The little secret behind the Illinois record is that it was originally conceived as a double album, culminating in a musical collage of nearly 50 songs. But as the project began to develop into an unwieldy epic, common sense weighed in - as did the opinions of others - and the project was cut in half. But as 2005 came to a close, Sufjan Stevens returned to the old, forsaken songs on his 8-track like a grandfather remembering his youth, indulging in old journals and newspaper clippings. What he uncovered went beyond the merits of nostalgia; it was more like an ensemble of capricious friends and old acquaintances wearing party outfits, waiting to be let in at the front door, for warm drinks and interesting conversation. Among them were Saul Bellow, Ann Landers, Adlai Stevenson, and a brief cameo from Henry Darger's Vivian Girls. The gathering that followed would become the setting for the songs on The Avalanche: Outtakes and Extras from the Illinois Album.

Tracks

- Disc 1 -

1. The Avalanche
2. Dear Mr. Supercomputer
3. Adlai Stevenson
4. The Vivian Girls Are Visited in the Night By Saint Dargarius and His Squadron of Benevolent Butterfl
5. Chicago (Acoustic Version)
6. The Henney Buggy Band

- Disc 2 -

1. Saul Bellow
2. Carlyle Lake
3. Springfield, or Bobby Got a Shadfly Caught in His Hair
4. The Mistress Witch from McClure (Or, the Mind That Knows Itself)
5. Kaskaskia River

- Disc 3 -

1. Chicago (Adult Contemporary Easy Listening Version)
2. Inaugural Pop Music for Jane Margaret Byrne
3. No Man's Land
4. The Palm Sunday Tornado Hits Crystal Lake
5. The Pick-Up

- Disc 4 -

1. The Perpetual Self, or "What Would Saul Alinsky Do?"
2. For Clyde Tombaugh
3. Chicago (Multiple Personality Disorder Version)
4. Pittsfield
5. The Undivided Self (For Eppie and Popo)

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