Rock Minutes

This was the album that was going to take this band to the next level. This is what they had been working for since the mid 80′s when they formed. This was their first album on a major label. This was also the last album Uncle Tupelo would ever record.

Uncle Tupelo had become legends on the Americana scene during the late 80′s and early 90′s. They even attracted the attention of Peter Buck of R.E.M. and made a fantastic acoustic album that Buck produced called “March 16-20 1992″. The band was basically led by Jay Farrar but as the years albums went by Jeff Tweedy was imposing his will and his vision on the direction the band was heading. Rarely can a band have 2 “leaders” and this was the case with Uncle Tupelo. So as the band was falling apart they made their final and greatest album, “Anodyne”. Jay Farrar would go on to form Son Volt and Jeff Tweedy would form Wilco.

This album is pretty evenly divided between Jeff Tweedy songs and Jay Farrar songs and the songs work on every level. You can hear hints of the first Wilco album in the Tweedy songs as well as hints of what was to come with Son Volt in the Farrar songs. The band was lyrically writing songs that were in the vein of Gram Parsons, “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” era Byrds, and maybe a little bit of John Prine. They seems to be really straddling the line between rock and country on this album and they execute it perfectly. They turn it up on songs like “Chickamauga”, “The Long Cut”, “Give Back The Keys To My Heart”(with guest vocalist Doug Sahm) and “We’ve Been Had”. They also have country drenched tunes such as the Jeff Tweedy classic “Acuff-Rose”, “New Madrid”, “Slate”, and the best song on the album “Fifteen Keys”. Whatever turmoil this band had going on it helped produce an absolutely perfect record.

Every single time I listen to this record, which is quite often, it leaves me wondering what would have been had this band stayed together. On the other hand has a band ever left on a higher note than this band did with this album? Uncle Tupelo is one of the most influential bands of the late 1980′s and early 90′s. They spawned a generation of bands that wear the influence of Uncle Tupelo on their sleeves and I am grateful for that. In 30 years when people are talking about albums that shaped a generation I promise this will be one they talk about.

Later,

Nick

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