Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway (again)

SONG: Nothing'severgonnastandinmyway (again)
ALBUM: Summerteeth
TRACK: 6

I've chosen this track as my inaugural entry because it was the first Wilco song that sucked me in completely and kick-started my love affair with the band. The tone is upbeat and exuberant (like many tracks on Summerteeth), with a catchy chorus that encourages sing-alongs and syncopated hand-claps. But with all of Jeff Tweedy's lyrics, there's depth and complexity lurking just beneath the surface.

This song focuses on feeling confident and optimistic in the face of tough times in a relationship. Jangly major-key guitars introduce the tune, and the first verse quickly spells it out - Tweedy's need to "make some sense out of this mess" is met by his belief that the conflict is "a test", and the answer is simple..."a kiss is all we need". He's so certain, in fact, that he introduces the whole song with the disclaimer "We'll find a way, regardless".

The second verse contrasts two aspects of love that anyone who's ever been in a relationship can understand. On one hand, love is when you find someone who fulfills all the requirements of your personal "dream guy/girl" checklist (admit it, we've all got one). Tweedy says this in the verse's first two lines: "All the above for being in love/Shouldn't that alone be enough?". The question seems almost rhetorical. But on the other hand, love also lets loose uncontrollable emotions that spring from deep within, and these feelings can be difficult to grapple with. They range from joy to anger, fear to hope, comfort to agony, and they don't always make sense. Tweedy says this when he finishes the verse with "Oh, it's tough when love's a weed/it grows inside of me". Typically, love is compared to a flower, but here, it's a weed - tenacious, prickly, and impossible to eliminate. Which is kinda romantic, in a weird way.

The chorus repeats a fragment of a phrase twice but doesn't complete the thought until its third time around. This makes it feel like both a mantra of pure confidence and the stuttering uncertainty of a man trying to vanquish doubt. As I mentioned eariler, the hand-claps amplify the upbeat nature of this song. Tweedy often performs it solo acoustic, with an auditorium full of joyful fans clap-clapping in unison. It's quite a joyful scene. :)

The bridge is crucial to the song's depth. Tweedy's wristwatch ticks away the seconds, and an alarm clock rings abruptly. This seems to serve as a wake-up call from the cheery optimism of the chorus, snapping him out of his daydream and back to reality. The line "I'm a bomb regardless" implies an explosion. But does he mean a self-destructive detonation or a burst of unbridled happiness? I'd like to think it's the latter, but the wailing background vocals and sharp staccato beat of this bridge might persuade listeners otherwise.

Altogether, this is a great track from an even greater album. You can't help but sing (and clap-clap) along. Also, I would be remiss in failing to mention the humorous title. The squished-together words give the whole song energy and momentum, jamming all the uplifting power of the titular phrase into one blast of syntax. Kudos, too, for the totally unnecessary parentheses. :)