You were right about the stars
Each one is a setting sun"

That is one of my favorite lines from Jeff Tweedy, the creative foundation for the band Wilco. We went across the Bay last night to see them at the beautiful Greek Theater on the Berkeley campus. The weather was perfect and although we got there a little later than we wanted, we didn't miss any of Wilco's set and got pretty good seats.

They played a lot of tunes from their newest album, Sky Blue Sky, which has seen a lot of play on my iPod in the last month or so. It's a great record. Some of the songs are simple, even light, acoustic guitar melodies while some are more raucous rock songs. A few have a very Lennon/Beatles quality to them, especially "Hate it Here".

I am a huge fan of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002)...I think that'll always be their best, it is their Sgt. Peppers in my eyes. But this newest album might be my second favorite. The show last night was fantastic....a good mix of new and old. Jeff Tweedy is a great performer and the rest of the band members are all excellent musicians. I'm no Wilco historian but I think Tweedy and the bassist John Stirratt are the only members left from the original line-up back in the mid '90s. Guitarist Nels Cline is a maniac!

It was a beautiful night and a great time. If Wilco comes to your town I highly recommend you shell out the cash to see them.


photo of Wilco from here
photo of Jeff Tweedy from here