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  1. #1
    Musicaholic Forums Moderator ForeverAutumn's Avatar
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    Nick freakin' Lowe!!! (and Wilco too)

    Last night we had tickets to see Wilco. Before the show we arrived for our dinner reservation a half hour late because of bad traffic. While we were waiting for our meal, Hubby asked if there was an opening band to determine whether we had rush through dinner to meet the 7:30 start time or whether we could relax a little by missing the opener.

    So I pull out my handy, dandy iPhone to look up the question, only to discover that the opening band is Nick Lowe! Holy crap! I had no idea.

    Needless to say we rushed through dinner and made it to the theatre right on time for 7:30.

    Nick Lowe came out and received a standing ovation just for being there. You could feel the love. He played solo with just his guitar. He sang a few tunes and sounded pretty darn good, if a little hoarse. He then explained that if we hear a few creaks and groans from his voice it’s because he has a throat infection “but, you know, the show must go on”.

    During Cruel to be Kind, the first time he tried to sing, “Baaaaybyyyyyyy” his voice cracked. The second time he reached that spot in the song, he tried to sing it but the audience drowned him out. After that he stepped away from the mic and let the audience take care of it for him. You had to be there, but it was just one of those awesome musical moments. You could see that he was touched by the audience’s reaction and appreciation and he bowed to and applauded the audience at the end of the song.

    He continued on with the show, including a beautiful rendition of Elvis Costello’s Allison and another Costello tune, Peace, Love and Understanding (which I just discovered that Nick Lowe wrote...I didn't know that). In all he played for 45 minutes. He was wonderful, charming and really connected with the audience. We could have happily listened to just him for the rest of the night.

    At the end of his set, Hubby and I agreed that Wilco was going to have to work really hard to beat Nick Lowe’s set.

    Wilco was good. We enjoyed it. But seriously, Nick Lowe stole the show for us. Seeing him definitely outweighed the Wilco show. Hubby and I were very excited to see Wilco but we both agreed that they didn’t quite live up the hype.

    The music was good, but after Nick Lowe’s genuineness, the banter seemed insincere. I wasn’t digging the set list. I know it’s personal opinion but it wasn’t the list that I would have chosen for them. I would have preferred more new stuff. There was lots from Being There, A Ghost is Born, and YHF. Only Impossible Germany from Sky Blue Sky and nothing at all from Wilco (The Album). I know that some people here (Swish) would have loved this set list. But I like the new stuff.

    They also played a lot from the new disk, and I guess the problem there was that we didn’t know the songs. They started with three new songs and, personally, I think that was a mistake. The audience just sat there. It wasn’t until they played I Am Trying to Break your Heart, from YHF (the fourth song) that the audience was on their feet.

    They said Goodnight and left the stage after only 1.25 hours. Seriously? You’re gonna say good night after 75 minutes? They came back and played a rocking set for about 20 minutes. Left the stage again and then came back for one more song. In total, Wilco played for an hour and forty-five minutes. Maybe I’m spoiled but I expect a headlining band to play for a good two hours at least to feel like I’m getting my money’s worth. It’s not like they don’t have enough material.

    Overall, I’d give Wilco a 7. Hubby gave them a 6. Nick Lowe gets a definite 10.

  2. #2
    Musicaholic Forums Moderator ForeverAutumn's Avatar
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    Set list as per setlist.fm - the setlist wiki.

    One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley's Boyfriend)
    Art Of Almost
    I Might
    I Am Trying to Break Your Heart
    Kamera
    Company In My Back
    Born Alone
    A Shot in the Arm
    Rising Red Lung
    Impossible Germany
    How To Fight Loneliness
    Pot Kettle Black
    Dawned On Me
    Hummingbird

    Encore:
    Misunderstood
    Jesus, Etc.
    California Stars
    Monday
    Outtasite (Outta Mind)

    Encore 2:
    I'm a Wheel

  3. #3
    Rocket Surgeon Swish's Avatar
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    Nick Lowe stole the show?

    I'm a big fan, but when it comes time for Wilco, all bets are off! I'll be seeing them on Sunday, and I'm curious why you didn't know beforehand that Nick was the opening act. This will be my third Wilco show, but I've never seen Nick live, so I'm looking forward to it big time.

    Did you check out Nick on 'Live at Daryl's House'? I posted the link many moons ago. Daryl Hall invites guests to his homes in Canada and the UK and they record their songs for fun. He did several but my favorite is Cruel to be Kind.

    Check it out here.
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  4. #4
    Musicaholic Forums Moderator ForeverAutumn's Avatar
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    I'm as surprised as you are. I just wasn't feeling the love for Wilco last night. What can I say?

    You know how people often talk through the opening act? It's not who they're there to see so they generally just spend the time chatting and killing time? Well, the place was silent through Lowe's set...except for the explosion of applause after each song. He has a charisma on stage that not many people have. Roger Hodgson has it too. As did John Denver. Just a man and his guitar. Sometimes that's all you need.

    Thanks for the link. I'm watching/listening to it now.

  5. #5
    Indifferentist Slosh's Avatar
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    I'm surprised neither one played I Love My Label.
    Originally Posted by Troy: She has that same kind of cleft-pallet, slightly retarded way of singing that so many other people find endearing.


  6. #6
    Musicaholic Forums Moderator ForeverAutumn's Avatar
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    All the Wilco swag had I (heart) my label on it.

  7. #7
    Forum Regular MindGoneHaywire's Avatar
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    None of this surprises me. I enjoy both (though I have to give the nod to Lowe, big-time, if required to choose a preference), and I've seen both. Jeff Tweedy's a guy who gets up there & plays a set of his songs, many of which are really darned good--way better than, say, Jay Farrar's, but that's me. Son Volt has never done anything for me. Tweedy's a true artist.

    Nick Lowe is a guy who gets up there & plays his songs, but is also a superb entertainer. He connects with the audience. Tweedy just doesn't do that, which doesn't automatically make him not as good, but it does make a difference. And while Nels Cline is an extremely accomplished musician, I would say Lowe is a more accomplished songwriter.

    When I saw Wilco it was a couple of weeks after 9/11--10 years exactly, actually; I think either tomorrow or the day after is 10 years to the day. He doesn't do much audience banter, I came to realize, but at the time I just figured he didn't have much to say about what had happened or the collective shock we were all still in. It was refreshing, and I appreciated it. We got to NOT think about 9/11 for a couple of hours, and that was a rare respite in NYC at that time. I mean, fires were still burning, they burned for months. People were jumpy, because nobody knew when the next attack might come. My sense was that most bands, at that point--and travel restriction had only been lifted perhaps 10 days before--would have difficulty making it through a set without mentioning it.

    What I didn't know--and only found out on this board when I posted about the show, from Darius or Rae, I believe--was that Tweedy was out on the road with a backing band he'd only recently assembled. What I did know was that, even in a somber time, the guy came off as utterly humorless, devoid of joy. I would've put that down to 9/11 hangover, until I saw the documentary & various live clips in the years since. Now, he was the sympathetic character in the docu, Jay Bennett was shown to be an anal-retentive d*ck. But it's not a stretch to figure it could have been edited to advance any given agenda. Regardless, I enjoyed the show, big-time.

    Nick Lowe...an entirely different experience. As much as I love his records, I don't think I realized how much of a Paul McCartney influence he had going on until I saw him. He's a guy who wants to share the joy he derives from what it is that he does with his audience. That was my impression, anyway. Might people enjoy Wilco more if Tweedy looked like he was enjoying himself? Who knows? But I'd have to think yes. He doesn't come off like he views his creations as museum pieces. And I don't know if that's a fair criticism of Tweedy OR fair praise of Nick Lowe, but that was my impression.

    I'm not big on Summerteeth, but I like most of the rest of 'em. Nick Lowe's for sure had a clunker or two, but At My Age was darned good, never mind that his first 2 or 3 are as good as...well, just about anything, in MY house. BTW the Brinsley Schwarz version of Peace, Love & Understanding is from 1974

    (Wh

    They made some good pub rock recs; I think Schwarz went on to play with Graham Parker? There's a new CD out, a live Rockpile gig from 1980. They only did a couple of songs from Seconds Of Pleasure, most of the set was from the Lowe & Dave Edmunds albums that the band truly existed on account of. Definitely recommended.

    Lastly, Lowe made a comment a week or two ago bemoaning a pop music landscape where recording has become so easy that new product is an overwhelming avalanche of suck. I think he could have said it differently, and I can't agree with him completely, but I imagine to a guy like him there's slim pickin's these days. However, he's also a producer, and between the demo quality of stuff like Garageband (which I personally don't have a problem with in many cases) and the perversion of stuff recorded by 'pros' (think loudness wars & heavy compression) I suspect the statement is a bit out of context, that what he means as much as any commentary on the level of talent out there is how recording is now mostly a matter of being in one of those two categories. And that this is not a good thing, but not necessarily simply because anybody can do it these days.

    That aside, I only saw him once, but there's nobody quite like the Basher.

    I don't like others.

  8. #8
    Musicaholic Forums Moderator ForeverAutumn's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by MindGoneHaywire View Post
    Nick Lowe is a guy who gets up there & plays his songs, but is also a superb entertainer. He connects with the audience. Tweedy just doesn't do that, which doesn't automatically make him not as good, but it does make a difference.
    Thanks J. That's it exactly. It's not that we didn't enjoy the Wilco show; we did. It's just that Nick Lowe was a very hard act to follow. And Tweedy didn't have the connection or the charm that Lowe had...and it did make a difference. Nick Lowe swept me off my feet and Tweedy just didn't stand a chance after that. I'm not faulting the music or the performance, it was all about the feeling for me.

    Quote Originally Posted by MindGoneHaywire
    an overwhelming avalanche of suck.
    Best line of the month for me. I may have to steal that one.

  9. #9
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    Score!!!!!

    I had tried on Saturday to get tix for Wilco's 12/12 show at Chicago's Civic Opera House, but they were all gone in the pre-sale, apparently. Bummer.

    But... they released just a few more tickets yesterday afternoon, and my lovely wife saw the tweet and nabbed 2 halfway-decent balcony seats. Sweet!
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  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by ForeverAutumn View Post

    Nick Lowe came out and received a standing ovation just for being there. You could feel the love. Wilco was good. We enjoyed it. But seriously, Nick Lowe stole the show for us. Seeing him definitely outweighed the Wilco show. Hubby and I were very excited to see Wilco but we both agreed that they didn’t quite live up the hype.
    The music was good, but after Nick Lowe’s genuineness, the banter seemed insincere. Overall, I’d give Wilco a 7. Hubby gave them a 6. Nick Lowe gets a definite 10.
    Hello FA :
    This reminds me of a 1973 concert I saw in Texas -- the headliner was The Rolling Stones; the opening act was Stevie Wonder (with an amazingly good backing band).
    Yes, I admit it is fun to sit back and hear hit after hit after hit from the Stones, but in the context of musicianship (my delight), well............you know where this is going.
    Wonder was a wonder..........at some point during his set, he played every instrument on stage..........keyboards and harmonica, sure................but also drums, bass and guitar.
    In addition, if you were around in 1973, you know just how good he was then, at the peak of his abilities.
    Simply amazing.
    And hats off to the Stones for realizing all of this and allowing him to be in their tour.
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  11. #11
    Forum Regular MindGoneHaywire's Avatar
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    I'm guessing that show was actually 1972, small matter.

    If you were going to throw a subtle knock at the Stones over musicianship based on the Ron Wood edition of the band, it'd make sense. But even with Keith Richards at his sloppiest, their rhythm section plus Mick Taylor...um...disagree.

    The Stones had a rep for bringing acts they dug on tour with them. Prior to Stevie Wonder it was Ike & Tina Turner plus B.B. King in 1969. Can't remember who they had in 1975 but I think it might have been Billy Preston? In 1981 George Thorogood opened some shows. When he did solo shows I believe Keith Richards had the Replacements on board, and on the Steel Wheels tour Living Colour was the opener. Five years later it was Counting Crows...well, nobody's perfect.

    A glimpse of how massive Stevie Wonder was on that tour is available in Robert Frank's tour documentary, C*cks*cker Blues. It's only ever been shown at venues where Frank's work is exhibited; I saw it at the Whitney in 1995. I have a typically poor VHS boot. Wonder if it's on YouTube...

    I don't like others.

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