Geriatric Rock

Twitter was abuzz today with a video of Jeff Tweedy, lead singer of Wilco, channeling his inner Al Roker by announcing the weather report for Chicago's WGN television on Thursday morning. First, who gets up that early to watch the morning weather report (especially if you are in the rock and roll business)? Second, who cares that much about the weather? The answer to both of these questions: my dad. 65-year-old father of two, grandfather of one, ice fisherman extraordinaire, not quite the Grumpy Old Men curmudgeon, but getting close.

Another piece of Jeff Tweedy/Wilco news filtered under the twitter radar last night/this morning. As my colleague Cowbelle first pointed out to me, Wilco's latest album The Whole Love was named to the American Association of Retired People's 2011 Top 10 Albums for Grownups, along with albums from Tony Bennett, Barbara Streisand, and Paul Simon. I've been saying since 2004's A Ghost is Born that Wilco is "Dad Rock," i.e. something that dads listen to in order to try to convince their kids that they are cool. Thanks to AARP for validating this theory! Now I know what to get my dad for Christmas.

AARP's 2011 Top 10 Albums for Grownups
• Paul Simon, So Beautiful or So What
• Adele, 21
• Jill Scott, The Light Of The Sun
• Tom Waits, Bad As Me
• Raphael Saadiq, Stone Rollin'
• Tony Bennett, Duets II
• Barbra Streisand, What Matters Most
• Alison Krauss and Union Station, Paper Airplane
• Wilco, The Whole Love
• Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer and Chris Thile, The Goat Rodeo Sessions

Somewhere Jay Farrar and Jay Bennett are giggling.

Born Alone.mp3
Buy: The Whole Love

I know I bust on Wilco a lot, but let's face it: they are low hanging fruit. Catch their show sometime. They are a tremendous live act. No joke.