There is no shortage of bands commemorating their glory days as the decade-long anniversaries of their albums fly by. However, few landmark releases feel not only fresh but also forward-thinking 20 years after their recording. My Morning Jacket stumbled upon this kind of brilliance in October 2004 when they released their fourth studio album, “Z.” Across 10 tracks of lush, euphoria-driven rock 'n' roll, the band captured a remarkable tonal shift in their sound that fused southern rock, haunting folk and psychedelic soul mixed with the energy of a jam band. It's a set of songs that still make up a big part of the band's live show. In September, the band performed the album in its entirety at a sold-out Hollywood Palladium for its 20th anniversary.
“We still play these songs all the time,” frontman and primary songwriter Jim James said in a recent conversation. “So it's not like we broke up after releasing 'Z' and then got back together 20 years later to play these songs, and it's a great journey. We've been playing them non-stop for 20 years.”
Shortly after the release of their tenth studio album, “is,” the band released a deluxe reissue of “Z” that includes four B-sides and an entire album of demo versions of songs like “Wordless Chorus,” “Off the Record,” and Dodante. Recently, James spoke with The Times about the lasting power of “Z” and the joy of going back to the beginning of the album's origins to give him and his fans a new appreciation for the innovative sound the band created.
The reissue of “Z” was preceded earlier this year by a performance of the full album at the Palladium. What was it like revisiting the album on stage before it came out? came Will it be released (again) on vinyl and streaming?
This is our fourth album to reach the 20 year mark. So now we have some experience doing these album shows. And it's funny because on some of the previous albums we didn't play all of their songs, so we had to go back and relearn a lot of songs. But on “Z” songs we pretty much played every song all the time. So it's pretty funny how it took no effort at all. It simply involved playing them in that order of the album sequence. But we laughed a little about it. We were like, man, we don't really even have to do any research or anything like that. We were all reflecting on how grateful we are that we still like to play all the songs. It's a great feeling to play songs for 20 years and never get tired of them. People still want to hear them and there's still enthusiasm and they still feel fresh. It's really a beautiful thing.
This was your first album with an outside producer. What was it like for you, as a songwriter, to get into the studio with John Leckie to help bring your vision with “Z” to life?
It was great, because I really needed someone who could work with me and not let our egos clash too much. John was really great about coming in and respecting what I wanted to do, but also expressing his opinion and what he liked and didn't like and when he thought we could do it better. And it was really very comforting and good for us to have him there. I mean, his track record speaks for itself, he's someone you can trust from the beginning, just because of all the things he's done in the past. He's a very soft-spoken gentleman, but he also has this hilarious, brutal honesty, which was always great.
Their lineup also changed between the previous album “It Still Moves” and “Z,” adding keyboardist Bo Koster and guitarist Carl Broemel, both of whom are still in the band today. So, was it like walking into the studio with the “new kids” for the first time?
It was really stressful and really exciting at the same time. We had some experience touring with Bo and Carl, so we knew it was working at that level, but we'd never recorded before, so it was a real test for all of us. And I think we all knew it. So everyone brought their A game to the session and we took it very seriously, but we also had a lot of fun and got to know each other a lot. It was nice to do it in the middle of nowhere, in the Catskills, in the studio. It gave us some time to really bond without a lot of real world stuff or other people coming in. So I think it was really important that we did it that way.
Do you remember which song came out of the sessions first?
“It Beats 4 U” was the first one, because we had already played it live before we started recording. So I think that was the first song we started playing with. But I think they all came to life at about the same time. So when we got there to start unpacking them, I had already written them and demoed them and stuff.
It's great that you included so many demo versions of your songs in this rerelease. What was the process like of tracking them down, vetting them, and sequencing which ones you wanted to include on the album?
Well, I love the demos of many of my favorite bands; I love listening to album demos. So I'm always saving all that stuff; With my own stuff I'm always collecting all the demos, because for me that's half the fun. Because sometimes you get this like a beautiful glimpse into the song. Very often, I end up liking the demo more than the album or the song itself, because you get a completely new take on it. It's also interesting when you're sequencing for vinyl, because you don't have unlimited time, so you have to choose, and that forces you to choose the best. There was another round of band demos and then there were my demos, so there was a lot to choose from. But it helps me a little to see it in vinyl format. There is still something about the time limit of vinyl that helps with quality control. I just pick the ones that I think are most effective and then try to make a fun sequence so that hopefully if someone likes them, it's like you get a bonus album that you can listen to.
We had four real songs, B-sides, that we also love, that weren't demos. So it was really nice to finally get them out, because they'd been on different soundtracks. And then one was not even released. So I don't think they were even streaming or anything like that for years and years. So it's really cool to have them everywhere now, because I've always loved all those songs and been proud of them too. And I think most bands know the feeling you get when you make a record. Sometimes songs just don't fit on the record, even if you still love them.
MMJ during the “Z” era.
(Sam Erickson)
Were you playing any of those live at the time you released the album in the first round, or did you leave them for later?
We've always played “Where to Begin” live, from time to time. We also tried “Chills” a couple of times and I think we did “How Could I Know” a couple of times. We had never played “The Devil's Peanut Butter”, we kind of forgot it existed until this moment. [album rerelease] The process began and I found that song again. So we'll probably play that one somewhere in the next game.
Was this process something you like to do, in terms of how, more or less, to come back?examine an album?
I really love it because I feel so grateful that someone gives something… you know? I mean, there's a part of me that's very grateful to still be in the game, talking about this. But beyond that, it's really cool for me because it's like jumping into a time machine and going back and looking at that time in my life and having perspective on where I am now, and seeing how I've grown and asking myself “where have I changed? Where have I not changed?” I look back at all of these albums as they hit this 20-year mark, and I see that I've always been very mean and hard on myself, on Jim, but I know that Jim was doing the best he could at every moment. That's the one thing I've always been able to see, to improve myself, to not be too hard on myself. I know I was giving it everything I had, so whether I would change things from who I am today or not, we all look back, and maybe there are things we would do differently, but it gives me a lot of comfort knowing that I was trying my hardest, and all the guys in the band were trying their hardest. It really makes me proud of us for putting in the time and effort.
