Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Rest in Peace, Alex Chilton


December 28, 1950 - March 17, 2010


But guns they wait to be stuck by, and at my side is God
And there ain't no one goin' to turn me 'round
Ain't no one goin' to turn me 'round

At this point, I would like to forward you all to this blog entry here for my entry on Big Star, which is what Alex Chilton was best known for.  And then this is the part where you go put on some Big Star, and quite frankly, it really doesn't matter which record you put on because they're all fucking masterpieces, and Alex Chilton was (and will forever be) the fucking man.  Everyone knew Big Star was the real deal, one of the few consummate bands of the entire history of rock and roll.  It is virtually impossible to compete with what Big Star achieved.

I'm going to let other people say these words:

Big Star's "impact on subsequent generations of indie bands on both sides of the Atlantic is surpassed only by that of the Velvet Underground."
-Jason Ankeny, allmusic

"We've sort of flirted with greatness, but we've yet to make a record as good as Revolver or Highway 61 Revisited or Exile on Main Street or Big Star's Third. I don't know what it'll take to push us on to that level, but I think we've got it in us."
-Peter Buck, R.E.M.

---

"I'm constantly surprised that people fall for Big Star the way they do... People say Big Star made some of the best rock 'n roll albums ever. And I say they're wrong."
-Alex Chilton

Let's be frank...Alex Chilton was way off the mark.  Big Star made some of the best rock and roll albums ever.  He's either way too modest to admit it or way too much of a genius to see it.  I choose both.

But the Replacements, I think, said everything about Alex Chilton and the work he'd done with Big Star (and, truthfully, in general) the best:

"I never travel far without a little Big Star."

Rest in peace, Alex Chilton.

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