I Am Trying To Break Your Nose

We know Jeff Tweedy can get cranky on stage -- just watch his upcoming solo DVD, "Sunken Treasure," where he goes on a self-described "hissy fit" trying to get the audience to shut the hell up during his quiet acoustic songs. But we can't blame him for losing his cool last night (Oct. 16) in Springfield, Mo., where Wilco were playing to a packed house. Luckily a Jaded Insider correspondent was front and center to behold the bizarre turn of events.

Halfway through "Airline to Heaven" during the first encore, a male fan ran onto the stage, grabbed Tweedy's head and tried to kiss him. Tweedy turned around, pulled the man's hair and then punched him in the face before shoving him out of the way. "You guys play nice," he said. "It's scary when people come up and you're trying to sing your heart out."

"I feel terrible," he continued. "I don't like to punch someone in the face. It sucks. We can make it better. I was having a really good time, but now I want to go sit down somewhere. But we can't do that. We're not gonna let those bastards win."

Tweedy clearly felt bad at what had transpired, so during the next song, "Hummingbird," he shook hands with people in the crowd and even began dancing in place. "Monday nights are wild in Springfield," he said. "I wouldn't want to come here on a Friday. I don't think I could handle it. You guys are in another league!"

Before the concert ended, he said, "There's a certain amount of tension here. I apologize if it came from us. It's time to let that sh*t out. We're headed to West Virginia tomorrow. This is gonna push us on down. You will wake up tomorrow and feel less empty. Don't ask how this is going to make you full, but you might not eat tomorrow."

Saddest of all: according to the set list at the soundboard, "Red Eyed" and "I Got You (At the End of the Century)" were going to be played during the first encore, but were dropped after all the hubbub. Can't people just stay in their seats and not ruin the show for everybody else?