Fuck.
I am one of those stereotypical indie rock fans for whom Big Star was a huge touchstone.
I first heard Radio City in Boston in '84 - borrowed it from my roommate. Bought Flies on Sherbert at Newbury Comics. But it was in SF where I got fully immersed in the myth. My roommate Matthew gave me both LPs when he bought the Ryko CD reissues. I became friends with Judith Beeman who published the Big Star zine Back of a Car, and wrote for it.
And yeah, I saw one of the reunion concerts (with Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow from the Posies) at the Fillmore. The show itself was amazing but even more memorable was just being in a huge crowd of Big Star fans, all singing along to every song.
I've still got a stack of Judith's zine, if anybody wants a copy.
Thank you, Friend.
I've played my fingers bloody with all the Chilton songs I know tonight. That guy was one of the main reasons that I starting writing songs. Jesus. He'd been squandering his talent for years and he was still too young to die. Some of the best shows I ever saw were Chilton shows. I need to listen to Sister Lovers again right now.
Just heard about Chilton. That sucks.
Yes, he was hard on his body so I guess it makes sense but it's still too young.
(Hec, I'd love a copy of that zine.)
Thanks for finding that article, Tom. Very nice.
Nice article: Alex Chilton 1975–1981
That's really a fascinating period and I've got a fair amount of ephemera covering that era. I've been pitching a piece on Tav Falco to Oxford American for years, but they won't bite.
Judith Beeman (Big Star zinester) made me a video tape compilation with three sections: New York Dolls, Power Pop Rarities, and Memphis Stuff.
The Memphis stuff includes several early Panther Burns clips, including one with Chilton on guitar. (There's another one with a guy that only had two fingers playing lead guitar.)
There's also a long interview with Jim Dickinson sitting around smoking cigars and drinking Scotch with his Memphis buddies talking about his music career, including lots of stuff about Sister/Lovers. Also, there's a solo video of Chilton doing a song in New Orleans graveyards.
Best is a local Memphis station doing a piece on the Cramps recording there - it's got Chilton interviewed and the Cramps displayed like a freak show (this was late 70s), and the happy talk news people rolling their eyes at the weirdos.
I've got some old copies of New York Rocker from the early eighties and was shocked when I saw them to find pictures of Chilton hanging out at CBGBs. That's about when members of the Sneakers (later the dBs) first bumped into Alex and did stuff with him. The singles on the Rhino comp American Power Pop in the DIY series include some things where I think Chilton is backing Chris Stamey. I think there was also a brief tour in Europe where Richard Lloyd (of Television) backed Chilton. Lloyd was always hooking up with the power pop guys.
There was also a fantastic photo spread in an old issue of Arthur which had vintage photos of Panther Burns from the early to mid 80s, taken by some German guy who was traveling through Memphis.
Tav shot a lot of film and video which shows up in odd documentaries. He's got some great bits that show up in
William Eggleston in the Real World
and he's got film from 70s houseparties featuring Junior Kimbrough which was used in a doc about Fat Possum records.
There are amazing accounts of the fucked up, fertile and fabulous Memphis scene in the 70s in the books Rhythm Oil by Stanley Booth, It Came From Memphis by Robert Palmer (not the singer), and Peter Guralnick's various music books.
It Came From Memphis by Robert Palmer
Robert Gordon, my friend. Shame that the Oxford Am won't do a story on Tav Falco. That was one hell of show.
