The ambition of this 1972 debut is written large in band name and album title. And you know what, it was entirely justified as the songwriting chops of chief Big Star members Chris Bell & Alex Chilton was, for a moment at least, on par with their pop heroes John Lennon & Paul McCartney. But whereas Lennon-McCartney classics continue to resonate throughout popular culture some 60 years on, Big Star where pretty much left hanging from the get go. In spite of stellar reviews in the most respected music publications of the day, #1 Record’s poor distribution, pretty much Stax Records inability to get the record into shops, meant that barely anyone heard some of the best pop songs of the era. Maybe that’s an exaggeration because #1 Record did sell a few thousand copies which sounds like an awful lot, but in those days compared to your Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Neil Young, et al that was very much nothing more than a drop in the ocean. Despite this, history has been very kind to Big Star and their legacy shines bright with countless bands citing their influence, most notably keen devotees, alt-rock giants R.E.M and 90s indie favourites Teenage Fanclub. When you’re listening to #1 Record it becomes apparent that this wonderful music was simply recorded, produced and released at the wrong time, the radio-friendly luscious pop of the 60s had become passe when The Beatles called it quits, and the hard rock of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, the dramatic, glam-rock excess of Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust and the country excursions of Neil Young, America and subsequently The Eagles would rule. The punchy innocence of the 3-minute pop nugget was on the way out, and a big shame for Big Star being that this is what they did best. #1 Record opens with extraordinary pop of Feel, which with its heavenly harmonies, infectious melody and southern swagger very much resembles The Fab Four had they vacated Abbey Road, London in favour of Ardent Studios, Memphis. Things get better with following track The Ballad of El Goodo, which combines Big Star’s penchant for pop with Byrdsian jangle and spirituality perhaps in tune with deep south soul. One of the finest songs in pop history, a rootsy ballad that should have certainly been as big of a radio hit as the contemporaneous Heart of Gold and A Horse With No Name. The album is packed with stone-cold pop classics – In The Street, Don’t Lie To Me, and When My Baby’s Beside Me rekindle the superb pop of Feel and are all equally worthy of being huge hit records, and these three tracks pretty much lay down the template for the Power Pop genre that would follow in Big Star’s wake. It’s not all perfect pop, sunshine and sweetness for the entirety of #1 Record, which is fortunate and the intermittent moments of melancholy make the album an even stronger, more balanced and nuanced listen. While Chris Bell generally excels on the energetic proto-power pop tracks, Alex Chilton’s talent really comes to the fore on the album’s more plaintive songs, and when he got it right, Chilton could write some of the most heart-breaking pop songs there have ever been. Give Me Another Chance ticks all these boxes and more. It is an incredible composition, and its emotional devastation is bolstered by Bell’s exquisite production. While not quite as downbeat, the wide-eyed nostalgia of Chilton’s all time classic Thirteen achieves similar success with a more stripped back, traditional set of tools. In a lot of ways in seems unfair to split Bell and Chilton up and discuss them separately as when they work together as they do so beautifully throughout #1 Record, their voices offer the perfect foil and compliment for each other and it’s hard to think of another songwriting duo who sound quite as complete as them. This iteration of Big Star would prove to be incredibly short-lived, with Bell leaving the group the same year following the album’s commercial failure and would embark on a solo career, before tragically passing away in 1978. Chilton, together with Jody Stephens and Andy Hummel would continue to record as Big Star releasing the equally essential Radio City and 3rd albums. BIG STAR – #1 Record is reissued on special edition Gold Vinyl with Purple Smoke Effect. Available in-store and online now!
