To all intents and purposes, Radio City is a pretty strange album too. As with the later Third (which I spent enough time rattling on about yesterday), it wasn’t quite the work of a band at all. Members come and went, the sessions were irregular and erratic – a couple of the songs were even recorded by a scratch band in Chilton was the only member of Big Star actually present. They, incidentally, called themselves the Dolby Fuckers – the name allegedly stemming from Chilton’s cluelessness about certain studio gizmos (ie: “What the hell are these Dolby fuckers?”)
Yet, for all the haphazardness of its construction, it’s a damn tight bunch of performances – albeit veering far from the glistening power pop of #1 Record. Sure, Chris Bell’s fingerprints are smudged across a couple of the tracks here, like ‘Back of a Car’ – one of the only things that rocks in the same determined way as its predecessor. Otherwise, Chilton’s material – although expertly played – is surprisingly slack; ‘Mod Lang’ and ‘Life Is White’ are hazy stoned paeans to not much at all, while ‘She’s a Mover’ may be the only Big Star song that choogles.
It’s an incredible record in its own terms, and you couldn’t really pick a stand-out if you tried…save, of course, for one song in particular. You can probably guess which one I’m talking about.
[pictured above – alternate cover for Radio City. Photo by William Eggleston. L-R: Jody Stephens, Andy Hummel, Alex Chilton]
rock
J. M. Van Eaton performed on the Folklore Hall stage of the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival, 9/2/12
Brittany Russell and the Trunk Monkeys perform on the Gayoso stage at the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival on Sunday, 9/2/12. Visit http://www.brittanyrussell.com for further info including tour schedules, or like Brittany on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brittany-Russell-and-the-Trunk-Monkeys/129426100404836.
The Merry Mobile Live at the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival, 2012
The Merry Mobile, a rock trio named for a familiar Memphis ice cream truck in the 1960’s, performs at the Gayoso stage during the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival, 9/2/12. Visit http://www.themerrymobile.com/ for videos, tour dates and more.
Southern Halo (@3halos) performs on the Aldo’s Pizza Pies stage at the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival downtown, 9/1/12. Keep up with them at http://www.southernhalo.net, like them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/SouthernHalo or follow them on Twitter at Http://www.twitter.com/3halos.
Southern Halo (@3halos) performs on the Aldo’s Pizza Pies stage at the Memphis Music and Heritage Festival downtown, 9/1/12. Keep up with them at http://www.southernhalo.net, like them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/SouthernHalo or follow them on Twitter at Http://www.twitter.com/3halos.
Bush performing at the Beale Street Music Festival, 5/6/12
Son Volt, Beale Street Music Festival, 5/5/12
Jimbo Mathus Live at Messengers Pool Hall, Clarksdale
Jimbo Mathus calls his unique mixture of blues, country and rock “Catfish Music”, and is a popular performer at every Juke Joint Festival, as he is a former resident of Clarksdale. Messengers Pool Hall, where he performed on Saturday night, is possibly the oldest continuously-operated juke joint in Mississippi. Mathus is about to release his latest album White Buffalo.
Thursday night, April 12, 2012, Juke Joint Festival, Clarksdale, MS