Customer Reviews

Columbia: Live at Missouri University 4/25/93

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I don't know if "the ground rumbled," but it was a hell of a show. I was there, a student at the University of Missouri, Columbia (I don't know where the hell they got that Missouri University thing).

Some details for you fans... The show was organized by MU's student radio station, KCOU, very nearly by accident. The station already had booked Alex for the annual Springfest, again organized by KCOU, and somebody there said - "Hey, wouldn't it be funny if.." and history was made with a couple of calls to Jody Stephens, Alex, and the Posies.

We were outside in a tent, of all things, because the Hearnes Center was booked with, if I remember right, a Bryan Adams concert. There couldn't have been 200 people in the tent, either. As always, it was a great performance by the best unknown band in the world. Alex was in fine form, and was a treat to see during his waking hours, versus some of the darker shows I've seen him do. And it was the only time I've seen him perform Chris Bell's work, which was nice.

Anyway, thought you might like some details from an eyewitness to the show.

S. Clayton Moore Denver, Colorado

The short-lived Big Star produced some of the most significant hard-edged Pop to date - severe electric rhythms featuring irrepressible melodies. Columbia serves several purposes. Gratifying the appetite of core fans with a nostalgic tribute. Introducing graying Power Poppers to two superb young musicians (from the Posies). And perhaps sharing a bit of Big Star with younger Posies' fans.

The air was electrified and the ground rumbled on April 25, 1993, at Missouri University. The fourteen song concert opens with the heavy-handed `In The Street,' and the bitter `Don't Lie To Me.' `In The Street' is a ferocious rocker built on a seven-note bass guitar progression. The opening song sets the tone for the evening: rumbling base guitar, rousing lead and rhythm guitars, and enticing vocal harmonies. `Don't Lie To Me' sounds like a solid brick wall of electric rock moving unstoppable from the stage into the audience. The song doesn't have a quiet second that you can stick your finger into. The poignant `I Am The Cosmos' (adolescent infatuation at its best) sounds as if someone accidentally plugged the toaster into a 220-volt socket - sparks fly. The concert continues with the vigor of an 18-wheel tractor-trailer. Sing-along melodies? You can bet you copy of #1 Record - `The Ballad Of El Goodo' (a rebellious but melodic teenage statement) and `September Gurls' are gorgeous. The concert ends (too soon) with a rousing boogie titled `Slut' (the politically incorrect anti-feminist statement).

Columbia includes a share of "imperfections." At times the tempo is not quite synchronized, and the harmony vocals are less than "angelic." Thank goodness. Columbia is not sanitized like the starched white linen at the Hyatt Regency - this is "live" rock. Crude, raunchy, brazen and liberating. Just the way rock is supposed to be.

Perhaps it's a testament to the songwriting of Chilton, Bell, and Hummel, perhaps it's that Chilton and Stephens haven't been retreading these songs in concert for the past 25 years, or maybe it's just the added energy of the Posies' Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer, but these renderings of Big Star's essential canon sound *fresh*. The performance is at turns sloppy, inspired, raw, and cohesive. It doesn't shed new light the way "Big Star Live" did at the time of its release (mostly because this isn't the first peek into Chilton & Stephens live sound), but it's certainly a welcome addition to any Big Star fan's collection.

Now what *I* want to know is where to get tapes of the two missing tracks (shown in a photograph of the set-list, but missing from the disc): "O My Soul" and "13" - the latter being my very favorite Chilton composition. At less than 45-minutes, there was certainly room on the disc for these two tracks.

Of the many live shows I've seen and heard over the years, this is one of the best. Every song crackles with energy. Alex Chilton and Jon Auer's guitar sounds are a gorgeous mixture of guitar sounds.

Many of the classic Big Star songs are well represented here: In The Street, Ballad of El Goodo, Back of a Car and September Gurls all sound fantastic and not at all dated. The band even gives a fitting tribute to the late Chris Bell, covering I Am The Cosmos, a song that fits seamlessly with the others. Covers of T. Rex's "Baby Strange" and Todd Rundgren's "Slut" in particular highlight the band's considerable live chops.

Don't get me wrong, I fully respect the original Big Star lineup with Bell and Andy Hummel, but without a doubt the addition of Posies Auer and Ken Stringfellow adds sufficient muscle to the performance. Alex Chilton's vocals are as good now as they were then and Jody Stephens is a highly underrated drummer.

Don't hesitate to buy this album. Almost any fan of rock music - from Neil Young to Teenage Fanclub will love this album.

On _Columbia live at missouri university_, Big Star rocks out!

The band features original members Alex Chilton on guitar and vocals, and Jody Stephens on drums and vocals. Original guitarist vocalist and group founder Chris Bell had died in 1978, and bassist Andy Hummel has left the music world behind for a day job. So the band is rounded out by Jon Auer on guitar and vocals and Ken Stringfellow on bass and vocals. Jon and Ken are normally members of the very excellent power pop band the Posies.

The songs come out a little harder rocking live than they do on the original Big Star studio albums. Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow sing most of the songs that Chris Bell originally sang though Alex Chilton does sing Bell's _In The Street_. Possibly because his voice has deepened with age, Chilton also allows the Posies to sing two songs that he originally sang, _Daisy Glaze_, and _Feel_.

The highlights are: the rocking intro, _In The Street_; the almost Van Halenesque reworking of _Don't Lie To Me_; Jon Auer's excellent rendition of Chris Bell's _I Am The Cosmos_; Chilton's lovingly performed _Ballad Of El Goodo_; the raucous take of _Back Of A Car_ complete with nicely placed feedback; a very emotional version of _Daisy Glaze_; a Chuck Berryesque rocking cover of T-Rex's _Baby Strange_; a great and inventive, to compensate for lack of strings, version of _For You_; and a totally ballistic version of Todd Rundgren's _S-L-U-T.

Once you get past the fact that it's not real glossed up and studio enhanced like Frampton _Comes Alive_ or one of the KISS _Alives_, you realise that this is a great and VERY REAL live album!...

Though it's not "really" Big Star, this is almost just as good. Chilton's there, so it all sounds right. "The Ballad of El-Goodo" and "Daisy Glaze" are high-points. The "LIVE" factor alone, makes it worth the money. If you've never seen Chilton live, this will make you want to.

I'll keep this brief: Chris Bell couldn't be there, but I'm convinced he really was there for this performance. I swear you can feel his energy in the recording. The original records are of course iconic, and the available live material from the early 70s is great but sonically limited (by, for example, 2-track machines). It took a lot of healing and a lot of guts for Chilton to even attempt this, and what I hear when I play this disk is a tight, passionate and loving tribute to the late Chris Bell -- and affirmation that what he put his heart into mattered! This record is a lasting gift from the re-formed band to the music community, to each other, and mainly to the fans who have made the ironically named "Big Star" into the big stars they never were in their time. (PS: Great choice of cover material from T-Rex and Todd Rundgren, kindred spirits who often combined mythology and melody into 3-1/2 minute radio symphonies.)

...and so was I. Last encore number is not included on the disc ("Duke of Earl"). There was a ferris wheel....even Chilton eventually cracked a smile

I love this recording of the reunion concert (without two of the original line-up). This has grown on me over the past two years and I find it is on my stereo more than any of Paul Westerberg's solo albums. I like the arrangements of the Big Star material and the guitar of Chilton is excellent.

The last song is listed as having a running time of 9:51. Not true. "S**T" actually is 3:44 of music followed by 1+ minute of silence. Hard to understand how this was setup. It would be more helpful for purchasers to know about the gap. A T-Rex cover does begin after the "silence" and it's not credited on the track listings. Buyer beware! The music is fine but the gap is really an unnecessary distraction.