.Big Star

Keep an Eye on the Sky

It seems odd that a band that barely released three albums would be
the beneficiary of a four-CD box set. But then again, this is Big Star
we’re talking about, an act not unlike New York City brethren the
Velvet Underground, who have also been the subject of intense devotion
from rock critics and fans. Where the Velvets were adept at trafficking
in nihilism and the seedy underside of urban living, Big Star embraced
the British Invasion innocence while putting it through a sieve of
Southern pop and soul. With the entirety of the classic debut #1
Record
, follow-up Radio City and brilliantly disjointed
third project 3rd/Sister Lovers included here, the richness of
this material induces plenty of head-shaking over the group’s
commercial misfortunes. One listen to the glammy swagger of “Feel,” the
heart-on-sleeve vulnerability of “My Life Is Light,” or the twangy
Eastern vibe of “The India Song” makes you wonder if tone-deaf
numbers-crunchers were in charge of getting the word out.

While Alex Chilton and Chris Bell provided a certain
Lennon/McCartney balance during the group’s early going, Big Star’s
sound got harder following Bell’s departure. It’s evidenced not only by
the Byrdsian jangle of “Back of a Car” and funky shuffle “O My Soul,”
but 3rd/Sister Lovers obscurities like the Neil Young-ish
Christmas song “Jesus Christ” and the slightly atonal ambiance of
“Kanga Roo.” And while alternate versions of songs as well as cuts by
pre-Big Star projects Icewater, Rock City, and a solo Bell are welcome
inclusions, it’s the fourth disc — a live 1973 performance
recorded at Lafayette’s Music Room in Memphis — that puts this
set through the roof. Despite performing before an indifferent crowd,
the three-piece pounds out a ramshackle yet heartfelt set that includes
originals and covers of the Kinks, T. Rex, Todd Rundgren, and the
Flying Burrito Brothers. Keep an Eye on the Sky serves both the
Big Star fanatic and pop music day tripper while ably showing why
seemingly every person who bought their music went out and started a
band. (Ardent/Rhino)

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