Wilco - Roger and Out

So, it's just been reported that Chicago's hometown heroes Wilco will release their 7th studio album (not counting the Mermaid Avenue albums) in June. With all that experimental talent in Glenn Kotche and Nels Cline, I'm hoping we don't get another dad-rock record like that Sky Blue Dump. I kid! That album wasn't the worst thing I've ever heard. But it certainly wasn't what I've come to expect from the band.

Anyway, when I heard that Wilco was coming up with some new shit, it jogged my memory. As a wee teen, I remember when downloading wasn't even an option, and then when Napster came to be, and it took three hours to download a song on your dial-up internet. If the connection was interrupted, by perhaps your mother or sister picking up the phone, the connection was lost and you'd have to start d/ling the song from scratch again. I also remember having nary a one record store in my town (KMart was the only option for CDs), and how it was a blessing to get a Best Buy gift card for Christmas. And then finally my friend Bryan got his license, and we'd get blazed after school and venture out to the bigger suburbs for a trip to Record Breakers.

On one particular visit, I noticed that they had a bunch of bootlegs for sale. In those days it was pretty risque to be selling unsolicited copies of anything because the RIAA still had command of the industry. I think Record Breakers eventually got caught and had to pay a big fine or something. But that wasn't my problem. My problem was that I was standing there, baked out of my skull, trying to decide on a Wilco bootleg or a bunch of stickers for my guitar case. I eventually decided on getting both the Wilco CD as well as a Grateful Dead sticker, that didn't turn out to be a sticker at all, but a decal (doy...stone chillin').

So anyway, nearly 10 years and many good and bad decisions later (one good one was to stop getting stoned), I'd like to share that Wilco bootleg with you, my internet friends and stalkers.

Wilco - Roger and Out

1) Someday Soon
2) Forget the Flowers
3) Far, Far Away
4) In Your Dreams
5) Out of Mind
6) Lonely 1
7) I Got You
8) Must Be High
9) Pick Up The Change
10) Wait Up
11) Not the Issue
12) Casino Queen
13) Box of Letters
14) Acuff Rose

Tracks 1-7 were recorded on Valentine's Day 1997 at T&G Studios in Philadelphia. Tracks 8-14 were from a concert in July 1995 at the Mountain Stage in Charleston, WA. The first 7 tracks are from Being There and the last 7 are off A.M., with the exception of Uncle Tupelo's "Acuff Rose" and "Wait Up."

Enjoy!