Album · Wilco
A Ghost Is Born by Wilco
A Ghost Is Born is an album by Wilco, released in 2004. 5 songs from it have charted on rock radio countdowns, with 23 countdown appearances in total. The biggest is “The Late Greats”, on 12 lists with a best position of #18.
A Ghost Is Born, Wilco's fifth album, came out on Nonesuch on June 22, 2004, and it pushes the Chicago band further from its alt-country roots into stranger, more experimental territory. Jeff Tweedy produced it and plays more lead guitar here than on any Wilco record before it, with John Stirratt on bass, Glenn Kotche on drums, Mikael Jorgensen on keyboards and Leroy Bach on guitar and keys.
The songs swing from fragile, pretty melodies to jagged, knotted guitar squalls, while "The Late Greats" and "Hummingbird" keep a sweet pop streak alive. Tweedy entered rehab shortly before release, which pushed the album back two weeks and cut the promotional tour short, yet it still posted the band's best opening week to that point and won the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album. The band streamed it online for free and gave buyers a bonus EP.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
Songs from A Ghost Is Born on radio countdowns
| # | Song | Strength | Lists | Best | #1s | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Late Greats | 12 | #18 | – | 2004–2022 | |
| 2 | Hummingbird | 3 | #425 | – | 2009–2019 | |
| 3 | Theologians | 5 | #349 | – | 2009–2024 | |
| 4 | At Least That's What You Said | 1 | #430 | – | 2024 | |
| 5 | Spiders (Kidsmoke) | 2 | #714 | – | 2013–2024 |
Only songs that appear on at least one countdown are listed. Release data from MusicBrainz.