This is the sound of America’s strongest band getting better. After a handful of lineup changes throughout Wilco’s history, including the loss of the (Late) Great Jay Bennett, the group had been stripped down to the bare-bones original members of Jeff Tweedy and bass player John Stirratt, with hired guns that had been picked up at various points. Tweedy became the dominant sound in the band for a decade, up until 2007’s Sky Blue Sky. And then for the first time in years, the album’s sound was driven by someone else – guitar virtuoso Nels Cline.
I have a lot more to say about Wilco. A LOT. But that will (SPOILERS) come later on in the list. This song is all about Nels. And the fact that it is a better Eagles song than anything Henley ever wrote. That is a triple guitar attack right there, with Tweedy playing the loping Joe Walsh. Other formations of the band would never be able to do this – the songwriting, the style, the brilliant instrumentation was always there, but the technical skill just wasn’t.
It’s kind of like Jeff Tweedy got an awesome new toy, a new Xbox for Christmas. One of the decade’s greatest songwriters (avoiding blowback by not calling him THE greatest) just got a dominant guitar player at his disposal. But Cline isn’t just a good guitar player. He’s got soul. He’s got personality. He’s got jazz chops, the sign of a real deal musician. And he downright shreds.
The song is well-written. It is Wilco. But for the first time, for me at least, on this song the pure technical musicianship overtakes the traditional strengths of the band. Just listen to 3:00 on. No explanation needed, right? Right. With the guitars piled high and Cline’s spindly, spikey sound careening over the top of a newly stomping outfit, Wilco managed to reinvent their sound on “Impossible Germany” and maybe, just maybe, become an even better band.
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