Dreamer In My Dreams

Maybe I take a very negative view of Wilco songs but I read this one to be Tweedy writing about the effect that fatherhood is going to have on his lifestyle and his songwriting. Just as he's starting to get comfortable in his own skin, here comes this child which threatens to shake it all up and rearrange his life.

As a father of two, I know exactly what that felt like.

No offense, but you all are being waaaay too literal. This song is more abstract (and very self-referential).

This song is about the sort of "identity crisis" that the band had been going through since the breakup of Uncle Tupelo and is the PERFECT summation of this album. On A.M., the band went full-blow with their alternative country roots, and to this day A.M. is Jeff's least favorite Wilco album (he's said that the band was simply "treading water with a perceived audience."). On Being There, the band offered up a double album that was pretty much half rocking alt-country fare (e.g. Monday, Someday Soon) and half something else entirely, something deeper, darker, more abstract, and more about the feeling it invokes in the listener (e.g. Sunken Treasure) rather than something that's just straightforward and fun. I'm guessing that's why Jeff was so adamant that this album be released as a double album and refused to edit it down at all; the band was going through a major transition and Jeff wanted us all to see it, every step of the way.

To me, this song is about how Jeff had a "dreamer in his dreams" that just wanted to make simple, hit music that was fun, that everyone could relate to, and made money. But that dreamer just had something else on his mind that he just couldn't part with, a yearning to be something more as an artist, and it ended up giving birth to a new form of music entirely for the band, something much deeper and more artistic. It still resembles the rip-roaring alternative country roots of the band, but is something more.

The most beautiful thing about this song to me is how its sound is almost exactly the fun, rocking anthem that the dreamer always dreamed of making, but when examined further is something much more: a reflection of the creative process the band was going through. Making it all the more beautiful and symbolic is the imagery of the dreamer swinging from the beams at the beginning in a good way, partying and having fun, while by the end of the song, the dreamer is swinging from the beams after killing himself, doubting his own decision all the way.

By far my favorite Wilco song, if not favorite song by anyone. There couldn't have been a better way to close the door on the early stages of the band's music and open the door to the darker, more self-reflective Summerteeth and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.

I can't believe no one's commented on this song yet. It's an upbeat way to end an incredible 2-disc album. I think the song harkens back to old-fashioned songwriting and the lyrics are intentionally trite. The best part of the song is that the performers sound like they're genuinely having fun.

Anyone have any thoughts on what this song is about?

I agree with a lot of what mooch says. The narrator p**sin' and moanin' about fatherhood. I think the second half of the song gets into something more profound talking about how we can't escape our lineage and we'll have to battle the same demons our fathers, grandfathers and sons all have.

You know, this one was puzzling me, but after logging in, I'll have to agree with the folks above. you know, it IS a fun song. I think I appreciate ths one a lot more than I did about 10 minutes ago. I always liked it, though.