UNCLE TUPELO 89/93: An Anthology (Sony) Rating: NNNN Rating: NNNN
For a single-disc encapsulation of Uncle Tupelo’s productive four-year run as the poster boys of alt-country, this 21-track overview does a decent job of rounding up the group’s creative highlights for curious fans of Son Volt and Wilco while tossing in a few tantalizing obscurities for the old-school flannel flyers. Along with the very best songs of Jay Farrar and perhaps the worst of Jeff Tweedy, there’s a hayseed crack at Iggy Pop’s I Wanna Be Your Dog and a late-period live romp through We’ve Been Had that shreds the studio version. Better than you’d think.