I Love… Susie

+ Guess Again (solo acoustic version)

Chit-Chat Check-In #111 • Transcript

Valentine’s Day should be expanded beyond the notion of romantic love. Why? Let’s face it. Romantic love is complicated and can be pretty hard for a lot of people. So let’s just say that there’s a lot of love, and a lot of types of love.

I’ve been thinking about this because Susie’s been organizing the archives from Lounge Ax, the bar she ran with Julia Adams for many years. She saved all the booking information, the calendars, so much stuff. Even all the demo tapes anyone ever sent them.

You want to talk about love… She understood that each one of those tapes represented an act of love. She might not express it like that, but I would say that she treated those tapes accordingly, and reciprocated the love. Susie and Mark listened to all of them, wrote down their feelings about them. They might not have had room for you on the calendar, but someone at Lounge Ax listened to your tape. And they treated it with respect.¹

Everything about the way Susie ran her business taught me how valuable it is to have a group of people who love and support each other. I don’t know if I’d ever had that behavior modeled for me quite the way that Susie was able to. It still resonates today in bands and clubs in Chicago and in people all over the world.

Anyway. This song is one of many I’ve written for Susie. It’s pretty romantic. I keep trying, because I don’t think I’ll really ever succeed in capturing all of the feelings I have about who she is and what she’s done for me and my life.

OxO—Jeffy

P.S. I’ve got a cover from your suggestions the other day, coming soon.

This Week in Wilco, Etc.

2023 / February 10: Jeff shares a cover of “All Tomorrow’s Parties” by the Velvet Underground on Starship Casual.

2005 / February 13: Wilco wins the Best Alternative Music Album for A Ghost Is Born at the 47^th Annual Grammy Awards.

2014 / February 15: Jeff’s 27-song set at the Vic in Chicago and includes covers of “I’m Only Sleeping” by the Beatles, “Pink Moon,” by Nick Drake, and “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin. The set is later released as Roadcase #32.

Guess Again (solo acoustic version)