From: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org (loud-fans-digest) To: loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Subject: loud-fans-digest V6 #8 Reply-To: loud-fans@smoe.org Sender: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-loud-fans-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk loud-fans-digest Monday, January 9 2006 Volume 06 : Number 008 Today's Subjects: ----------------- [loud-fans] Big Star ["Paul King" ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star [dc ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star [2fs ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star [Dan Sallitt ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star [2fs ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star [2fs ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star ["Steve Holtebeck" ] Top 40 singles (was Re: [loud-fans] Big Star) [Bill Silvers ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star ["Steve Holtebeck" ] Re: [loud-fans] Big Star [Roger Winston ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 14:26:16 -0500 From: "Paul King" Subject: [loud-fans] Big Star I have to say I haven't heard of this and did not recall seeing this on the list this year. Am I the only one who didn't know that Big Star reunited about 6 months ago? Apparenlty they have a new CD on Rykodisc called In Space. Found on a newsgroup posting: http://www.popculturepress.com/bigstarreview.html http://www.notlame.com/Pre-Orders/Big_Star/Page_1/CDBIGSTAR1.html http://www.aversion.com/bands/reviews.cfm?f_id=2242 Paul King ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Jan 2006 13:16:54 -0800 From: dc Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On Jan 8, 2006, at 11:26 AM, Paul King wrote: > I have to say I haven't heard of this and did not recall seeing this > on the list > this year. Am I the only one who didn't know that Big Star reunited > about 6 > months ago? Apparenlty they have a new CD on Rykodisc called In Space. i'm not sure it's accurate to say they "reunited six months ago," in that Chilton, Stephens and the Posie twins have been playing together for about 12 years now. i've seen them live three times myself. "In Space" is, though, the first album of new material with this lineup. and it's pretty good -- in fact, "Lady Sweet" is drop-dead gorgeous. doug c vicinity of Seattle ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Jan 2006 16:02:46 -0600 From: 2fs Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On 1/8/06, dc wrote: > On Jan 8, 2006, at 11:26 AM, Paul King wrote: > Apparenlty they have a new CD on Rykodisc called In Space. > > "In Space" is, though, the first album of new material with this > lineup. and it's pretty good -- in fact, "Lady Sweet" is drop-dead > gorgeous. I'm pretty sure it's available on eMusic - probably a good thing since, although I haven't heard it, I also haven't bought it, on the grounds that most people who have heard it have remained distinctly unimpressed. So you might want to listen for free (assuming you have eMusic, or are willing to sign on - and why not, for only $10/mo for 40 downloads?) before committing the cash to the round piece o' plastic. Chilton's career as a whole really doesn't support the notion that he has a whole bunch of _Radio City_-like pop-rock songs in him - that aspect of his musical personality seems more like an aside, even though it's brought him more fame than the rest of his output (not counting the one-hit-wonder singer-in-Box Tops bit). - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 19:26:34 -0500 From: Dan Sallitt Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star > I also haven't bought it, on the grounds that most people who have > heard it have remained distinctly unimpressed. I wouldn't want to go in expecting anything like the old Big Star, but I kind of enjoy the album. It's more like a slightly souped-up Chilton solo record with a few other songwriters checking in. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the two Jody Stephens songs, and thought that Chilton pulled off a few fun moments, especially "A Whole New Thing." And there's a lively soul cover ("Mine Exclusively"). > Chilton's career as a whole really doesn't support the notion that he > has a whole bunch of _Radio City_-like pop-rock songs in him - that > aspect of his musical personality seems more like an aside He put it aside, I think. I heard him say, "Those are sad songs, from a sad time of my life. I want to make people happy now." - Dan ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Jan 2006 19:00:36 -0600 From: 2fs Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On 1/8/06, Steve Holtebeck wrote: > On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 14:02:46 -0800, 2fs wrote: > > > Chilton's career as a whole really doesn't support the notion that he > > has a whole bunch of _Radio City_-like pop-rock songs in him - that > > aspect of his musical personality seems more like an aside, even > > though it's brought him more fame than the rest of his output (not > > counting the one-hit-wonder singer-in-Box Tops bit). > > One Hit Wonder? The Box Tops had five top 40 hits, including three > top 5 hits between 1967-1970. Depends how you measure. Just as any number of movies open at No. 1 only to never make any money, a lot of songs might chart but be forgotten by most people thereafter. "The Letter" is indisputably a hit, and I suspect anyone here could hum it - in fact, I suspect the mothers of most folks here could hum it. "Soul Deep" might, if heard by those same mothers, be recognized vaguely as something they might have heard before...but after that, I'm guessing as to which tracks on, say _The Ultimate Box Tops_ made up the other three of those singles. (As long as I am guessing, I say "Neon Rainbow," "I Met Her in Church," and "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March.") But I don't think anyone but cognoscenti remember those songs - and certainly they're rarely played (if at all) on oldies radio. At any rate, I'm pretty sure Chilton's work with the Box Tops has sold better than anything else he's done, and certainly "The Letter" is the song he's involved with that the most people would recognize...and arguably the only one. (Oh - is there a convenient archive of charting singles through the years? I've tried looking at Billboard's site, and could find only links I had to pay for to look at.) - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Jan 2006 19:12:20 -0600 From: 2fs Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On 1/8/06, Dan Sallitt wrote: > I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the two Jody Stephens > songs Although remember that he also wrote "For You" on the third album - a fine track. - -- ...Jeff Norman The Architectural Dance Society http://spanghew.blogspot.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 17:47:24 -0800 From: "Steve Holtebeck" Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 17:00:36 -0800, 2fs wrote: > On 1/8/06, Steve Holtebeck wrote: >> On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 14:02:46 -0800, 2fs wrote: >> >> > Chilton's career as a whole really doesn't support the notion that he >> > has a whole bunch of _Radio City_-like pop-rock songs in him - that >> > aspect of his musical personality seems more like an aside, even >> > though it's brought him more fame than the rest of his output (not >> > counting the one-hit-wonder singer-in-Box Tops bit). >> >> One Hit Wonder? The Box Tops had five top 40 hits, including three >> top 5 hits between 1967-1970. > > Depends how you measure. Just as any number of movies open at No. 1 > only to never make any money, a lot of songs might chart but be > forgotten by most people thereafter. "The Letter" is indisputably a > hit, and I suspect anyone here could hum it - in fact, I suspect the > mothers of most folks here could hum it. "Soul Deep" might, if heard > by those same mothers, be recognized vaguely as something they might > have heard before...but after that, I'm guessing as to which tracks > on, say _The Ultimate Box Tops_ made up the other three of those > singles. (As long as I am guessing, I say "Neon Rainbow," "I Met Her > in Church," and "Sweet Cream Ladies, Forward March.") "Cry Like A Baby" was a #1 followup to "The Letter". Bands with multiple Billboard #1's can't honestly be called "one-hit wonders". > (Oh - is there a convenient archive of charting singles through the > years? I've tried looking at Billboard's site, and could find only > links I had to pay for to look at.) I don't think there's a (free) online archive of top 40 singles, but I would love to find one. Even an offline program.. - -Steve ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 20:11:22 -0600 From: Bill Silvers Subject: Top 40 singles (was Re: [loud-fans] Big Star) I stumbled onto http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/randypny/cashbox/index.html awhile back. It's not perfect, but better than nothing. Having the week by week lists is cool. b.s. Steve Holtebeck wrote: > I don't think there's a (free) online archive of top 40 singles, but > I would love to find one. Even an offline program.. - -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.371 / Virus Database: 267.14.15/223 - Release Date: 1/6/2006 ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 22:30:54 -0500 From: "Paul King" Subject: Re: Top 40 singles (was Re: [loud-fans] Big Star) From my trusty Canadian Pop Chart catalog (print version): The Letter Charted Aug 19 - Sep 30, 1967 (8 weeks) (Peaked at #1 in Canada & US) Neon Rainbow Charted Nov 18 - Dec 30, 1967 (5 weeks) (Peaked at #17 in Canada and #24 in the US (Billboard)) Choo Choo Train Did not chart in Canada (peaked at #26 on BillBoard) Cry Like A Baby Charted Mar9 - May 11, 1968 (11 weeks) (Peaked at #3 in Canada and #2 in the US) I Met Her In Church Charted Sep 16 - Oct 21, 1968 (3 weeks) (#27 in Canada and #37 in the US) Sweet Cream Ladies Charted Dec 30, 1968 - Mar 31, 1969 (8 weeks) (#16 in Canada, #28 in the US) Soul Deep Charted Jul 5 - Sep 6, 1969 (10 weeks) (#9 in Canada, #18 in the US) Turn on a Dream Charted Oct 24 - Nov 15, 1969 (4 weeks) (#29 in Canada, #58 in the US) Paul King On 8 Jan 2006 at 20:11, Bill Silvers (Bill Silvers ) spaketh these wourdes: > I stumbled onto > > http://members.aol.com/_ht_a/randypny/cashbox/index.html > > awhile back. It's not perfect, but better than nothing. Having the week > by week lists is cool. > > b.s. > > Steve Holtebeck wrote: > > > I don't think there's a (free) online archive of top 40 singles, but > > I would love to find one. Even an offline program.. > > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Free Edition. > Version: 7.1.371 / Virus Database: 267.14.15/223 - Release Date: 1/6/2006 > > __________ NOD32 1.1356 (20060108) Information __________ > > This message was checked by NOD32 antivirus system. > http://www.eset.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 8 Jan 2006 20:18:30 -0800 From: dc Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On Jan 8, 2006, at 2:02 PM, 2fs wrote: > most people who have heard it have remained distinctly > unimpressed. i'm wondering if people would be judging this album differently -- maybe even on its own merits -- if it had been released as an Alex Chilton record, or under a moniker like, say, "Chilton/Stephens/Stringfellow/Auer" instead of "Big Star." yes, there's an inevitability to "In Space" being compared to the "real" albums from 30 years ago and, given their iconic status, it being found wanting if it's anything less than genius. but i also think you can make a case that "Big Star" really ended with the departure of Chris Bell after the first album, and that the next two were just Alex Chiton records anyway. accepting that, i don't don't think "In Space" diminishes the Big Star legacy, and the fact that the best song happens to be sung by a Posie doesn't bother me a bit. yes, they ran out ideas halfway through side 2. but it's still a neat record. dc ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 21:16:21 -0800 From: "Steve Holtebeck" Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 20:18:30 -0800, dc wrote: > yes, there's an inevitability to "In Space" being compared to the "real" > albums from 30 years ago and, given their iconic status, it being found > wanting if it's anything less than genius. but i also think you can make > a case that "Big Star" really ended with the departure of Chris Bell > after the first album, and that the next two were just Alex Chiton > records anyway. accepting that, i don't don't think "In Space" > diminishes the Big Star legacy, and the fact that the best song happens > to be sung by a Posie doesn't bother me a bit. > I'd like to know who wrote which songs. All the original songs are credited to "Chilton/Stephens/Stringfellow/Auer" but they sound more like individual songs. The songs that Jon Auer sings on IN SPACE and the Posies' EVERY KIND OF LIGHT tend to be the strongest ones. Luckily, both of these albums are available via emusic, so it's possible to cherry-pick the good tunes from both into one decent album. I had fairly low expectations for IN SPACE, based on that new song on Ryko's BIG STAR STORY, and while it's not a great album by any means, I think it's at least better than the Posies' album. - -Steve ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 08 Jan 2006 22:26:09 -0700 From: Roger Winston Subject: Re: [loud-fans] Big Star At Sunday 1/8/2006 03:02 PM, 2fs wrote: >I'm pretty sure it's available on eMusic - probably a good thing >since, although I haven't heard it, I also haven't bought it, on the >grounds that most people who have heard it have remained distinctly >unimpressed. So you might want to listen for free (assuming you have >eMusic, or are willing to sign on - and why not, for only $10/mo for >40 downloads?) before committing the cash to the round piece o' >plastic. I know it's been mentioned before, but anyone downloading IN SPACE from eMusic (or elsewhere) would be well advised to skip track #5 - "Love Revolution". I failed to heed the warning, and I want back the 5 minutes and 51 seconds it took to listen to that song. Okay, I was driving at the time, but you know. Just lucky I didn't cause an accident. I was not real taken with the album as a whole, though I do remember liking some of the songs before that one track kicked in. I'm not much of a Big Star fan in general, so factor that in. Latre. --Rog - -- FlasshePoint, yet another blog among millions: http://www.flasshe.com ------------------------------ End of loud-fans-digest V6 #8 *****************************