Guest Post: Jeff Tweedy Can Write Books Too
The songs and stories that have shaped his artistry
Good Morning!
Today we’re taking a look at Jeff Tweedy’s latest book.
NOTE: We’re in for a treat today. The post below comes from a friend of On Repeat, Chris Bradley. Chris hails from northeast PA. and is a self-described melomaniac. His favorite things are talking about records, audiophile equipment, and other physical media. He’s also constantly searching for new music and record stores—in other words, he’s one of us.
He can be found right here on Substack, on Threads, and on Instagram.
~KA
One of the more anticipated releases I received this November was not a piece of music but rather a book by a guy who has written and performed a lot of music I love. In his third book, “World Within a Song: Music That Changed My Life and Life That Changed My Music,” Jeff Tweedy wrote about 50 songs and sprinkled in chapters of what he refers to as “Rememories.” Very short anecdotes about life on the road, in the studio, etc.
I am a huge Wilco guy. I’ve seen them live and own everything they have ever released on wax. One of my most prized vinyl possessions is the Kicking Television box set, a rare and great-sounding live recording.
Like most fans my age, I discovered Wilco before I got into Uncle Tupelo, and I have a great appreciation for Wilco’s sound evolving through the years. Tweedy’s solo work is great and doesn’t sound like throwaway Wilco demos.
Written in Tweedy’s trademark casual and informal tone, each song essay reads less like a song review and more like how a song made him feel or shaped his art. Tweedy does well to stay away from wholly naming bands or artists that influence him. 1
Chapter 46 stands out because he makes a salient point about pop music and old men yelling at clouds, although he doesn’t explicitly say it like that. The chapter is about Billie Eilish’s song “I Love You.” I am guilty of being a bit of a snob and turning my nose up to pop and its manufactured flavor of the week-ism, but Tweedy likens newer music to a new pair of shoes or jeans—sometimes, they just need a bit of breaking in.
As he argues that the premise of the book is to look at older pieces of music and how they shaped his artistry, the same can be said for trying to appreciate what is being made now because he believes that “…music is generally good stuff.” Aside from the chapter regarding The Beatles, there are not many surprises in this book for anyone who has read Tweedy’s two previous works or has spent a lot of time listening to music he has written and produced.
There are a lot of good deep cuts in there, such as “Loud, Loud, Loud” by Aphrodite’s Child, as well as some music that has never seen the light of day or is hard to find, like “Love Like a Wire” by Diane Izzo. He even—somewhat expectedly—chooses some well-played tracks like “Happy Birthday” (not The Beatles version) and “The Star-Spangled Banner.” My two kids recently learned the latter at school, and I like it less than I did before.
The “Rememories” are chapters with relatable anecdotes, like the one about his Pinewood Derby race. Others are great about the early days of being in a band and playing in front of 5 people two hours after the scheduled start of your set. The five people were the band that borrowed the club’s PA system and the club’s sound guy.
My all-time favorite anecdote from this book is about Uncle Tupelo’s early days and opening for Warren Zevon’s band in Columbia, Missouri. In this instance, the band was allowed to set up on stage around Zevon’s band gear—severely limiting their space. In those days, Tweedy played bass. He noticed the bass player for Zevon’s band, the one and only Timothy B. Schmit, fiddling around with his rig. You probably already guessed, but he asked Mr. Schmit if he could use his rig and predictably was rebuffed2.
That’s not the best part, though. Fast forward nearly thirty years, and Tweedy is sitting in the Obamas’ box at the Kennedy Center with Mavis Staples. In the next box over are the Eagles and their bassist, none other than Timothy B. Schmit.
Thank you to Chris for this fantastic look at Jeff Tweedy’s latest book and thank you for being here.
Kevin—
Excepting The Beatles, how could one pick just ONE song by The Beatles?
“Rebuffed” is putting it kindly.
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Was literally at a local bookstore this weekend and almost got this book. Bought "60 Songs that Define the '90s Instead." May go back today and pick this one up.
I haven’t really followed Wilco since the Yankee Hotel Foxtrot album, but Jeff Tweedy headlined a music festival I was at this summer. At one point between songs he said, “Thank you for listening to my songs about death. Here’s another one.” 😂