Jay Bennett Remembered As Coroners Investigate His Death

05/29/09 11:39am

It will probably be at least two weeks before a cause of death for former Wilco member Jay Bennett can be determined.

Bennett died in his sleep at his Urbana, Ill. home early Sunday morning at age 45. Toxicology and histology tests analyzing tissue samples must be completed before coroners will be able to piece together what happened to the recording engineer, producer, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist.

Officials are investigating, but foul play isn't suspected as there was no external evidence of trauma.

Friends and family members of Bennett issued this statement via his email list:

"Our good friend Jay Walter Bennett left us this weekend. As news hits the wires so instantaneously these days, we thought it was important to share some thoughts about our friend and brother before any rumors got out of hand.

"First, let it be known that Jay was in a really good place these past few years. He had returned to the area he loved — the 'Twin Cities,' Champaign-Urbana — and resurrected his studio, Pieholden Suite Sound, with the assistance of many dear friends and allies. Jay had been busy making music.

"He recently had released an intimate record entitled 'Whatever Happened I Apologize,' and he was looking forward to wrapping up his new work, 'Kicking at the Perfumed Air.' Proud of finishing a trilogy of records, including 'Bigger Than Blue,' 'The Beloved Enemy,' and 'The Magnificent Defeat,' Jay loved the balanced yet ironic album titles.

"He was also looking forward to engineering and releasing Titanic Love Affair’s previously unreleased record, as well as starting work on 'The Palace at 4 a.m. Part II,' the follow-up to his post-Wilco debut with Edward Burch.

"'Jay the Academic' had also reemerged, pursuing his umpteenth degree at the University of Illinois, and he was thrilled to be taking graduate classes again.

"As many of you may be aware, Jay had finally found the courage to put his Wilco issues out into the public forum. After a long, four-year process (and therefore very much unrelated to his impending hip surgery), formal filings against Wilco were finally initiated. This task was very emotional for Jay. He was a 'lover,' and this confrontation was not easy for him.

"With the exception of his final period in Wilco, Jay looked back on his time in the band with great fondness and pride. While he was dismayed that some people may have formed a narrow perception of him via the [I Am Trying To Break Your Heart] 'documentary,' all who truly knew him understood that with most entertainment media, editing is usually constructed for dramatic effect and presents only a small part of a larger, more complex reality.

"So, please spend some time this week engaging in Jay's favorite passions: listen to a Nick Lowe album, watch some Mythbusters on Discovery, play Warren Zevon's 'Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner,' rent Pay It Forward (one of his favorite movies), write a song with the TV on and the sound off, and focus on how Jay always concluded his communications:

"'Love, Jay.'"

Bennett filed a lawsuit against Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy earlier this month. He sought unpaid royalties and other payments for the period when he was in the band from 1994 to 2001.

Tweedy posted this message on Wilco's website following Bennett's passing:

"We are all deeply saddened by this tragedy. We will miss Jay as we remember him — as a truly unique and gifted human being and one who made welcome and significant contributions to the band's songs and evolution. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends in this very difficult time."

Bennett produced now-defunct Toronto band Staggered Crossing's 2002 album, Last Summer When We Were Famous, and the group's Bent Penny Records label released Bennett and Burch's The Palace At 4 A.M. in 2004.

Staggered Crossing will reform to perform with friends as a tribute to Bennett at Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern on July 9.

"Jay Bennett was one of those people who was such a brilliant talent and I am so glad that I got to spend the time with him that I did," Staggered Crossing/Bent Penny's Julian Taylor posted on the label's website.

"He was someone I looked up to, an opinion that I trusted, a friend and a lovely human being who will be sorely missed."