Customer Reviews

Big Star Live

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I can only think of two real criticisms of this disc, and it's really more a criticism of the tapes that Ryko had to work with than of the disc itself. First, the mix on the opening track ("September Gurls") is way off. The guitar is just about absent. Second, the interview segment in the middle of the disc is a pain. It's just not something I want to hear every time I play the disc. (And yes, you can program around it, but I don't want to have to remember to do so).

Of the 12 musical tracks here, I am, initially at least, more drawn to the acoustic performances, that has Chilton just singing along with his own guitar playing. "The Ballad of El Goodo" "Thirteen" "I'm in Love With a Girl" and the previously unreleased cover of Loudon Wainwright's "Motel Blues" all feature very emotional, affecting vocals. Chilton's vocals are all the more highlighted for the lack of the studio's backing voices. The segue back into the full band (with "In the Street") sounds a bit like a tape-edit, but it's still a very effective transition, from the light acoustic blues to the great intro electric lead.

What at first seemed like a very ragged band sound on the electric tracks has settled more in my ears. After having listened to the studio versions of these tracks for so many years, it's taking awhile to adjust to hearing them played and sung any differently. But it's worth it: they're the same songs I've known and love for a long time, yet they're different enough to be a new experience. Chilton's emotional emotion-charged vocals (e.g., on "You Get You Deserve", among others) really pushes the songs to a new place. Some of the musical breaks (like the extended guitar jam on "She's a Mover") also change the songs in unexpected ways.

I think part of Robert Gordon's liner notes capture the essence of this disc quite well:

"You find an old picture of your lover. It dates from before you'd met, and though you'd heard about this period in his or her life, seeing it adds a whole new dimension to the person who sits across from you at the breakfast table. You study the photograph and its wrinkles, looking for clues that might tell you more about this friend you know so well--can you see anything in the pockets of that jacket, can you read any book titles on the shelf in the background. You think about an archeologist's work. When you next see your lover, you're struck by things you'd never noticed. The skin tone, the facial radiance--though the lamps in your house are all the same and the sun does not appear to be undergoing a supernova, he or she carries a different light. As strikingly similar as the way your lover has always appeared, he or she is also that different. You shrug and smile. Whatever has happened, you like it.

"That's what this recording is about."

Good (FM in-studio quality) sound, a ragged but energetic performance, and great songs. Five big stars.

This album is worth the price alone for Chilton's acoustic cover of Louden Wainwright's "Motel Blues," off of II. Infact the entire acoustic set (which is I think four or five songs) is great. But as for the rest, its mediocre at best. Big Star is know for being a sloppy live band. Chilton is a great guitar player, but he is far from tight, same goes for the rest of the band, but that is what i like about Big Star, it's almost punk, like they're bad ass and they don't care. The thing that i don't like about this though, is aside from the small interview, they have cut out the talking in between the songs. I wanna know what Chilton's stage presence was like, did he say anything profound? In my opinion that is what a live album is meant to do, elaborate on this great bands personality.
If you only pick one of the two live albums (at least that i'm aware of), buy "Nobody Can Dance." The quality is virtually the same, the band is tighter for the studio rehearsels and they leave in the banter. Plus they do a cover of T Rex's "Baby Strange" and The Box Top's "The Letter." Neither of them tops "Motel Blues" on this album, but It's a better over all collection of live stuff.
If you only have to pick one get "Nobody Can Dance" and download "Motel Blues."

I had read about Big Star in a magazine when this was released officially in '92(of course it was bootlegged from the original broadcast and traded among fans since the mid-seventies) and it sounded like a record I should take a chance on. Listening to it in the car on the way home from the record store I must say it changed my life and the perception of the type of band I wanted to play in. Chilton's guitar playing is amazing throughout this show and the band is just so tight. The intervew segment is classic as well, and typical of the way Alex comes off when you meet him (I have luckily done so twice, like a religious experience!!). Any aspiring indie guitar rocker needs this record, and everything by Big Star while you're at it.

I'm a recent inductee into Big Star's slavering fan base.
I kept coming across B.S.'s name in association with all my favorite groups, and having read the near-ridiculous ravings for the #1 Record/Radio City combo disk I tried them out.
It is becoming obvious that Big Star is a sort of either you get it or don't type of band. As with all truly great artists, Big Star's music could easily be dismissed as dated 70's rock, and truly that's about all they are. Unless they connect with you, then they absolutely engulf you.
I really like and highly-recommend this live set. As the previous reviewer stated, the mix is a bit off on the first song, and you actually hear the knob twist that straightens everything out about a third through the second track. Never fear, it won't interfere with your enjoyment of the disk at all.
For some strange reason this disk seems to 'fill out' the louder you play it. Even a few clicks on your volume will make a big difference, so make sure and rock the room a bit when listening.
Being a HUGE Beatle/60's rock fan it is much-easier for me to forgive the 'retro' feel of some of these songs and it is that quality that seems to torpedo some people's enjoyment of the group. Make no mistake, Big Star are a product of their times, and it seems to be an insurmountable obstacle for my wife who usually digs everything I do.
Anyway, this disk is an invaluable addition to any fans Big Star collection. It comes across as a veritable snapshot of BS's moment in time, and a precarious one at that. It's sad that we don't get to hear Chris Bell here, and in truth even Andy Hummel is long-gone by this time, though quite ably 'replaced' by a surprising John Lightman who seems to noodle along without missing a beat, and some fine noodling it is.
Though another reviewer found the interview portion unnecessary I find it essential, both for its historical significance, but also because it maintains the flow of the original show. Alex comes off as a guy who delivers on par with the hype, but is obviously tired of acclaim with no reward. Having been wrung dry with the Boxtops, Chilton was a grizzled veteran before even forming BS, then having put his soul/art/talent into the project finds that pedestrian aspects of the music business can sometimes render brilliance moot.
The accoustic performances by Chilton are nothing short of amazing, for those who enjoy stripped-bare accoustic renditions. Even the at-times slipshod electric numbers are still driven hard by musicians who are masters, even if they do seem a bit 'loose' sometimes.
This recording should be in any Big Star fans collection without a doubt. It is an achingly lovely glimpse in time for those that care, and for those that don't, it still rocks.

Maybe I'll listen to this record again. I don't know though. If you've listened to #1 Record/Radio City over and over like me, and wondered why Big Star never got really popular, this record will answer your questions. The stripped down band (no Chris Bell and no overdubs) can't do justice to the songs. Plus, Alex Chilton's difficult personality had driven the original bass player out of the group just weeks before this recording, and it shows. The only worthwhile stuff is the solo acoustic numbers, which are great. I'll stick with #1 Record/Radio City and Chris Bell's "I Am The Cosmos."

"Live" succeeds where the first two Big Star albums falter in that only the best songs are present. While Chilton and Co. got a little too Zeppelinesque at some points on "Radio City", he only brings out worthy songs like "Way Out West" and "September Gurls" here and tears them apart. The solo acoustic material is worth the album price itself.

It's not bad. It was bootlegged extensively before its official release ten years ago. I first heard the bootleg version; this one sounds a little better. The bass player who appears here, John Lightman, is the brother of novelist Alan Lightman. He has trouble with the timing of "Mod Lang," a pretty simple song when all is said and done. In general, this recording helps you understand how simple these songs are. There's a CD of a Big Star performance in 1974 at the Overton Park Shell, Memphis, which isn't too good. They were a studio band. Alex Chilton has gotten a lot better over the years but he doesn't seem to care too much about whether folks like him or not, or that's his act, I guess. I like the interview--worth the price of the CD. I never play it. About the only Big Star record I listen to much these days is the third one. The liner notes are a bit much, as is most of what passes for analysis of Big Star's music. Go to Memphis in May or October, avoid the summertime if you can.