Jay Bennett

All right, I got the feeling that there were those out there that didn't appreciate my last post concerning Mr. Bennett and Tweedy. I was trying to point out that our obsession with non-music-related stories about artists is more than a little silly. Wilco has continued to make records, as has Jay Bennett, and hey, I liked having Wilco and Son Volt to choose from outa the ashes of Uncle Tupelo, so maybe we could look at it like we're gaining another aural option. It's all fine and dandy as far as I'm concerned.

But now Jay Bennett has passed away, and that is not funny or silly, but too damned bad.

I only met him once. He was spilling beer on me, blowing smoke in my face as he was signing my cd booklet. "Hey, that's my guitar!" he yelled at me, pointing at the cover of Being There. I didn't know what to say, so he yelled it at me again, as if I possibly could have not heard his bellowing.

I still didn't know what to say. I still don't. Seems to me Jay was a worthy contributor to Wilco albums I love, so I hope he's on a good journey.