Also a very good movie is the making of Mermaid Avenue, Man in the Sand with both Wilco and Billy Bragg.

"Man in the Sand" is fantastic! Being able to witness the Jeff Tweedy/Billy Bragg ego clash provides some great insight into the difficulties and peculiarities of producing brilliant music--only to be seen again when Tweedy and Jay Bennett collide head-on in <i>I Am Trying to Break Your Heart</i>. Perhaps those incidents explain why Leroy is no more?

Thankfully founding member John Stirrat is still around. No doubt in large part to the sanity afforded him by his other creative outlet, whose new album is killer.<br>

<p><i>Ghost</i> is going to be particulary interesting considering it will be the first Wilco record since <i>AM</i> without Bennett. Considering how sub-par AM is compared to the Wilco albums that followed, and the major contribution that Bennett had to the Wilco sound, as demonstrated in <i>I Am Trying to Break Your Heart</i>, it's going to great to see how Tweedy and Co. reinvent themselves. June 8 can't some soon enough...

I have been a Tweedy fan since his Tupelo days. Thanks for the update. I didn't realize he was releasing some poetry. He loves the wordplay so that should be interesting - very 'Joycian' I expect.

I heard that Jay Bennett is back with Wilco, true? It is hard to believe after watching 'I am trying to break your heart' aka 'The Jay Bennett Story: the making of an ass'. Poor guy.

I haven't heard anything about Jay Bennett being back with Wilco. I think it's highly unlikely. He's just finished work on a solo album though, that should be pretty cool (more info here).

I also find it hard to believe that you think he was the one who came off looking like an ass in <i>I Am Trying to Break Your Heart</i>. I would have to say that honour belongs to Tweedy. But as long as they both continue to make music in some form or another it doesn't much matter! :-)

Yeah, it might be just that, a rumour.

It's not that Jay was an ass....just that the filmmaker seemed out to make him into one. I would love to seem them back together.

Tweedy's 'Every circle needs a center....' speech was classic. Tweedy can be very belligerent, there's no doubt. Part of his genius I think. That whole film reminds me of Dylan's Don't Look Back. Talk about belligerent......

<i>It's not that Jay was an ass....just that the filmmaker seemed out to make him into one.</i>

Man, am I with you on that one! I think the true ass, however, was Wilco's manager, Tony Margherita. Gotta love how the "band manager" stereotype proved itself accurate!

Having never seen "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart," I find it a little hard to believe that Tweedy -- the singer I have come to adore on "Foxtrot," "Summerteeth," etc. -- could be an "ass." Rather sad, I should say, but that's the way it goes. Anyone want to hitch-hike cross-country with me to catch Wilco in California?

***Disclaimer: huge Tweedy fan***

If you read the liner notes that accompany "I Am Trying to Break Your Heart", you'll read that Sam Jones did his best to not portray Jay Bennett as a whiny, bitter guy. According to Jones, he edited the film in a very unbiased way as to show the audience that Bennett was not those things. He was very pissed off when he was asked about being forced out, but they attempted to portray him fairly.

Did you guys notice, throughout the film, very subtle points where you can tell Jay Bennett isnt just annoying Tweedy, but John Stirratt, LeRoy and Glenn Kotche as well? I also saw some evidence of this in "Man in the Sand".

I cant wait for Ghost. I've got some of the new tracks on some live stuff, but after Jim O'Rourke gets done with them, they will probably sound significantly different. YHF worked out ok, so I'm not sweating it.

Anyway, this is a cool forum to discuss a great band. Would love to hear people's thoughts on this.

Tracks 1-11 from A Ghost is Born are leaked, try Soulseek and if you can't find anything send me an IM through AIM. Sniveling Mess.

Thanks!

Dear Jeff, Why are you Trying to Break my Heart?

Let me clarify first off and say that I am a big fan of Wilco as well as Jeff, John, and Glenn individually. I have recently heard the Leak tracks for 'A Ghost is Born'. My first impression after hearing this (hopefully not finished) album is that--I miss Jay Bennett and so does Wilco whether they know it or not....

I understand there will be a difference between these Leak Tracks and what will probably be released. But what I hear so far is not part of musical growth. Actually it's more like moving back in with you parents. I imagined that the 'sonic landscaping' on YHF was a huge part of what Jay brought to the table. I can take that or leave it. There is a fine line between Genius and Annoyance when it comes to noise tracks. But Listen to the Keyboard lines on Kamera or War on War. Simple in its brilliance, those songs would be very dry and incomplete without Jay on them.

The Tracks on 'Ghost' that are (albeit illegally) available are hopefully far from complete. The Jay's Wurlitzer is replaced by Leroy's grand piano. I appreciate the talent Leroy Bach has for playing. He played Jay's parts admirably well in concert, but his music prowess seems to be suited for following rather than leading. I really have no idea, in all fairness to Mikael Jorgensen, to comment on what he can bring, I didn't even hear anything he was playing, if at all, on the Leak Tracks.

I think that Jay Bennett hit the nail on the head in the film 'I am Trying to Break your Heart' that without 'sonic landscaping' everything (we do) turns into a folk tune. A point well taken to anyone that has heard 'A Ghost is Born'. Although you cannot expect every album to sound the same, nor would you want to, what you would expect is the same ambition, heart and energy you come to love about Wilco. Perhaps Jeff needs that Collaborator... or at least an antagonist.

Last year I went to wilcoworld.net and downloaded ‘More like the Moon.’ compiled of outtakes or out casts of YHF. Songs like A Magazine called Sunset or Bob Dylan’s 49th beard show a different energy or heart than anything I heard on ‘Ghost’.

A perfect analogy would be this: Take the song ‘More like the Moon’ add Grand Piano, go to Abbey Road Studios to try to sound more Beatle-like, and there ‘tis, A Ghost is Born, but it sounds better than ‘A Pale Comparison to our Previous Album’.

A note to all fellow Wilco fans: Please do not become upset with me for this blasphemous article. I understand Writers like Jeff Tweedy only come along once or twice a decade. I Guess I just expected so much more out of him than what I have heard so far. Jeff’s reason for Wilco’s firing of Ken Coomer was he wasn’t “getting” the new album. I guess I don’t get this one. ---or maybe I just shouldn’t get this one.

I would love to hear the Ghost stuff, all I can find are live performances of the songs. Any ideas? I tried SoulSeek but keep getting live stuff.

Try searching for the terms Wilco and Ghost on Soulseek... should get plenty o' hits.

i have heard eleven of the twelve leak tracks....
i agree there is a different energy, Jeff's voice sounds very different. older, more intimate.
there are two ten minute songs on the leak track i have....
i am not sure if i have heard the same leak tracks as the others here, but i can say that despite some of the songs that come off as more folksy, there is some really weird derivative experimental jams. whether they stay as long is a different story.
with all follow up albums to a truly great piece it is difficult to experience it without expectation. however, the leak tracks have really sstarted to grow on me. i would almost compare what i have heard ti the latest Radiohead album in the sense that it is in some ways more conservative and in other ways just as experimental, whereas Kid A sounded completely fresh, Hail To The Thief came across more as songs and less as experiment.

the album is amazing... 12 tracks of pure genius

Ahhhh, fellas. Don't forget the true sonic genius in Wilco - not Jay Bennet, but in fact, JIM O'ROURKE! Yes kids, Daddy Jimmy will surely save the day with his post production sonic wizardry, so fear not - the leaked tracks (which are great BTW) will take on a whole new life in the future mixes at the hand of God, sorry, Jim O. Peace

Ok - so I finally have the leaked tracks, and they're not bad at all. I agree with the Radiohead/Kid A analogy above. It's a difficult thing for the band to try to come up with something as incredible as YHF, so they just wrote some beautiful songs and play them well. There is something to be said for that approach. Every album cant be a groundbreaking piece of art. At the core, Tweedy is just a brilliant songwriter and musician and what I've heard so far from Ghost is evidence of that. He can do everything, but at the end of the day, good music is good music.

I really like the Handshake Drugs that's leaked...very subtle differences, but has a nice feel to it...

cowpoke, I fear you're giving ol' Jim too much credit. A mix engineer can only work with what's there in the first place, and it's Jay and Glenn's sonic experimentation that gave him such a beautiful palette to work from for YHFT.

You also shouldn't forget that <i>Summerteeth</i>, a more conventional but no less sonically adventurous record, was more or less the result of Jay Bennett's genius, as evidenced on the Bennett and Burch 2002 release <i>The Palace at 4 a.m</i>.

It seems, however, that Jim O'Rourke was a co-producer on this new record so his true sonic signature will be more prevalent. If anyone needs some more Jim O'Rourke brilliance, and we all do, check out his album <i>Eureka</i>. It's worth getting for the cover art alone.

As for the Wilco leak, I'm refusing to listen to it. Call me crazy, but I'm a firm in believer in the mystic significance of the official release date. For example, here's a list of recent albums that I couldn't have imagined listening to and living with at any time other than the release date and the few months thereafter:
<ul><li>Sarah Harmer, <i>All of Our Names</i> (present)
<li>The Shins, <i>Chutes Too Narrow</i> (fall 2003)
<li>Daniel Lanois, <i>Shine</i> (spring 2003)
<li>Bruce Springsteen, <i>The Rising</i> and Aimee Mann, <i>Lost in Space</i> (late summer 2002)
<li>Ron Sexsmith, <i>Whereabouts</i> (spring 1999)</ul>

Any other music geeks feel this way?

yes, i feel the same way. i am often given advance copies of soon-to-be-released albums but refuse to listen because there's just something magical about buying a record at 12:01 on tuesday morning and staying up until 4 or 5 a.m. to listen with your friends. however.... AGIB is a great great great record.

Sad news indeed: "Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy Goes To Rehab, Pushes Back Album Date"

Well, my best wishes go out to Jeff and his family in this difficult time...

I recently grabbed A Ghost Is Born off of wilcoworld.net and gladly donated my 10 bucks to justafan.org. And.. I'll just as gladly go to my local record store and buy the cd for the album art, the liner notes, the pristine quality and to support Wilco and Nonesuch when it's finally released. congrats to all involved for being so progressive about music... now, that said, i'm warming up to AGIB very very quickly. It's as layered and challenging and melodic as YHF but has, to me at least, a warm rock n' roll style. Wilco is truly an american rock and roll band. That's how i try to explain them to friends, anyway. My only issue.. and it's going to get lots of grief i'm sure when the critics start reviewing the disc for publication.. is the 15 minute long "less than you think" experimental sonic intrusion that's pretty damn difficult to listen to. But, the good and the great far far far outway any experimentation for art's sake that might be there. And who knows, after a few hundred more listenings it might grow on me. :)

Thoughts on Ghost:
For me, this album centers on "Hummingbird" (blaspehmy, I know). Despite the weak-ass chorus, this song has AMAZING lyrics. It's a Summerteeth pop confection.
Similarly, A.M. is reborn on "I'm a Wheel", with its heavy guitar work and simple lyrics.
The only past album that isn't really represented here is YHF. For the Wilco hardcore, this isn't such a big deal. The group that madeYHF doesn't exist anymore. For that matter, the band that made A ghost is born doesn't exist anymore. This band keeps changing. But it is still surprising to find such pedestrian noise tracks on a Wilco album. The last track is almost contemptuously unlistenable for the last ten minutes. It's not music, it's not experimental, it's just your speakers throbbing at you after you've left the room in boredom.
I love this album after a few listens for its lyrical experimentation and competent instrumentals. It seems like Wilco is heading back to their center instead of spiraling off further in the YHF direction. I am willing to give a lot of latitude to the guys who brought me "Sunken Treasure" and "Pieholden Suite". I was kind of expecting another YHF, but I'm not upset with what I got instead. I don't know if I'll be listening to this still in a couple months, but then I never listen to YHF anymore either.

Just some thoughts.

A ghost is born works just fine for me and makes me feel like Wilco is still the best american band...and I was ready to be disappointed. the album has interesting themes and, although sometimes abstruse and confusing, I still believe what Jeff Tweedy does is good and interesting and I would shit myself if I wrote songs that work that well and make a listener as happy as they make me. I wrote my sister the other day to say that it was the greatest album ever and this may change a year from now but isn't it great to feel that way about music even if fleetingly? "Muzzle of Bees" does for me what "Wait Up For Me" does and I'm still not tired of that song even 12 years after the fact

Okay wow, thoughts on Ghost, the beatles references seem pretty right on in alot of instances, and did Jeff maybe steal Neil YOungs guitar rig on a couple solos (a beautiful sound), anyone who thinks these guys are suffering without Bennett are crazy, Jay played some really nice piano but the guys was a dork. And re-sonic landscapes are we forgetting the magic of Glenn Kotche and Jim O- these guys know sonic. And is it just me or did Jeff change his vocal delivery quite a bit, he is usually distictively him (from the beginning of Uncle TUpelo to YHF) but there are moments on this thing where I swear John Lennon is back from the grave its magic.
Just wait though the critics wont give it the love it deserves, cause its not another complete production revolution, the beauty is subtle and you gotta work for some of these songs, you summer teeth fans are crazy, who needs such huge pop hooks when you have poetry and emotion. Gone is the playfullnes of "Heavy Metal Drummer" but here is the catchy but earnest and quiet Hummingbird. I dare you to find ten more bands on major labels that are this real and this amazing (even harder if you cut out Radiohead and modest mouse)

I just gotta tell you guys, I love that long instrunmental jam at the end of the first tune. It builds up beautifully. Really a perfect jam.

I like the reference to the noise tracks as being "pedestrian". At places it feels like motions are being gone through in some way. That quality made me appreciate Jay Bennet's contributions on YHF, the detail and precision in those layers are pure evil genius.