Autumn Souvenir

I learned about this record while reading an interview with Jay Bennett a number of years back. It's come to be one of my favorite records. Simply stunning.

Saturday 11am : Kelly Willis 1205pm : Jonathan Richman feat. Tommy Larkins 230pm : Steve Earle / Robert Earl Keen / John Doe / David Olney 330pm : Richard Thompson 420pm : Gillian Welch 545pm : Steve Earle & The Bluegrass Dukes Sunday 11am : Lucero 1155am : Peter Himmelman 145pm : Earl Scruggs 205pm : Randy Newman 305pm : Elvis Costello & The Sugarcanes 440pm : Nick Lowe & His Band 545pm : Emmylou Harris

Incredibly uncomfortable look w/Dave Bielanko @ The Pontiac, Philly, 10.31.98 From 1998-1999, Marah were the greatest rock n' roll band in the world (my apologies to Slobberbone, The Gourds and about 90 other incredible bands from this time). I used to drive from New York to Philly about once a month to hang with Maggie, Frank, Brendan, Second Frank, Jerry, Donny Pizza Sauce and many who I haven't seen in close to a decade. When the original rhythm section left, they took a tiny step back, but still maintained the spirit. Here they are in 2000 in Toronto.

Having lived on this block for four-plus years, I now know a good portion of the residents by first name. This must say something about San Francisco. I lived in Brooklyn for six years and in terms of my block, I think I knew my landlord, the guy who torched the adjacent building by falling asleep while chaining Winstons and my girlfriend (who lived with me). There's this one fella who I see every now and then who just looks like he clearly has EPs from one end of his apartment to the next. He was one of the neighbors I knew by face. This morning, while talking to a pal who was on his way to his job at the Chronicle, EP guy strolled by wearing a Feelies t-shirt. I hate to be one of those guys, but c'mon, a Feelies t-shirt? One hour later, we'd covered Luna, The Wrens, Teenage Fanclub, Yankee Stadium, Maxwell's in Hoboken, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, his dislike of Wilco (near full nelson), Minneapolis, Chicago, Blonde Redhead, touring, Absolutely Kosher Records, The J

There were probably about twenty of us in the hotel room. It must have been close to 4am, just a few hours after The Drams wrapped their set on the 18th floor of the Hilton. We were in Austin, Texas for what very well may have been my final South by Southwest. As we downed one Tecate after another, I decided to declare that Drams lead singer/songwriter is "a better songwriter than Paul Westerberg." I stand by that statement, but Brent, who was in the room, along with many of his rabid fans and friends, kinda laughed it off. I think I repeated the statement time and again and challenged everyone, Brent included, to dispute what I clearly considered fact. Man I had a rough hangover the following day. Brent recorded four albums from 1996-2002 with his first band, Slobberbone, the highlights being 1997's Barrel Chested and 2000's fantastic Everything You Thought Was Right Was Wrong Today . In early 2005, Slobberbone played their final show. A few months prior, they'd

It's almost as if they never existed. A search of this phenomenal band returns just about nothing. It seems as if I check YouTube every few months hoping for something to surface. A few very rough videos have actually landed, but they don't do this band justice. When I think of The Damnations TX, I think of the Athens, Georgia band The Possibilities. I mean, they have nothing in common, and don't even sound alike, but I've created some sort of mental connection. I don't know, I guess they're just two more bands that I think should've made it. I loved The Possibilities, but they weren't as good as The Damnations (they later had to add TX since some other band had the name). I saw both bands just once, The Possibilities at The Baggot Inn in New York and The Damnations at South By Southwest. The Possibilities were better live. But The Possibilities didn't release a record as good as The Damnations' 1998 debut Half Mad Moon . It's Car Wheels on a

It was sometime in early 2005 when a pal wrote and said, "Go buy a Super Audio CD Player and all the Dylan SACDs. Then call me." About an hour or two later I was in Best Buy picking up the player. I then drove down El Camino to Tower and picked up Blood on the Tracks . He also suggested that I pick up some beer, turn on the CDs and do nothing else, which is exactly what I did. Commence Maxell blank tape logo. (If you're under 30, you probably don't get that. If you're over 30, just deal with the crappy analogy.) By the following afternoon, I'd picked up Another Side of Bob Dylan, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, Oh Mercy, Bringing It All Back Home, Nashville Skyline and Infidels . Now five years later, despite all the vinyl, the George Jones Box Set, the Big Star Box Set, the Willie Nelson Atlantic Years and all the rest, these seven CDs remain my prized possessions. The sound is that good. Super Audio CDs lasted on the market for about 48 hours. Only a few ar

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I've definitely been getting back to basics. I've now been without television for well over a year, I can't remember the last time I watched a Yankee game and Netflix recently got the boot. It's music and reading. I've finally gotten around to reading A Confederacy of Dunces , which, midway through, is better than I'd anticipated. I don't know, there are certain films, records, books that have that universal acclaim that are often downright terrible. I like searching for things to do. With more than 50% of my normal media unavailable, I now look through CD racks, scour the shelves for a book I'd forgotten to read. Or maybe read a book again. I recently re-read Bill Morrissey's Edson . I went to the library this week and picked up some DVDs. Since I didn't get to grow up mid 20th century, I can at least pretend. I recently mentioned an old tradition I'd developed of listening to an entire record via the headphones, uninterrupted. Last night, I

Paper Trails by Pete Dexter, Stories, 2007 : 7.8

This idea is completely stolen from a blog post I read this morning entitled The Importance of Sitting In One Place and Reading . Although the concept is borrowed, the idea behind it all has been ruminating in my head for a while now. Sometime late last year, I fell into a new habit. After finishing dinner, I would lie on my couch and listen to an entire record, uninterrupted. I'd move from Dylan to Oldham and The Faces to Tim Easton. Most of the time I would close my eyes. I would find myself falling into the stories, the romance, the longing, the fury. My cell phone would be in the other room. For forty minutes to an hour I would do nothing but listen. And dream. The idea came from specific memories when music changed me. There was the beach in Ponte Vedre, Florida when Son Volt's "Back Into Your World," accompanied by a rising sun and a girl I loved altered my senses. There was the cliff in Pacifica, CA when The Arcade Fire's "Intervention" charged t

There's little argument that Wilco were at their peak when Jeff and Jay hit their creative stride. From 1996-2001, Wilco had wrapped recordings on Being There , Summerteeth and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot , (not so) arguably their three best records. On July 4, 2001, Jay Bennett left/was dismissed from the band, and the releases that followed have suffered. Hardly throwaways, A Ghost Is Born , Sky Blue Sky and Wilco (The Album) have some strong songs, but the depth just isn't there. All that said, let's list off the top ten Jay-era Wilco tunes and the ten best following Jay's departure. It ain't even close. Wilco : The Bennett Years 1 Via Chicago 2 Misunderstood 3 She's a Jar 4 I Am Trying To Break Your Heart 5 Sunken Treasure 6 Ashes of American Flags 7 Poor Places 8 How To Fight Loneliness 9 I Must Be High 10 A Shot In the Arm Wilco : Post Jay 1 You Are My Face 2 Wishful Thinking 3 Country Disappeared 4 Impossible Germany 5 Sky Blue Sky 6 Handshake Drugs