UNCLE TUPELO APPRECIATION WEEK, DAY TWO

I never saw Uncle Tupelo live; they became an ex-band shortly before I heard of them. But I was at one of the very first Son Volt shows ever, and I’ve seen Wilco live six times. However, this is Uncle Tupelo appreciation week, so here’s another of my favorite UT songs, again from No Depression. This is the album opener, “Graveyard Shift,” and if you’ve never heard it, it’s one of the most exciting pieces of music I know.

Hometown, same town blues
Same old walls closing in
Oh what a life a mess can be
I’m sitting here thinking of you once again
Won’t you talk to me

Well, time won’t wait, better open the gate
Get up and start what needs to be done
It’s winding down, there’s much you missed
Working on that graveyard shift
Well, I’m not saying there’s nothing wrong as the day comes along
If what I see is true I could learn to believe
Can’t look away
The powers that be might take it all away
Together we burn, together we burn away

Some say a land of paradise
Some say a land of pain
Well, which side are you looking from
Some people have it all
Some all to gain

Well a man in a tie gonna break his twenty dollar bill
There’s plenty of reasons in this world
We’re no longer standing still
But I’m not saying there’s nothing wrong as the day comes along
If what I see is true I could learn to believe
Can’t look away
The powers that be might take it all away
Together we burn, together we burn away

There’s too much time spent looking for a reason
It’s the simple ones that beat the most truth
Oh, what a life a mess can be
I’m sitting here thinking of you once again
Give a thought to me

Well, time won’t wait, better open the gate
Get up and start what needs to be done
It’s running down, there’s much you missed
Working on that graveyard shift
But I’m not saying there’s nothing wrong as the day comes along
If what I see is true I could learn to believe
Can’t look away
The powers that be might take it all away
Together we burn, together we burn away