BONUS TRACKS: How Jeff Tweedy Learned to Love ‘Dancing Queen’

In an essay for The New York Times adapted from his brand new book, World Within a Song, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy lets us in on a little secret: He’s really come around after a lifetime of hating ABBA’s “Dancing Queen.” When we’re young — this was true when he was growing up in the mid-1970s but I think it applies to any era — it’s cool to hate popular music, something to hang your identity on, even. But when we’re older, at least if we’re lucky enough to have also grown wiser, we start to question the beliefs we cling to, and Tweedy found that to hate “Dancing Queen” was to hate what he terms “exhilarating pop perfection,” to deny himself a simple joy. In the essay, which you can read here, he urges us to re-examine some piece of art that we once decided we hate, and see if it hasn’t grown on you … or if maybe you’re the one who’s grown.

Elsewhere in Wilco World, the band has added something pretty cool to its already wide range of outside-the-box merch offerings: its own font! Wilco Loft Sans was created by type designer SimpleBits, inspired by the lighted “GUITAR” sign at Wilco’s famed Loft rehearsal space in Chicago. An all-caps font, it’s available in four weights, from thin to bold: treble, midrange, low end, and bass. Read the story behind the font and see the sign that inspired it here, and buy a license for it from the band for just $30 (the same price as a T-shirt that puts the font to good use).

That Guy (we ALL know That Guy) who likes to brag about all the records in his basement has got nothing on the ARChive of Contemporary Music. ARC, currently stored in a facility in New York’s Hudson Valley, holds more than three million recordings, but it’s out of space, and zoning laws prevent expansion or public access. So the collection needs a new home, and it’s gonna have to be bigger than a basement. The organization is seeking donations to help fund a new home and a new chapter, one that will allow researchers and the general public to interact with the collection. Among its holdings are Keith Richards’ Blues Collection, one of the largest blues and R&B collections in the world, and film director Jonathan Demme’s Haitian Music Collection, as well as papers and recordings from David Byrne, Jon Pareles, and more. Learn more about the archive, its history, and its hopes for the future here.

If you missed the CMA Awards this week, the big winner was “Fast Car,” both for the song’s writer, Tracy Chapman, and for its most recent performer, Luke Combs, who took it to the top of the charts 35 years after it was written and in a different genre. Chapman is the first Black woman to win in the Song of the Year category, which honors songwriters. Combs won in the Single of the Year category, probably unsurprising given that his version of the song hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart and No. 2 on the Hot 100. Chapman’s original landed at No. 6 on the Hot 100 in 1988, and it also earned her three Grammys, including for Song of the Year. Chapman did not attend the awards ceremony, but said in a statement read during the show that “It’s truly an honor for my song to be newly recognized after 35 years of its debut” and thanked the CMA, Combs, and fans. Listen to Combs’ version if you’d like — I heard it at least four times out and about this summer without even trying, and it’s … fine? — but it’s never too late to appreciate Chapman’s original, which feels fresh and searing even after all this time.

Have you ever wondered what country music would be like with weird costumes and acrobats? Cirque du Soleil announced this week that it is bringing us the answer to that question that nobody asked. A new touring show will pair “the perfect harmony of captivating acrobatics and soulful melodies of beloved country legends and contemporary stars,” according to a press release. The concept is a collaboration with Universal Music Group Nashville and will premiere in Music City next July. Learn more and sign up for ticket pre-sales here … if you dare.

WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO

Here’s a sampling of the songs, albums, bands, and sounds No Depression staffers have been into this week:

John Leventhal feat. Rosanne Cash – “That’s All I Know About Arkansas,” from his debut solo album, Rumble Strip, coming in January
Woody Platt feat. Del McCoury – “Broke Down Engine” (Blind Willie McTell cover)
Driftwood – “December Last Call”
The Paper Kites – “June’s Stolen Car”
Shakey Graves feat. Sierra Ferrell – “Ready or Not” (live from Red Rocks)

Sarah Jarosz – “When the Lights Go Out,” from her new album, Polaroid Lovers, coming in January
Down Like Silver – “Wolves”
Maggie Rose – “Underestimate Me”
Kendl Winter – “Waltz for Ari & Eli,” from her new album, Banjo Mantras, coming in March
Keyon Harrold – “Foreverland”
Sinkane – “Everything Is Everything”
Lau Noah and Chris Thile – “Lesser Men Would Call It Love,” from Noah’s new album, A DOS, coming in January