They're still great live (saw them with Dylan and Wilco a few years back) but as everyone else has said those first few albums really tower over everything else.
...I need to think on this and get back with you. In the meantime, my gut says the song Wordless Chorus off of Z because that's what got me hooked!
Nice, enjoy! Unless you want to go in blind, if you look at last night's setlist there's probably a 99% chance that they won't repeat any of those songs tonight in Cleveland. It was a fantastic show last night--got some old gems I'd been waiting to catch live. Can't wait to see them again later this summer in Nashville, and hopefully in Columbus too! Honestly I'd say Okonokos, their one and only official live album (as opposed to officially released concert recordings). If you don't like that live album you probably aren't going to like this band. My favorite of their studio albums (and probably their most accessible) is It Still Moves.
It Still Moves, best representation of their country-influenced sound before they got more experimental.
This band does have an interesting split in their history where they went from alt-country to sci-fi country rock. Both "eras" are excellent in my opinion, but that jump from It Still Moves to Z is incredible.
Just dropping by to say that I cannot recommend the recordings of OBH4 enough. For those that don't know, they played their catalog in full and in order (except they switched "Phone Went West" and "Strangulation" at the end of night one) and the official recordings came out a few weeks back. So great.
if you still love this band, and you definitely should, you need to check out jim’s new solo record. it fucking rips.
Yea, JJ is an awesome dude, but I can't get into the "trippy" stuff he does for lack of a better term.
MMJ were my favorite band for a long, long time. I'm just not on the same wavelength musically as Jim James is these days... It was awesome to hear the whole rest of the band absolutely killing it on the new Strand of Oaks album though. That album is incredible.
video of their forest hills show is so fucking good. god damn. hoping next year is when i finally see them.