Concert Review: An Evening with Wilco
Live at Chautauqua Institute
The evening of Wilco's live performance at Chautauqua Institution wasn't looking too promising for the large outdoor amphitheater, with heavy rain pouring down most of the day. This unseasonably brisk evening saw fans arriving early with their umbrellas and ponchos in tow as they trekked through the beautiful grounds of the Chautauqua Institution. The rain let up a half hour before the performance as visitors were waiting in line for food, beverages, and band merchandise (including a limited edition blue and pink print featuring a spirograph design). This Evening with Wilco was a unique opportunity for fans to see two full sets from the band — with no opening act and only a twenty minute break in between performances.
Wilco hit the stage with "Handshake Drugs" from their album A Ghost Is Born, which recently celebrated a twenty year anniversary and was remastered and re-released last year. With its crescendo into a fuzzy feedback frenzy, this pop song got the crowd going, although "Pittsburgh" — which opens with the lyrics "Oh, I love the rain" — may have been more apt for the weather. The dynamic then shifted as (lead vocalist and guitarist) Jeff Tweedy switched to an acoustic guitar for the second song "If I Ever Was Child," an alt-country tune which had the crowd singing along and moving their heads to the rhythm. The acoustic vibe continued with tracks like "Cruel Country," "Forget The Flowers," and "Evicted," but it wasn't until they performed "Bird Without a Tail/ Base of My Skull" that the set took a turn towards the psychedelic. Instead of ending the song after the breakdown, the band began improvising, extending the normally five minute-long song into close to ten. Guitarists Nels Cline and Pat Sansone traded licks as the cosmic country jam erupted into chaos, only to be brought down for one more structured verse, and finally coming to a mellow end.
After a few more songs, the crowd erupted in applause at the opening piano parts of "Hummingbird" from the album A Ghost Is Born as Tweedy began singing, the only occasion during the whole evening where he wasn't also playing guitar. Clearly a fan favorite, "Hummingbird" is a Beatles-esque song that would fit as perfectly onto the White Album as it does on A Ghost Is Born. At this point, the crowd stood up and swayed, enjoying this moment as if Wilco were playing just for them, forgetting the hundreds of other fans surrounding them. After this performance, the band was given a standing ovation, and bassist John Stirratt switched to lead vocals and guitar while Tweedy took over on bass for "It's Just That Simple" from Wilco's debut album A.M. released in 1995. The set continued with a wide range of country influenced songs from their 30+ year career, including "You and I" and "Falling Apart," a song Tweedy wrote during the pandemic. Wilco ended the first set at just under an hour with a cover of the song "California Stars" which they originally recorded with Billy Bragg on one of three tribute albums to American folk musician Woody Guthrie. This got the crowd up on their feet and dancing, ready for a hit-laden and heavier second set after a brief break.
Following a twenty minute break where concert-goers refilled their drinks and talked about the first set with their friends, Wilco returned to the stage with "Box Full Of Letters," the second of two songs performed from the A.M. album. This time the crowd remained standing as the band went into the song "Annihilation" from their most recent EP Hot Sun Cool Shroud. The second set was definitely more electric – in both instrumentation and crowd response. As the sun started to set, the crowd put their inhibitions aside — many left their seats to join those standing up near the stage. After a few more songs, Wilco played "Via Chicago," a song that included some notably chaotic breakdowns which drummer Glenn Kotche really seemed to relish. They continued their rock-oriented set with the songs "Either Way" and "Whole Love" before going into the popular "Impossible Germany," known for its extended live guitar solo. In fact, fans noticed the solo within the first three chords and let out a huge cheer, as Nels Cline began playing. The solo is so popular amongst fans that Wilco sells a hat emblazoned with merely the song title and an asterisk with the words "guitar solo." Once this extended version of "Impossible Germany" was finished, even those in the back of the crowd stood up to give the performance a standing ovation.
Wilco then followed up that fan favorite with one of their biggest hits "Jesus Etc." from their critically acclaimed 2001 album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. The entire crowd sang every word of the song as the lap steel guitar and organ filled in for the string parts featured on the recording. The band stayed in the early 2000s era with the songs "Hate It Here," "Theologians," and "Walken" before playing the song "Kingpin" in which Tweedy playfully changed the lyrics from "I wanna be your kingpin, livin' in Pekin" to " . . . livin' in Chautauqua," eliciting boisterous cheers from the crowd. The current live version of the song has a southern rock feel, reminiscent of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, with Cline and Sansone shredding back and forth as the crowd cheered them along. After this feat of blues soaked rock, they broke into "Heavy Metal Drummer" followed by "I'm The Man Who Loved You," both hits from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Leaving the crowd with some of their most memorable songs, they returned for a two song encore that included "The Late Greats" and "I Got You (At The End of The Century)," which felt like a big rock song from the likes of The Who, the comparison even being made by guitarist Pat Sansone as he whirled his arm around like Pete Townshend.
While Wilco played more songs from their biggest albums Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, A Ghost Is Born, and Sky Blue Sky, the evening included a healthy amount of other material throughout the evening. The versatility of the band is one reason fans keep coming out to their shows and will happily follow along with them on this two hour journey. An Evening with Wilco manages to give fans at once the feeling of an intimate indie show and a big rock and roll concert.
