In time I will miss his music. Today I miss him.Jay was a genius and quite likely the greatest guitarist of our generation. He was definitely the most talented and amazing guitarist I have ever seen (and I am to this day stunned he took it upon himself to allow my rudimentary talents to intertwine with his brilliance for the year-and-a-half or so we lived and played together). I honestly believe Titanic Love Affair's "No Charisma" and Steve Pride & His Blood Kin's "Pride on Pride" are every bit as remarkable as anything he did with Wilco.
I miss him and his stupid habit for crapping everything up with his ketchup packets, cigarette butts and those awful, stinky turtles. I miss his crooked, gatemouth smile and cracking-voice cackle. I miss his habit of hugging everybody. Hell, I even miss carrying his damn amp for him all the time right now.
In recent months Jay had gone on occasional jags of emailing me intensely. He told me he thought the year we played with Steve may very well have been the most purely joyous time of making music he had ever had. He reminisced about our penchant for rehearsing for hours and hours several days a week and how the camaraderie we shared filled him with contentment. He even spoke of wanting to look to reuniting the band some day for some shows.
He also queried as to my lot in life, the dynamic I had with my ex-wife and what my life was like with my children. He was warm and funny and I knew at some point he would retreat to his lair and I might never hear from him again.
A few weeks ago my son, Will, and I were dropping of Mike Rader at his home - in the same Buena Vista Court group of housing in which Jay resided - after an Illini baseball game and we say Jay pulling out. Jay did not seem to recognize us, however, Will (who has a picture of himself as an infant being held by a grinning, disheveled Bennett) got a good look at him. When we walked into our house Will spoke not of the game or his day, but immediately gushed in a star-struck tone rarely heard from a 12-year-old who just saw one of his father's friends, "We saw Jay Bennett!"
I am grateful Lars, Ken, Mike and Leroy were here with us yesterday. I wonder if years from now those who were hear sharing food and drink and stories and tears will think back at how the sun-drenched day was briefly interrupted by a shower once all had arrived.
Godspeed, my friend.
The SP&HBK band photo (final line-up with Michael Hazelrigg) was taken somewhere in the middle of Iowa on the way home from playing - by special request - at a friend of my brother's wedding. The first dance was "Ripple" and at the request of the bride's grandmother Jay sat down at the piano and sang one of the most heartfelt versions of Anne Murray's "Can I Have This Dance (for the Rest of My Life)?" anyone in the room will ever likely hear. It was a beautiful thing.
http://www.youtube.com/user/JHamm10137
