the man who invented himself

Happy 2026! This blog has a reason to exist again, and pardon the delay, but I'm back on the clock (when possible). Without further ado, Jon Brion!

Jon Brion, Largo at the Coronet, November 7, 2025

The date showed up out of nowhere, and I didn't need to be asked twice. If I recall correctly, Jon's last show took place in June 2024, but I was at Wilco's every-other-year Solid Sound Festival. You can't attend them all, but I had no idea Jon wouldn't be back for 16 months. Reminder: Go see your favorite artists whenever you can. There's no guarantee you'll get another opportunity.

Flanny of course did the introduction, showing off his Dodgers t-shirt. (No comment.) Jon looked like a professor when he made his entrance, with a soft bucket hat on his head, a loose scarf around his neck, and a leather bookbag slung over his shoulder. School was in session.

You couldn't miss the Steinway baby grand parked center stage or the numerous mics strategically positioned on and around the instrument. Jon also had a small array of guitars at his disposal, but none of the other gear that he's known for -- not even the drums. Anyone who comes to Jon's show knows to expect the unexpected, and without touching a key, he instantly checked that box.

Fom the first note, we knew we were listening to something different. It's hard enough for me to describe Jon's music, especially the instrumentals, but you'll have to bear with me. All I can say is that Jon played the piano and checked a MacBook to his left. As an audience member, I heard both the piano, but also a synth undertone and a slight dissonance behind the main notes. In his usual fashion, Jon opened with a roughly 20-minute instrumental exercise that I won't attempt to guess.

He did end the tune with some background on the bionic piano. He said playing it was like having 88 EBows on piano and credited Andrew McPherson for his innovation, which he jokingly referred to as "a bunch of magnets." He's not lying, but you can investigate for yourself on his website.

Overall, I took very few notes about the actual sound because I lack the vocabulary or the musical knowledge to do it justice. In many ways, the songs were deeper than what you'd expect from, in essence, a singular piano. At times, it sounded like a string orchestra but maybe fed through a filter.

Jon immediately asked for a request, but warned that "it's gonna come back moody." He opted for his classic "Same Thing," which is always a great start to the pop portion of the night. He continued with his own soundtrack songs. I identified one as "Strangest Times" from I Heart Huckabees, but I have to admit that I couldn't place the other one. It might've been from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, but no guarantees.

Jon next treated us to Robyn Hitchcock rock block with the sublime "Queen Elvis," followed by "The Man Who Invented Himself." For the latter, he drew from a large binder of lyrics, and to the best of my knowledge, he used no effects. He also told a story about going to a record store around the time of the album's release and the record store employee introducing him to the record -- a rite of passage that any vinyl fan can relate to.

He returned to one of his original songs (not one of my favorites, I have to admit), then what I think was "'Round Midnight," which I mostly recognize because it goes on for a long time. I'm half-kidding; I've heard Jon perform this song enough times that I can pick out an arc or two.

Jon played an extended intro as he welcomed Grant Lee Phillips to the stage. Grant, in case you've forgotten, was one of the main people who helped establish Largo on Fairfax, and he and Jon are always a must-watch combination. I've written about them at length!

Grant was in town for a show at McCabe's the next night, and the crowd at Largo greeted him warmly. To be honest, I can't remember why Jon stretched out the piano prelude. Maybe Grant was looking for a guitar? I recall that Grant briefly grabbed an acoustic, but he quickly abandoned it. In fact, it took him a little while to realize that Jon was playing one of Grant's own tunes -- the sublime "Fuzzy" from the first Grant Lee Buffalo record -- and even asked Jon to confirm the song choice. (Meanwhile, I had been squirming in my seat for several minutes as I waited for them to kick off the performance of a track I've loved for a long time.)

Make no mistake -- Jon nailed this song, but he also gave Grant enough room to improvise with pace, crescendos, and other flourishes. Grant Lee Buffalo was one of my favorites in the '90s, and the song is still a gem.

Jon next started on another favorite, Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes," and yelled at Grant to come back to the stage to handle the vocals. We'll always take more Grant!

After Grant left the stage, Jon hit a couple of soundtrack songs, but I can't tell you which. I suspect one of them was the Lady Bird theme, which has become one of Jon's recent favorites.

Jon took out the big book of lyrics again and paired his choice of a song with a Sondheim-like arrangement. The tune: "Anarchy in the UK," by the Sex Pistols. If you think about it for a minute or two, I bet you can get the gist in your brain. From there, he went into a straightforward rendition of a Cole Porter title to continue the theme.

He followed up with "Trouble" on the piano, then headed over to the guitars for the first time that night. Alas, the diversion was short-lived, as none of them were up to snuff. He returned to the piano and asked for requests, resulting in "I Believe She's Lying."

Jon closed out the encore with another two of his originals. And we still had one more night to look forward to.

Setlist
piano
Same Thing
Strangest Times
soundtrack song?
Queen Elvis
The Man Who Invented Himself
That's What People Do
Round Midnight

with Grant-Lee Phillips
Fuzzy
Ashes to Ashes

Eternal Sunshine theme
soundtrack song?
Anarchy in the UK
I Concentrate on You
Trouble
I Believe She's Lying

Encore
Ruin My Day
The Way It Went

Related shows
» top 5 Largo memories
» Take Me Home, Country Pigeon
» i'm happy, hope you're happy too

within you and without you

In case it wasn't already apparent, this is an exclusively Jon Brion blog now. With that, here's the January report. Also, I need to stay closer to home for a little bit, so someone else will have to supply the February details.

Jon Brion, Largo at the Coronet, January 11, 2024

I originally bought tickets to this gig when it was simply a Jon Brion show, but Largo updated the description to say Jon would be playing new music with Jay Bellerose and Jennifer Condos. I had a million questions following the change. First of all, what new music? Also, I was familiar with Jay Bellerose from his previous visits at Largo on Fairfax, including the time they covered "Band on the Run," per my request. After asking around, I learned that Jennifer Condos is Jay's wife, and among other achievements, they've formed Joe Henry's backing band for several years. I also learned that the trio had been working on Jon's new music (that is, unreleased tracks he's written since Meaningless). I still had no idea what to expect, but I was excited to find out.

The stage was well-equipped, but not with the usual array of artifacts, as with Jon's traditional show. Jennifer had a simple setup near the piano, and Jay's drum kit included a big copper kettle. There was one unusual-looking guitar that went untouched all night. Otherwise, Jon took up the other side of the stage with a couple of guitar racks and a slide guitar.

It quickly became apparent that this wouldn't be the easiest show to document, but I'll try my best, using the same format as I did with the Jon Brion/Nels Cline improv shows back in the day. Follow along!

Song 1: All I have here is that Jon played an electric guitar, and Jay watched him closely for cues. At points, Jay used brushes and his hands, but my main observation was that there were no vocal mics onstage. That is, they probably could've converted a couple of mics for voice purposes if needed, but not even the trusty piano had a vocal option. They plugged away wordlessly.

In a typical Jon show, this might've led me to wonder if they were going to improv all night, but I didn't get that feeling from this first track. This wasn't about mad scientist mode, though it was probably a glimpse into studio life. I knew intrinsically that chaos wasn't in the cards this evening.

Song 2: Maybe that hunch was borne out in the second song, which I recognized right away from my longtime attendance at Jon's shows. It was none other than his track "Croatia," which I used to yell out as a request when I sensed a show was becoming too maudlin and we needed a pick-me-up. I especially enjoyed the performances of this song with him and Chris Thile. Also, I've since visited Croatia since I first heard the track, so consider this a humble brag. Jon went to town on the guitar, and the bond between him and Jay deepened.

Song 3: I don't have much for this song, except for surf-ish guitar and an outro that reminded me a little of "Walking Through Walls." I'm not going to lie -- at this point, I realized we weren't getting much in the way of lyrics, so I put the pen down for long stretches of the performance.

Song 4: With this tune, Jon said "not all of these songs have titles yet," which confirmed all I needed to know. I should also mention he had a notebook or a clipboard onstage and referred to it between songs. That's what I mean by the lack of chaos. My only other note here is that they played this song at a languid pace. Make of that what you will.

Song 5: Jon picked up a six-string bass and said this "can mean only 1 thing -- Cole Porter [something] mambo." (Sorry, I can't read my handwriting.) Jay opened with a steady beat, not unlike a Johnny Cash train song, but they eventually brought it around to "Anything Goes." My first memory of the song goes back to Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, which goes to show you how music can hit you from anywhere. If that's what it takes to bring Cole Porter into our lives, so be it.

Song 6: Jon went to the piano, and I recognized the song immediately. It was "Punch Drunk Tack Piano," which is not only from the Paul Thomas Anderson movie, but also the old Largo website. The tune was the first thing you heard as soon as you landed on the page. Talk about indelible memories.

Song 7: Jon returned to the guitar rack and picked up a small electric. I think he said "Perky Hell" might be the song title or at least a temporary name. I'll say that this was a lovely tune that exemplified what he once called "unpopular pop." The song proceeded at a steady pace, and you could kind of hear where the verses and choruses might come in.

Song 8: Jon switched guitars and the crowd roared approval for the red-and-black Sith-pattern model he picked up. He also turned on one of the amps near the piano and said something to the effect of "if we're going to do big band songs, they have to be psych drum anthems." He also said this was for Flanny. That probably indicates it might've been a Duke Ellington classic or something along those lines, but I can't say. I will note that with the simple action of tapping her leg with the bass on it, Jennifer punctuated parts of the song with a cool reverb on the bass.

Song 9: My notes are simple in that the trio delivered a delicate, understated tune that could be track 3 on Side B of a record. At the end, Jon blew a kiss to Jennifer for her contributions.

Song 10: I took minimal notes on this, namely that the intro reminded me of the Beatles' "Sun King," the guitar was phenomenal, and Jon showcased his immense talent. Based on Largo's Instagram post, I think this was "Albatross" by Fleetwood Mac. In fact, I've heard Jon play this several times, but it's been a while. Regardless, it's a stunning composition!

Song 11: Jon checked the notebook before starting the song and commented that it was going to be in E minor and slow and that it desperately needs a title. I noticed strong bass and a smokey, noirish feel. Alas, I can't tell you much more.

Song 12: Jon finally sat down at the slide guitar and positioned the microphone for the first vocals of the night. He said he wanted something with "hip-hop New Orleans country blues," and after some Googling, I've determined that they played "Midnight" by Red Foley. I don't know what the other versions sounded like, but my guess is Jay and Jennifer added a lot to that swampy mix Jon requested. Jon contributed too with gorgeous and at times confusing guitar.

Song 13: For the encore, Jon asked the audience to name a key (which I failed to write down). Jon next asked Jay to provide a tempo, and he created a staccato beat, a series of short beats leading into each other. Jennifer backed him up, as Jon grabbed one of his hollow-body guitars. As with the Cole Porter song, they meandered musically before eventually landing on "Within You, Without You," and this most resembled Jon's traditional gigs. They went all over the place with this track, as is Jon's wont. On a night where we traveled to several places we hadn't been to before, it was the perfect landing spot.

Related shows
» the first one said to the second one there
» round midnight
» like a dream in the night
» i go for it every time
» the world will revolve

the end of the beginning

Happy new year! I was fortunate enough to catch the last show of the year at Largo, and you get 1 guess as to who was the headliner.

Jon Brion, Largo at the Coronet, December 24, 2023

Two months in a row! And spoiler alert: I'll be around in January too, but after that, I think I need to stay home for a little bit. For now, I'm reporting for duty.

I love these year-end Jon Brion shows, not necessarily because they're extravaganzas, though I've seen a few of those. I just love being able to wrap up the year with a performance by one of my favorite musicians at one of my favorite venues. These shows sometimes make you forget about all the bullshit that might have transpired during the year (though I have no complaints about the good stuff I was able to do in 2023).

The first sighting of the night was a drum kit, which I don't think we've previously seen during Jon's return to Largo. Otherwise, we still saw the vibes, guitars, and complicated wiring close to the piano. I'm not going to lie -- I was excited to rock.

Another holiday bonus: Flanny made the introduction! He had a mustache, a fuzzy green cardigan, and red pants. I know the big guy is always in the house, but it's nice to see his face and hear his voice.

Jon performed, in essence, a sound check upon arrival. He experimented with the mics at the piano a bit, and my notes say something about Andy Kaufman, but I can't recall what it means. Jon soon went into "Jingle Bells," which wasn't the last nod to Christmas for the night, then proceeded to a long piano exercise. I have some notes about "White Christmas" and maybe something from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. This first official song of the night was "Someone Else's Problem Now," an original composition that has yet to be officially released. One of the fun things about Jon's return is the opportunity to get reacquainted with his unreleased tracks, and we got another dose with the next title, his own "Further Along."

Jon switched to acoustic guitar and went to a breathy, smoky track. Thanks to Google, I see that it was "I Concentrate on You," written by Cole Porter.

He asked for requests and chose "Walking Through Walls" on piano -- kudos to the audience member who stuck with a Jon-penned track. I sometimes fear that this song will drag a little, but that wasn't the case. He sprinkled a little of "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" and maybe "Bohemian Rhapsody," though I know almost nothing about the latter. However, I easily recognized "Tainted Love," one of my teenage favorites. And good work by the crowd to add handclaps in the right places.

The tone switched a little with the next song on electric guitar, which started out slowly and dramatically. It took a little while for me to realize it was "You Don't Know What Love Is." I'll just note that it took about 15 minutes.

Jon next welcomed a drummer onstage, and at first only referred to him as "Griffin." Eventually, we learned he's Griffin Goldsmith, from the band Dawes. I don't know anything about Dawes, other than they're from Los Angeles. Sebastian Steinberg also joined them.

Jon asked for requests and a million names flew out, so we had no idea which song he had chosen. But he started the song by pantomining a rhythm at Sebastian and Griffin. I had no idea what it meant, but it was a cool peek into what the studio experience might be like with Jon. He then went to the piano, and the three of them settled on the rhythm he wanted for the perennial favorite "Moonage Daydream." Jon played with one of the vintage keyboards for the bridge, and they coaxed a bass solo from Sebastian. This also went for about 15 minutes, though with a different tenor.

Griffin started the next song, by Jon's request, and he set down a fairly straightforward rock beat. Sebastian did his thing, and Jon added bluesy electric guitar riffs. I started jotting down the lyrics with the intention of Googling them later because I didn't recognize the song at all -- that is, until he dropped the name MTG. It turned out to be a totally spontaneous composition, which is always a delight and something you kinda hope for at a Jon Brion show.

Jon returned to the piano for his more traditional "The Way It Went," then shifted to vibes, while requesting a 6/8 rhythm from Griffin, for "Mood Indigo" (in G). I wouldn't have known the latter if Jon hadn't mentioned it under his breath at the beginning.

The guests left and Jon went into another original track on piano, and I'm going to admit that I don't like this one a whole lot. I think the chorus is something along the lines of "that's what people do."

For the encore, Griffin and Sebastian returned -- and they did my request! I hadn't put much thought into it, but when the opportunity arose, it seemed so obvious to end the year with "Tomorrow Never Knows." Jon said something about wanting to do a "hip-hop version," and I picked up some classic Dr. Dre "Still DRE" piano notes, but I'm not sure about the overall hip-hop rating for the song. But Jon's preference for the song reminded that in this stage of his career, he might be best known for his work with the late Mac Miller, for which he continues to receive accolades. He changed one lyric to "It is not Christmas," and overall, it was as chaotic and cathartic as you hope.

As I write this, it's 2024, and let's hope that Jon will be a staple in the coming year. In fact, he'll be in Chicago on Valentine's Day for a screening of the aforementioned Eternal Sunshine. I hope someone who might read this blog can go!

Setlist
piano
Someone Else's Problem Now
Further Along
I Concentrate on You
Walking Through Walls
You Don't Know What Else
Moonage Daydream*
improv blues song*
The Way It Went*
Mood Indigo*
That's What People Do

Encore
Tomorrow Never Knows*

* = with Griffin Goldsmith and Sebastian Steinberg

Ghosts of Christmas past:
» let your heart be light
» i'm offering this simple phrase
» it's been said many times, many ways
» with soul power
» it's the end of the things you know
» you could say one recovers
» a really good time
» the things you do to keep yourself intact
» i've heard a rumor from ground control
» strangest times
» i'll be a rock 'n' rolling bitch for you
» purple rain
» a few of my favorite things
» on such a winter's day
» man of the world