EDMONTON -- Jeff Tweedy has never been this cuddly. Age has tenderized him; he's fully deformalized now.

At the Wednesday Wilco rumpus-wumpus in the ridiculously packed Red's, we witnessed an absolute change in demeanour from the Windy City's y'alternative progenitors. (We were going to review for yesterday, but what's the point talking about three songs before deadline?)

Softened perhaps by the well-meaning crackers on Highway 1, Tweedy-bird even went so far as to take requests and tell long stories, debunking a serious myth that he's solely an arrogant tomcat.

Counting the famous May '97 show in Cowtown at the Republik where Bruce McCullough trotted around, a later Roadside Attraction spot with Tweedy's middle finger held high, and the somewhat stiff folk fest appearance where the singer wondered out loud why everyone was sitting down in the first row, this was the most exhilarating Wilco gig. Especially when songs from Being There and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot resonated.

Talking about needing sleep on the long drive through Winnipeg, heading west, Tweedy got into it: "So we stopped at a Wal-Mart - that's the only story," he joked, then continued. "Apparently we were in some rural part of Canada that'd never seen a tour bus before. These guys in sports sandals pulled up some chairs and just started to watch our bus. Then they offered us some pot. Then they started playing Frisbee with a hubcap. Right on."

That loosened up the packed room of cuties and college boys, as he and the distant offshoot of Uncle Tupelo put on a very tight set, coming back for two encores. Astounding!

I'm a Wilco fogey, so the songs off A.M. were appreciated, though later tunes like Shot in the Arm were great to hear, bringing you back to older dates, lost friends, all that baggage now gone. Can't Stand It was a "gooder" off Summerteeth. And, in the encore, California Stars was just sparkly, slipping off the first Woodie Guthrie collaboration with Billy Bragg, eh.

Other songs you might recognize if you're a fan, in order: Not for the Season, Sunken Treasure, I Am Trying, War on War, Radio Cure, Kamera, Pot Kettle Black, I'm the Man Who Loves You and Heavy Metal Drummer, the two best slices off the fresh one. Lots of bopping around under the giant TV screen for those, distraction from the twitchy and focus-struggling camera-work. To be honest, the rawness of the images up on screen kind of fit the relaxed night. It made Tweedy look about 20 pounds chunkier in his jean jacket and TSOL farmer cap, mind you.

More tunes for the completist: A pretty xylophone-tinkled Ashes, a sizzling Red-Eyed and Blue/I Got You (At the End of the Century) medley, with the sad Reservations to close before the encore.

Late on, they really rocked it, drummer Glenn Kotche sipping oxygen (?) out of a bong hose, Tweedy making paralysed faces and stumbling backwards, the light show hotly timed. In response to front-row fans, they played Hesitating Beauty (another Guthrie) and, for a smiling girl, Tweeder flipped his monitor around in her face. "There, can you hear me better now?" he smiled. Who is this friendly singer, and where has he been all along?

Just goes to show you the keeper shows are always intimate. Dylan's Tuesday bowl strumming would have been 10 stars out of five had he played it in a spot the size of Red's. As it stands, Wilco turned out to be the better of the two. (More on Wilco)