CHANGE UP YOUR SET LISTS!!!!!

[pawpaw]

I HEAR YA!!!



Let me ask this question to EVERYONE:
Would you like it if My Morning Jacket switched up their set lists more? Yes or No.

I've only seen these guys play 4 times since 2003, and I haven't seen any EU songs played live yet. It's been over a year and a half since I saw them last, so I'll be fired up for whatever they throw at me!

But Funky, I'm not trying to condemn you here. To answer your question above, if I had to choose between 'YES' and 'NO', of course I'd choose 'YES'...I think all of us would. But it's nothing new that MMJ tours and plans their setlists in this way, so it's foolish to expect a change, especially if not getting it leads to dissapointment (on some level) in a band you love.

[mjkoehler]

McPickie- I know what your sayin, but right now I'm trying to revive the IT person that read your post behind the scenes as Big Brother watches us all here at work. Currently giving chest compressions, but I am NOT giving mouth to mouth.

I could care less if they rotate their setlist. I'd be happy just to see them but since that ain't happening, I cannot get bored with what I'm not hearing.

[vadermaul]

We have to remember MMJ is promoting a new album.  They are going to play at least 10 tracks from Evil Urges.  Which they should, it's a great live album.  My only complaint with the setlist is the heavy amount of Z they play.  I enjoy Z, but we heard the 6-8 song rotation from the Z tour.  No reason why Z should over shadow the 3 previous albums.  

The thing I miss from this tour from other Jacket tours is the spontaneity of song placement in the setlist.  I never viewed Jacket as having the "grand" Jumpin Jack Flash closer (One Big Holiday) or staple opener.  For example, I saw the Stubbs show a few weeks ago and Anytime was awesome as an opener.  Brought a breath of fresh air to a song they've been playing for a while.  I'm jealous of the folk who saw Touch Me pt. 2 open up the Miami show.  I think they should reference the It Still Moves tour and move the songs around.  Open with I'm Amazed, follow with Dancefloors and close with Sec Walkin one night.  It'll work.

[DaFunkyPrecedent]

We have to remember MMJ is promoting a new album.  They are going to play at least 10 tracks from Evil Urges.  Which they should, it's a great live album.  My only complaint with the setlist is the heavy amount of Z they play.  I enjoy Z, but we heard the 6-8 song rotation from the Z tour.  No reason why Z should over shadow the 3 previous albums.  

The thing I miss from this tour from other Jacket tours is the spontaneity of song placement in the setlist.  I never viewed Jacket as having the "grand" Jumpin Jack Flash closer (One Big Holiday) or staple opener.  For example, I saw the Stubbs show a few weeks ago and Anytime was awesome as an opener.  Brought a breath of fresh air to a song they've been playing for a while.  I'm jealous of the folk who saw Touch Me pt. 2 open up the Miami show.  I think they should reference the It Still Moves tour and move the songs around.  Open with I'm Amazed, follow with Dancefloors and close with Sec Walkin one night.  It'll work.

yup! I'm all for that!  Just keep us on our toes a little more...thats all!

BTW: For clarence, I'm not being picky about what songs they play and what ones they dont.  They could play any songs in any order and I'll be happy.  Just a little variety is all....

And I know they've played lots of their material...so I don't want to come across as greedy...but you can't deny they sets are a LITTLE predictable as of recent.  

[Mister Anthrope]

[CTdeadhead]

I wonder how we'd all react to the shows and the band in general if there was no forum, or internet. What if there was no way for us to access setlists and compare what was played, where, and for how long? Modern communications do seem to take away a lot of anticipation, or at least create a much less mysterious and magical kind.

That happened 40 years ago it was called the Grateful Dead.   They started this discussion 40 years ago.  Deadheads had no internet, no bit torrents and setlists weren't widely known for quite some time if you didn't get to the show.  

[numbdub]

this thread certainly produced some passion from both sides as has been evidenced before. now, I hear both sides, the "change it up" and "they are not Phish" arguments I feel are both relatively valid. The overarching thing that seems to be true about Jacket shows is that there is a constructed flow with songs playing specific "parts" in shows.  I.e., the revving opener, three song blast of high energy songs, two midtempo songs following a ballad , two song blast of power to rev things up again, it goes in waves. there seem to be these constructed chunks of each show. in this way, the band is not quite like Phish where almost any song could go anywhere.  of course, jacket songs are much more traditionally structured then phish songs with a distinct end point, providing much more of an overall structured feel to the show - that is not too say there are not flourishes of improv from the band which of course there are. extending dondante, etc...there is more "color" to the jams then straight up "jamming", slightly different guitar lines, keyboard lines, vocal lines. nonetheless, I think I am still a proponent for mixing this up more with less chunks and more of a free flow but thats just my opinion.  I freaking love that they do throw curveballs and open with touch me 2 or something like that...the possibility is always there.

[kymomandstuff]

Maybe it would be a better experience for all if everyone could just relax and be thankful we're having a discussion over the new songs vs the classics. Just a few short years ago there were no classics at all.

First, I think the band should play whatever they want to play.  Every fan has a different play list they'd make up for each show if they could.  And I expect that if each band member independently drew up a list for each show, they'd likewise be different.  So no matter what they choose to play, just about everyone could find a quibble every show.  But listening to the fan feedback shouldn't hurt their decision making process, hint, hint.

Now, on to the quote from above, and this is just one fan's feedback and opinion. Your's will differ . . .

Actually, they had a wagon load of timeless classics from the very beginning in 1999, including some of the tunes on It Still Moves (One Big Holiday and I Will Sing You Songs).  Almost every song on the first two albums are classics. Nine years from now, I'm betting that only half the tunes on the last two albums will be considered classics by the majority of their fans.  And nine years from now, if they are still playing and people want to hear the oldies, it will be the oldies from the first three discs that they will mostly be clamoring for and not the oldies from Z and Evil Urges. (If we only had a time machine to take us there and settle that bet!)

Still, if half the tunes on the two newest albums are timeless classics, they are still far better than 99.9% of the other albums released these days.  These guys are operating on a different level than most  bands.

I completely agree that there are many classics from the early years.In my previous post I was making a point that we should be thankful for whatever setlist we get because ten years ago we'd never heard them.It still baffles me when play TTF,AD,and ISM.It baffles me in the same way it blows my mind when I listen to Dylan's "Hard Rain" and realize how young he was when he wrote it.This band is on a level not many attain and IMHO it's a matter of respect to appreciate the setlist as it is.Like BH said seeing the changes from one tour to the next is part of the fun.
The stage is theirs and the audience is ours.If they don't tell me how to act in the crowd I sure don't feel it's my place to tell them what to do on the stage.

[pawpaw]

I wonder how we'd all react to the shows and the band in general if there was no forum, or internet. What if there was no way for us to access setlists and compare what was played, where, and for how long? Modern communications do seem to take away a lot of anticipation, or at least create a much less mysterious and magical kind.

That happened 40 years ago it was called the Grateful Dead.   They started this discussion 40 years ago.  Deadheads had no internet, no bit torrents and setlists weren't widely known for quite some time if you didn't get to the show.  

:) It was more of a rhetorical question, but yeah, the early Dead are a great example. Any great band, pre-internet could be considered though.

[DaFunkyPrecedent]

they better be practicing new songs to play in Berkeley!!!! I wanna hear Death Is My Sleazy Pay, acoustic, or else!

[thatswhatshesaid]

maybe they are tired of playing older songs. yes they are the classics, and they are the songs that hooked people, but MMJ is not the same band they were 5 years ago. i would imagine that they are trying to incorporate newer tunes because its a whole different band, and maybe they enjoy playing the more complex new tunes. i enjoy the old stuff as much as anyone, but are they supposed to be playing the same setlist from at dawn and TTF? no. that's why they write and release new albums.

[CTdeadhead]

I wonder how we'd all react to the shows and the band in general if there was no forum, or internet. What if there was no way for us to access setlists and compare what was played, where, and for how long? Modern communications do seem to take away a lot of anticipation, or at least create a much less mysterious and magical kind.

That happened 40 years ago it was called the Grateful Dead.   They started this discussion 40 years ago.  Deadheads had no internet, no bit torrents and setlists weren't widely known for quite some time if you didn't get to the show.  

:) It was more of a rhetorical question, but yeah, the early Dead are a great example. Any great band, pre-internet could be considered though.

Well not too sure about that, respectfully of course.  My DeadBase is as thick as a dictionary and has a complete inventory of 30 yrs of shows.  I don't think any band could do that.  They really did cut the mold for the concert business we all know today, fan based ticket sales, taping/trading of shows and in large part, it was due to the surprise element of the setlists.  

Someday, I hope to own a thick, heavy JACKETBASE that chronicles 30 yrs of setlists.  

[thebugman]

hey dude i hear what your saying but some people's heads are thicker than others...i love the jacket as well although i dont get on here and post much becuz i cant figure out how to change my password and really just dont feel like fuckin with it...but anyways...i dont think the band is tryin to go in the direction of wsp or the dead as in setlist wise....sometimes i wish they would but wish in one hand and shit in the other....i dont care really what they play...i was suppose to go to the lville show but in the course of moving to jackson ms...we got broke real quick...so i dont give a shit what they play when i see them considering it wont be until next year now. i do think that too many people on here take up for the band though. dude was just tryin to make convo and you get jumped on. its bullshit. sure would love to see that strangulation pulled out soon if it hasnt already. got one my first show in dallas of 05? so sweet...i have been to plenty of panic and changin of sets does add more excitement in the sense that you have to go to more shows to get that one or two or that master show you always wanted...just my two cents. have fun blastin my ass on this

[SplatSplatSplat]

sure would love to see that strangulation pulled out soon if it hasnt already. got one my first show in dallas of 05? so sweet...

that was Dallas '04 dickhead.  Gah!

[thebugman]

thank you brother...still waiting on that highway thru the danger zone

[h2iam]

Having been to a ton of dead, phish, moe and other shows I do agree in a way. Despite how difficult it may be, there are many bands in the past that have been able to change things up. I will admit that some of the bands I've seen do this don't always play every song as tight as I've seen MMJ. The first time I went to a Weezer show and they played one set an hour long I was really confused. MMJ is somewhere in between these two types of shows and they don't really cater to people going on tour the way phish or the dead did but that doesn't seem to be their crowd. That's why I didn't plan to see any shows this fall after seeing MMJ at radiocity. For long-time fans like myself it is a bit disappointing to not hear their older stuff, but you can't deny them putting together their most rockin' show possible. I said it 7 years ago when I stumbled upon them at bonnarro- this band is IT.

[the_wizzard]

Portland, OR 9/27...nuff' said  ;)

[DaFunkyPrecedent]

i was supposed to be at that show...

[jsandr1]

the issue of setlist variety is a totally legit one, IMHO. no reason a band like MMJ shouldn't be shuffling in songs from all over the place night in and night out.

Forget Phish, Panic, Dead, etc... in this discussion, MMJ is never going to do no-repeat shows. that's just not going to happen. A MUCH better comparison would be Pearl Jam or DMB (strictly in terms of set variation...obviously). those bands maybe switch up half of their sets from night to night, while constantly playing the classics, singles, etc.

I was A-ok w/ the variation between the recent Tempe & Tucson shows in arizona... The tucson show featured 10 songs not played the previously night... that's just fine. (not to mention, a lot of songs those 2 nights weren't even heard @ bonnaroo this year). Opening w/ The Dark in tempe was a remarkably pleasant surprise, and sprinkling in The Bear, War Begun, Just One THing and Into the Woods @ the Tucson show was just icing on the cake.

[Haldon]

I like my morning jacket.  No, I love them.  I feel truly lucky when they decide to have their tour come near my town or when I save up enough money to travel and get the chance to see them.  When I get to the venue I only care about one thing....watching them and listening to them play....I really don't care what they play, because quite frankley, they give it 100% on every song, and every song rocks.  Have they been playing many of the same songs at each stop this tour? Yes.  Is it really that big of a deal? No, unless you are truly ungrateful.

I will admit, I am a big Pearl Jam fan.  And one of my favorite things to do before one of their shows is to speculate which songs will pop up on their ever changing setlists.  Will I hear my favorites?  Will I hear one of the obscure and less played songs?  Will Eddie forget the words to one of the songs?  What covers will they play?  Either way though, at the end of the night, I leave the venue totally rocked and pumped that I got to see one of my favorite bands play.  

We all have favorite songs.  I have been to 5 Jacket shows and still haven't seen some of the songs that I want to see.  But you know what, its all good.  It will come, sooner or later, the song that I want to hear will be played.  But for now, I just thank the powers that be that I am able to watch this amazing band put on the incredible live show that they do.  

Its a beautiful ride, this wave that the band is traveling on right now.  Even with all the pub they have been getting they are still a relatively lesser known band in the mainstream.  At the miami show there were empty seats at a 2000 seat venue.  They are still "our" band, and each night it feels as if they are playing to "us"  Jim still looks directly in your eyes when your in the front row up against the stage, and the whole band appreciates your support.    Some of that stuff can go away when a band gets big and loses the intimate venues.  

So appreicate the wonderfulness that is MMJ right now, and stop complaining.  I love you.

Haldon