Jeff Tweedy - People Talking During Concert

Jeff Tweedy from his Sunken Treasure tour, righteously condemning audience members who are talking during his performance. Amen, Jeff. Amen.

• Category

  Music

[Gene Burnett]

I LOVE this video. Amazing that such a simple thing as listening has to be taught to people. I've been playing music for people since 1975 and this not listening thing has been getting steadily worse. It's been decades since I've seen a person under 30 listen to an entire song without checking their phones or talking. We are losing the ability to allow the world to touch us. We want to be in charge of everything and that my friends is Hell, not Heaven.

[Gene Burnett]

I'm not complaining about how "nobody" is listening to me, because some people do. I'm just noticing a general decline across the board in people's ability to listen and focus sustained attention on the physical world. I am not alone is this observation. I teach in one of the most beautiful parks in the country and I see many people glued to their phones there too. I'm pretty resigned to it and mostly just focus on making my sound. My work to complain ratio is about 100 to 1.

[jedmarum]

I don't blame him one bit. I think he delivered the message with precision and grace!

[Michael Covel]

Yes he comes off as arrogant but look how entertaining this is and all of the comments that it provoked, you know?

You know who the real asshole musicians are?? the ones that don't show up or show up too fucked up to play or charge 100$ and play 45 minutes or can't remember how to play their own songs, Jeff is a nice guy compared to these types.

[Michael Covel]

wow Brett, you actually posted several times about a singer you claim to dislike - you even went to my 10 MONTH old post to say I suck....did the band take advantage of you backstage?

you are like a little pissed off girlfriend who keeps hanging around her ex-boy's locker---haha

and you're right - I suck like Primus

[derekmok]

Then it's up to the other audience members to ask the people to stop talking.

Jeff Tweedy could have said, "There are some people talking in the audience. Would you kindly lower your voices so that other people can hear the music if they want to?" Instead he chose to be an entitled, smug, charmless, arrogant dick. When I pay to go see a music show, I don't want to see that kind of self-important attitude. Tweedy's speech was worse than any talking audience member.

[derekmok]

There is no conflict here. People *are* less likely to listen to a live show quietly than, say, 20 years ago. They check their phones, they surf the web, they take pictures.

But -- audiences have that right to do whatever entertains them. If they like the performance, they will pay attention. I've never had an inattentive audience when I play "The Phantom of the Opera" live, even if it's just an audience of eight.

Maybe guitar-strumming folkies need to do less predictable things.

[derekmok]

> do you accept it, when people are f**** disrespect you during your daily job

The audience didn't disrespect Jeff Tweedy. Tweedy disrespected his audience. They just chose not to accept the product they had paid for. If you go to a restaurant and get a stomachache, so you don't finish your food, does the chef have the right to abuse you verbally? I don't think so.

If Tweedy couldn't get his audience to listen, he should've been asking himself what he could do better.

[Gene Burnett]

And again, I'm not a big complainer. My work to complain ratio is 100 to 1. But every now and then it's nice to hear someone go off like Jeff does here. If he did this at every show, yes, it would get old. I have a song about this called "Shut The Fuck Up", but it's a rant, not the way I am at every show. Mostly, I do my best and take what comes. But man, it's a lot harder than it used to be now that people's attention spans are so short and they're glued to their phones from the git go....

[Gene Burnett]

Look, some people love your playing. I don't. I find it boring, wanky and without feeling. My most popular video has over 164,000 views. But so what? All music works for some people and doesn't for others. That's life. I'm talking about a general decline in listening, across the board. Quiet audiences are rare no matter who's playing. You can hurl all the rude insults you want, but that's the way it is. Do you actually play in public my friend? Do you not go to shows? Haven't you noticed this?

[Brett Funk]

You must suck too!

[Brett Funk]

You are a genius. Too bad your post received negative votes from idiots who have no fucking clue.