My Top 1000 Songs #632: The Wagon

[I've been writing up my Top 1000 songs on a daily basis--you can see them all in descending order by hitting the All My Favorite Songs tag.]

There are probably Dinosaur Jr. songs I like more, both from their earlier, thrashier post-punk albums and their later, more polished alt.rock almost-radio-ready work. But "The Wagon," like the rest of 1991's Green Mind, happened to find me at the right time in the right place. The band was in a transitional place: bassist Lou Barlow had left to start Sebadoh, and J Mascis--whose Neil-Young-on-a-serious-bender vocal style and guitar pyrotechnics were never going to ease him fully into the mainstream--was indulging his classic rock roots a bit more. Green Mind provides plenty of indie noise, but tethered to songs that feel almost old-school in their hooks and sprawl. "The Wagon" captures the moment well, boisterous but catchy, the falsetto "You won't see me" refrain beckoning you with its promise of escape. 

I was in my own transitional period at the time, finishing up law school; within a few months of the record coming out I'd be married, living across the country, and starting a career, and the song is one of those that captures those leaving-school-behind vibes for me.

Live 2012: