Pitchfork reports Crowded House’s Neil Finn, Johnny Marr, Ed O’Brien (Radiohead drummer), Phil Selway, Jeff Tweedy, KT Tunstall, John Stirratt, Glenn Kotche, Pat Sansone and others have formed this supergroup-esque collaborative follow-up to 2001’s 7 Worlds Collide. Unfortunately, Monsters of Folk just announced their record and Dead Weather remains fairly awesome. Too many supergroups in existence at one time will swallow all other non-super bands into a supergroup black hole, but we can look the other way just this once because this one’s a benefit for Oxfam International and not just a publicity stunt or excuse to tour with your bros. It’s also less a supergroup and more Judgement Night-style pairings of famous artists with other famous artists for individual tracks, only instead of rappers pairing up with rockers and our music collections suddenly including a Mudhoney/Sir Mix-A-Lot song, Neil Finn teams up with KT Tunstall and a ton of little kids around the world get to eat.

It was only three weeks ago we reported Jay Bennett’s claim against his former bandmates in Wilco for breach of contract and unpaid artist’s royalties. Now those claims and any disputes between him and Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy seem like a distant and irrelevant side note in the story of Bennett’s life. Jay Bennett passed away Sunday morning in Urbana, Illinois. He was 45 years old.

Edward Burch, a friend and musician who collaborated with Bennett on the 2005 album The Palace at 4 a.m., spoke to the Chicago Sun Times on Sunday. “Early this morning, Jay died in his sleep and an autopsy is being performed. The family is in mourning and is unavailable for comment at this time.”

Bennett was a member of Wilco from 1994 through 2001, and worked very closely with Tweedy for the creation of the albums Being There, Summerteeth, and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Bennett’s departure from the band, during the recording of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, was documented in the 2002 film I Am Trying to Break Your Heart.

Yesterday morning, Tweedy commented through band publicist Deb Bernardini via the following statement:

“We are all deeply saddened by this tragedy. We will miss Jay as we remember him — as a truly unique and gifted human being and one who made welcome and significant contributions to the band’s songs and evolution. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends in this very difficult time.”

Join the band. Argue. Make up. Break up. The cycle used to end there, but former Wilco member Jay Bennett is adding a new phase — the law suit. He’s taking Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy to court to recoup money he claims he’s owed from his years in the band.

Bennett sued Tweedy in Cook County (Chicago) Circuit Court yesterday, claiming he was owed money from the band’s 2002 documentary I Am Trying To Break Your Heart and royalties on songs written during his seven years with the group.

Bennett was in Wilco from 1994 to 2001, when he left amicably — allegedly — and with “no hard feelings,” according to Tweedy. Of course people with “no hard feelings” don’t typically try to take you to court for thousands of dollars. Bennett’s breach-of-contract suit argues that his work on Being There, Summerteeth, Mermaid Avenue, Mermaid Avenue Vol. II and Yankee Hotel Foxtrot entitles him to “compensation for his services rendered in the form of continuing and perpetual artist royalty payments from” Tweedy.

The suit does concede that Bennett was paid while a member of the group, but only in “infrequent partial payments,” and it claims that Tweedy did not pay Bennett or obtain the necessary releases for his appearance in the 2002 documentary I Am Trying To Break Your Heart.

Bennett’s price tag on compensation? $50,000 in damages.