Wilco Demos - Summerteeth / Yankee Hotel Foxtrot

Here’s another batch of Wilco rarities to get you tuned up for the band’s upcoming show at McCarren Pool. These are from the Summerteeth / Yankee Hotel Foxtrot years - check out other recent Wilco outtakes posts here and here. “She’s A Jar” comes from the Summerteeth demos - most of which I don’t think are worth a post because the arrangements don’t vary much at all from the final versions. This take though obviously came pretty early in the sessions, as it features the type of stripped down folk setting that was more characteristic of the band’s earlier years.

“Kamera (demo)” and “Not For The Season (demo)” are 2 of my favorite Wilco rarities, both far more rockin’ than anything the band did on YHF. “Kamera” obviously evolved (re: mellowed out) into the well known YHF version. “Not For The Season” got a name change (“Laminated Cat”, eww) and appeared in much different form on the first Loose Fur album. Though never officially a Wilco song, it was played quite a bit during the YHF tour (you should hunt down a bootleg from that time period - they were playing versions based on the Loose Fur version that were downright revelatory), and did turn up on the Jeff Tweedy solo DVD Live From The Pacific Northwest. And “Nothing Up My Sleeve” is a curiosity as it doesn’t seem to fit, musically or lyrically, with what Tweedy was writing during this time. Regardless, it’s a strong, straightforward rock song that never saw official release.

MP3 :: She’s A Jar (acoustic)
(from Summerteeth demos)

MP3 :: Kamera
MP3 :: Not For The Season
MP3 :: Nothin’ Up My Sleeve
(from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot demos)
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