Live at Jittery Joe's [ENHANCED] [LIVE]

Jeff Mangum

Product Details

• Vinyl (November 1, 2005)
• Original Release Date: June 19, 2001
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced, Live
• Label: Isota Records
• ASIN: B000BDAZNI
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #588,824 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Live at Jitter Joe's is a long-rumored recording of the Neutral Milk Hotel lead singer performing at an Athens, Georgia, coffee shop in early 1997. His set includes selections from On Avery Island and In the Aeroplane over the Sea (the latter of which would not appear for another year), a generous portion of B-sides and unreleased tracks, and a heartfelt cover of Phil Spector's "I Love How You Love Me." It's enthralling to hear these songs in such a casual, unadorned setting: one envies the small crowd in attendance. Mangum's clearly having fun, joking with the audience and asking for requests. It's particularly revealing when he refers to "Two-Headed Boy, Part II" as a song that "will probably never come out or anything," and spontaneously decides to merge a short hymn to Jesus with "Up and Over We Go"--a medley that would later turn up on record as "King of Carrot Flowers, Part II and III." Also included: a QuickTime video of the entire set shot by video director Lance Bangs. It's just Mangum in almost complete darkness, with a few colored lights hanging behind him and a small child cavorting in the background. The visuals are sweet yet mysterious--the perfect accompaniment to these brilliant songs. --Mike Appelstein