Big Star

nice internetting!

i've read that the original quartet's set at the time included "cinnamon girl" which would be awesome to hear. i can almost hear it in my head.

Think that was mentioned in the book. Which I highly recommend for fans. Won't come away with a rosy picture of Alex. Sure was a character, often terrible. But no big surprises there I guess. Great read nonetheless. One thing I did love about him is that he adored Off the Wall and would cover "Rock With You," at least playing around at home with friends.

There's a straggly but cute version here. I love Alex's voice whatever he's doing -- I don't think I realised how much until I saw that terrible all star tribute show a couple of years back

http://youtu.be/DJTpdwpOHxU

O man thank you for that! Ha!

Just finished the Chilton bio and now have some curiosity about his solo stuff, but I suspect I'll be very disappointed. I had a couple of his solo albums a long time ago but quickly dumped them. Is any of his non-Big Star stuff actually good?

I have the Nilsson bio queued up next, but I'm not sure how many books I can make it through about late 60s pop stars who self-destructed in the 70s. Alex's dark moments were pretty tough to get through.

there is not really a ton of non-Big Star stuff tbh and I love it but it is nothing like Big Star, it needs to be taken on its own terms

yeah otm - anyone looking for big star-y things from chilton's solo career (or even that last "Big Star" album) is going to be disappointed. but i don't know, a lot of it sounds better and better to me as the years go by. as chuck noted above, the dude's voice is incredible, no matter what the setting...

I love his standards albums, but if you were looking for the great lost Big Star record....you should probably get Chris Bell's 'I Am The Cosmos'.

solo Chilton is a lot funnier than Big Star, for one thing

Yeah, I've got some entertaining show tapes, mostly from dive bars (also from public radio).
I'd say start with his perkiest, radio-ready sets (where I first got into his solo stuff):Feudalist Tarts [1985?] and the No SexEP, also from the mid-late-ish 80s.
Also, although it repeats tracks from Big Star's Third and some other solo thingies, some of the latter are from EPs and singles you'd pay Paul McCartney white boy money for on eBay (unless you found 'em online). Then---from the least uneven to the most---Bach's Bottom, and (what the hell) Like Flies For Sherbert---both of those are from the early 80s---and even Cliches, and evenHigh Priest. I mean, if you're really hooked. And there's a bunch of live sets (some pretty hot), and boots and legit stuff I haven't heard.
There was a pretty good-size AC stash on Spotify a while back, but I haven't checked lately. Spotify is not too finicky about albums that might be legal somewhere, in my experience.

"Although it"---oops, this refers to Rhino's AC round-up, 19 Years.

Why are you guys talking about Anal Cunt on the Big Star thread?

Yeah, I like all his solo records. Not at all dissapointing. Bach's Bottom is probably the most Big Star sounding, if only because it got remixed in the 1990s to sound more like Big Star -- it's pretty faux but it actually sounds really good. I love Like Flies on Sherbert, but it's the last three, Cliches, Man Called Destruction and, er, Loose Lips Tight Pussy, that I still listen to the most - they're just generic bar band covers and cheesy jazz standards but super eccentric and fun. I

Anyway, if you like this (and I love it), you'll like solo Alex:

http://www.youtube.com/v=ptHlghlmWGM

Oops I mean

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptHlghlmWGM

Loose Lips Tight Pussy

I thought it was Loose Shoes

I'm confusing my four-word loose-containing phrases

AKA Set here in these prudish United States

One thing I did love about him is that he adored Off the Wall "

to be honest — who doesn’t?

count me as someone who loves "like flies on sherbert" and listens to it all the time! i think it’s brilliant!

I got halfway through the Big Star documentary and turned it off because they hadn't played a single song all the way through yet. Or even more than a verse and a chorus tbh. I can't take so much footage of fancy turntables playing records while people blabber away about this or that. Honestly couldn't even focus on who was who. Just play the records and forget this mess.

that's one of the worst music docs ever made. alex made the right choice wanting nothing to do with it.

i was just listening to third right now and the mutron on the bass in "you cant have me" is soooo siqqqq

Both Ardent and Big Star have reported on FB that Richard Rosebrough has passed away.

Ah. R.I.P.

RIP -- definitely one of those things where i'd listened to "mod lang" and "she's a mover" for long time thinking Jody Stephens was such a cool drummer, and then reading the notes to find out that it was rosebrough on those tunes.
(not to say that stephens himself isn't a great drummer)

Who's the drummer on Oh My Soul? Such a good one.

that's stephens

in other big star news ...

Originally recorded for Big Star’s iconic Third, “Jesus Christ” has become a holiday staple. What better way to celebrate this time of year than to experience this classic track on vinyl — along with the gift of previously unissued material.

The very collectible 10" EP includes the Three Wise Men artwork from a 1973 Big Star promo poster, comes pressed on translucent blue vinyl, and contains a download card. In addition to the original album version of its namesake, the audio program features a demo of “Jesus Christ” that first appeared on the Grammy Award-winning box set, Keep an Eye on the Sky, as well as five previously unissued tracks.

Fans have been clamoring for an official release of “Another Time Another Place & You” for decades, and it makes is first ever appearance here, along with a TV mix of Third’s “Thank You Friends.” Two more unissued Chris Bell instrumentals join them. An unheard demo of “Big Black Car” (the studio version also appears on Third) provides a preview of the forthcoming box set Complete Third (coming 2016).

The legacy of Big Star continues to shine, and the Jesus Christ EP will add some true B-sides to fans’ collections that otherwise would have fallen through the cracks. It will provide them with not only what they’ve been searching for, but make them rejoice in what they’ve found.

kind of crazy there's a "complete Third" box set coming out... but i guess i'm interested.

What the holy hell sequence would they finally decide on?

i just assume it's going to be a bunch of sessions -- probably not even attempting another "definitive" sequence.

there's stuff that *wasn't* on the box set?!

The box was a little barrel-scrapey; I'd be surprised if the Third box contained anything more substantial than demos or alternate mixes.

I would assume so too, but I've never even heard of this “Another Time Another Place & You” song

Just wait 'til you hear the whole disc of Alex Chilton arguing with his girlfriend about whether or not to work on overdubs instead of going to TGI Friday's!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYWKU1Ysqb8

^^^ yeah love that -- what is the deal w/ it? is it actually a chris bell solo thing or ... ? been on various bootlegs for a while now...

How many times did they record a mellotron through a leslie?

Not many, but every one of those mellotrons formed a band.

kind of crazy there's a "complete Third" box set coming out... but i guess i'm interested.

― tylerw, Tuesday, October 20, 2015 12:55 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i like to imagine this will be like 46 CDs with exactly the same songs, but presented in nearly every possible running order

"wow, CD 15 puts 'thank you friends' as the first track! visionary!"

I would kinda like to hear Chilton and Dickinson building tracks, a few anyway (maybe there will be a box sampler). Also: Picking Posies, Big Star 2.0 live in '94, out Nov. 13.
From description on Amazon:

...Featuring a plethora of tracks from the golden age alongside a touching version of Chris Bell's solo classic 'I Am The Cosmos', and a rousing 'Baby Strange' from the pen of late British glam-rocker Marc Bolan, further covers include Todd Rundgren's 'Slut'- charmingly dedicated to Jody Stephens' wife (presumably an in joke), The Kinks' 'Till The End Of The Day' and, obscurity to the helm, a version of the 1966 b-side 'Patty Girl', a local hit from a trio of Ohioan siblings aged between 7 and 14. The show included on this CD, from Chicago's Cabaret Metro in June 1994, is an excellent example of the reformed band playing live, and of the strength and power of the Big Star catalogue. 21 tracks.

been listening to that numero group ork records thing, and the alex chilton tracks are the highlights for me.

yeah the ork EP is great -- the write up in the liners of its making is pretty harrowing though.
feel like they don't need to release any more posies/big star live things though ... not that they're bad, but all of those shows (that i've heard anyway) stuck close to the script.

yeah i don't think i would've wanted to hang around alex chilton in those days (or ever?)

yeah he seems like a deeply unpleasant person

I guess I'd like to hear the original "pop" version of Downs, if it exists

wonder if they'll include the super f-ed up chilton/stephens radio broadcast from 1975? quality's not good, but it definitely fits the third "vibe"

Aw man, not sure I want to mess with my Ryko "Third" CD sequence. It just feels 'correct' to me.

I guess I can't blame them for all this barrel-scraping. Given how awesome to "Keep And Eye On The Sky" box turned out, I'll keep an open mind.

The PVC issue's tracklisting always made the most sense to me:

Side A:

Stroke It Noel
For You
Kizza Me
You Can't Have Me
Nightime
Blue Moon
Take Care

Side B:

Jesus Christ
Femme Fatale
O, Dana
Big Black Car
Holocaust
Kanga Roo
Thank You Friends

It was the first sequence I heard, but the Ryko one seemed to miss the essence of the record.

But then, I also always thought "Black Angel's Death Song" worked best as the second song (and "Waiting for the Man" the 10th song) on VU & Nico as per the 80s cassette I dubbed from.