Remembering Chicago Music Legend Jay Bennett
By Michele Lenni in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 24, 2010 7:30PM
Human frailty and flaw are layered with many dimensions that ornament the best and brightest pieces by deceased Chicago music legend Jay Bennett. Though most of us came to know his craft through Chicago's foremost country-roots-tinged-turned-art-rock band Wilco, Bennett was an important artist in his own right. There are few artists able to match his ability to contrast the most vulnerable of human emotion against a gigantic pop hook. Most will remember him best in his later, darker days that began in 2001 with the split from Wilco, which was starkly documented by film maker Sam Jones in I Am Trying to Break Your Heart.
But those who knew and loved him best have found a way to celebrate the memory of the best moments of his life. The Jay Bennett Foundation was formed by his brother, Jeff Bennett, and mother, Jan Bennett, one year after he died by accidental prescription medication overdose in May of 2009. The Jay Bennett Foundation is dedicated to commemorating him for the great artist, producer and multi-instrumentalist that he was and to raise funds for music and education programs such as the Mr Holland Opus Foundation. Their most recent effort was to posthumously release his last album, Kicking the Perfumed Air, with the help of some of Bennett's friends.
“Those of us who loved Jay lost a son, a brother, a collaborator and a loyal friend. The world lost a gifted musician, thoughtful song-writer and uniquely creative force in the studio who was always working to make music better,” Jeff Bennett said. “This album is part of a larger effort to honor Jay’s memory and enhance his legacy by exposing more people to his music and by supporting charitable efforts to make the world a better place.”
The album contains a haunting and morose beauty that most musicians can only hope to achieve. It's also a complex album that contains cryptic lyrical entanglements that wrestle with the concepts of self-loathing and mortality, yet another sad reminder that we lost a great artist.
Tomorrow night at Subterranean will be a show to honor Bennett, comprised of his friends, family and collaborators including Chicago's own rock heavy-weights David Vandervelde, Dorian Taj and Robbie Hamilton. These and other artists will preform songs from Bennett's last contribution to the music world, Kicking the Perfumed Air. A celebration of his life and career, we feel that this will be an sad yet uplifting experience that you really shouldn't miss. We know we'll be there with a tissue in tow.
Jay Bennett Foundation Benefit featuring Edward Burch and the Third Verse Quiets, David Vandervelde, Dorian Taj, and more, Saturday September 25, 7 p.m., Subterranean, 2011 North Ave, $10, 17+