CALGARY - Aren't the chicken pox supposed to be excruciatingly nasty when you get hit with them as an adult?

It's a good thing Wilco guitarist, Nels Cline, is a brave musical soldier -- otherwise the audience at the Jubilee Auditorium last night may have missed out on what was possibly one of Wilco's best Calgary shows to date.

Cline has a nasty case of chicken pox -- a good excuse for dodging a week or two of grade school to stay at home in front of the TV -- but a not a great way to spend a rock 'n' roll tour.

It was a close one -- the last two Wilco concerts in Duluth, Minn., and Winnipeg were cancelled this week, making Calgary their first post-chicken pox gig.

Cline was still a little spotty last night at the Jube, where a crowd of 1,600 (two-thirds full) showed up, but apart from a few itchy moments between songs, it was smooth going.

The band opened with Shake it Off from their newest album Sky Blue Sky.

Frontman and main songwriter, Jeff Tweedy, was his usual cloudy, yet occasionally playful self.

Dressed in Johnny-Cash black, head to toe, Tweedy entranced the small herd of fans with ease.

The shy frontman has a way of drawing crowds in -- he's sandwiched somewhere between Bob Dylan and Kurt Cobain, Tweedy is the post-Generation X answer to the question: Exactly what a rock 'n' roll star should be?

Answer: He's an upside down frown, hiding behind a six-string Gibson.

The Chicago-born band rose to cult status among alt-country and alternative music buffs in 1994 after their original group, Uncle Tupelo, split when singer Jay Farrar left the band. Farrar went on to form Son Volt --Tweedy formed Wilco.

Last night's set started hot and by the time Tweedy uttered the lyrics to I am Trying to Break Your Heart from the bands fourth album, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, the crowd was transfixed.

And, Tweedy even mustered up a toothy smile for the audience. Richard Swift, American multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, opened the evening off with his unique blend of quirky folk-rock songs.