Tunesday: Uncle Tupelo presented by 'The Unwanted Guest'

Bob here... we've recently been solicited some unsolicited material. Our good friend Sean sent us over the below article for Tunesday. He demanded we call him 'The Unwanted Guest'. We aren't sure why he feels unwanted, but we'll leave the psychoanalysis up to the professionals. Enjoy thew below article and thanks, Sean.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past 15 or so years, you have likely heard of the band Wilco with their 7 full length records, 2 records of unreleased Woody Guthrie material recorded with Billy Bragg, and sold out shows all over the world. Some of you may have even heard of Son Volt, although it is less than likely. It is more than likely that most of you have never heard of Uncle Tupelo.

Uncle Tupelo was a country band, although not in the ordinary sense of the Nashville bands you may be familiar with. Uncle Tupelo was an alternative band, although not in the same vain of Nirvana, Green Day, and the other alternative bands taking over the air waves in the early 1990s. Uncle Tupelo was an alternative country band, formed by Jeff Tweedy (Wilco) and Jay Farrar (Son volt) (Assisted at times by Brian Henneman of the Bottle Rockets) , before alternative country even existed, and long before alternative country was a punk rock retiree in a flannel shirt with an acoustic guitar. These twenty something’s started off playing punk rock, spurred by their admiration of The Ramones, the Minuteman, and Black Flag; however, there was little positive reception to punk rock in the scenes of Belleville, IL or St. Louis, MO. Driven by their desire to play music, they began to listen to the country music their parents had forced on them as children for inspiration. Out of this rose 4 records, a major label record deal, a nationwide tour, and some would say, Alternative Country.

When you turn on Anodyne, their major label debut, you hear Alternative Country… a concoction of the Ramones meets Hank Williams, with a side the Minutemen fronted by Neil Young, the rhythms of any ‘90s punk or alternative band with the twang, edge, and drawl of the Johnny Cashes, Kris Kristofferson’s, etc. Lyrics, alternated between Farrar and Tweedy, covered the topics of blue collar life in the Midwest and girls and relationships. This hybrid mix should have appealed to rock and country fans alike, however, selling a mere 150,000 copies (Sire records assumed they would be a platinum record making cash cow like all of the other alternative acts) reinforced that it was too rock for the country folk and to country for the rock folk. Fallout occurred between Tweedy and Farrar in 1994, breaking up Uncle Tupelo, and leading to the aforementioned Wilco (which started as Uncle Tupelo – Jay Farrar) and Son Volt.

Tweedy argues that they didn’t create a genre; they were simply playing Americana and furthering the work laid down by previous artists, notably Guthrie and the Flying Burrito Brothers. However, with a listen to many of the emerging Alt-County acts out there today, it is easy to see Uncle Tupelo’s influence. With more and more groups trying this “we are country” business these days, Tupelo classics like Whiskey Bottle, Graveyard Shift, Factory Belt Long Cut, continue to sound more sincere and relevant.

I cannot pinpoint when I first found Uncle Tupelo. I believe it started early in college as I out grew punk rock, heard a band called Lucero, and tried to engulf my self in this new found alternative country. These days, I don’t listen to Uncle Tupelo to pay homage to the alt-country scene I have embraced: I listen to Uncle Tupelo because it’s really good and although the records are aging quickly, they are still relevant to my current listenings.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy3WkIfgkSQ

Cover of Terry Fell’s Truck Driving Man

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOYdlgOmxwI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICrur9dMoiA