Album #145: Big Star - #1 Record

Big Star

#1 Record (1972)

Big Star are contenders for the greatest band that never was. It must be something to do with 70s power pop icons, because they, like Badfinger, were desperately unlucky not to ascend to musical royalty. Where Badfinger were ripped off by an unscrupulous toolbag of a 'manager', Big Star's unintended downfall came at the very start of their career, as a consequence of being signed to a clueless record label (Stax Records) who could not adequately promote or distribute their debut album, #1 Record (and by 'could not adequately promote or distribute', I mean 'actually did not really bother promoting or distributing'.) Fans were unable to buy copies because there weren't enough at stores, and the label made no attempts to gain radio airplay.

When the band themselves got their material to the attention of radio stations, and people began to sit up and take notice, the shit really hit the fan, because the lack of availability really hit home. To top it all off, when Stax signed a distribution deal with Columbia Records, rather than this being the catalyst for copies of #1 Record to fly off the shelves, Columbia actually pulled copies off record store shelves because they refused to deal with independent record stores that Stax had previously dealt with themselves.

In short: it was a clusterfuck, and an album where every song was described as a possible single ended up only selling about 10 000 copies. This actually caused the band's demise; the band's main creative force, Chris Bell, left, suffering depression; bass player Andy Hummel wasn't far behind, and after three poorly selling yet rather good albums, Big Star were gone.

They were later to have a revival, as indie kids and major acts of the 80s publically celebrated the band's work, but sadly this came too late for Bell and Hummel; Bell died in a car accident, aged just 27, while Hummel left the band after their second album.

Without further ado, today we explore the band's debut album and find out what all the fuss was about.

The Album

Magnificently lush, loaded up with hooks aplenty and enough vocal harmonies to fill a Beatles album, #1 Record is everything that reviewers - contemporary and recent - said it was. The statement that 'every cut could be a single', made in a Billboard review, is accurate, though not every song would be a great single, in truth. The key is the incredible sense of melody and harmony that the band has, in particular Bell, whose guiding hand was at the helm of production here, and for whom it appears Beatlesesque sounds were second nature.

Additionally, many people overuse the term Beatlesesque - I know, I'm one of them - but #1 Record absolutely deserves the term. It picks up where Abbey Road left off and is all the better for it, both in terms of the quality of production and the immensely beautiful sound of the album. Bell and Alex Chilton deserve nothing but praise for their incredible vocal harmonies, even if on their lead tracks, Bell is for mine the better singer, with a greater range and a sweeter timbre.

Trying to pick standout songs is tough because almost every song has something to recommend it. Feel's dry, compressed, scratchy guitar riffs are a counterpoint to the monstrously lush harmonies, while saxophone and organ add extra flavour to the punchy pop/rock. The Ballad of El Goodo sees Chilton do an eerily accurate impression of George Harrison on vocals, while the chorus is pure Beatles as Chilton and Bell harmonise. The band goes full-on powerpop on the very British Invasion In The Street (with a bluesy riff and a sitar-sounding lead break), the snarling When My Baby's Beside Me (even if Chilton downplays the snarl with a pure, sweet pop vocal) and on the rollercoaster dynamics of My Life Is Right, with gentle verses and smashing choruses. There's even a harder rocking tune in the surprising, but brilliant, Don't Lie To Me; its muscular riff, classy lead guitar breaks, driving rhythm and gutsy, rougher vocals from Bell being the main features.

When Big Star go ballad, it seems to be an invitation to turn up the Lush-O-Meter. Some, like the George Harrison inspired stylings of Try Again and the straightforward Give Me Another Chance, are stunning. The former in particular is superb, not just thanks to all the wonderful vocals and lush acoustic guitars, but the addition of a fantastic slide guitar part. The latter is somewhat similar, with dual acoustics providing a beefy but beautiful aesthetic, and Bell's falsetto backing vocal supports Chilton's lower tones to perfection. Thirteen also has those lush acoustics, but vocally it takes a simpler path, with Chilton alone, his voice lightly echoed, matching the lyrical theme of reflection on youth and celebration of simpler times.

The album though just confirms the tragedy of Big Star. Bell and Chilton were, on this evidence, one hell of a potential songwriting team, and it's upsetting to think that record label fuckwittery is what ensured the pair would produce just one single album as a creative partnership.

The Verdict

Sometimes it's rather au fait to pump up the tyres of 'lost' artists and recordings (think Nick Drake or Tim Buckley as examples), and inflate their value because, in true music hipster style, you want people to think that you're the gatekeeper to some far out musical world; or because the artist (usually tragically prevented from doing anything else) is no longer around, and their material was ignored upon release. It's like a form of musical archaeology, really; people finding forgotten artists and finding their material like it's the Ark of the Covenant, you're Indiana Jones and all those other people who don't get it are Belloq.

The point of that rather tortured analogy is to say that my concern before listening to #1 Record was that it would not live up to the rather overwhelming platitudes it's received, particularly in the years following the band's demise from people who were falling over themselves to namedrop the band.

Yet it appears those people were correct (as, to be fair, people were with Nick Drake). #1 Record is amazing. It's another example of pop music as it used to be - brilliantly crafted, expertly performed and delightfully lush. Frankly, Stax Records deserve to be thought of as fools based on this album, because they had an absolute goldmine on their hands and threw it away.

Worse than that, they denied people the opportunity to experience the talents of Chris Bell....which in turn denied Bell the opportunity to explore his talent. Still, this album stands as a testimony to both his love of the British sound and his attention to pop music detail.

I'm glad I heard it. I guarantee it's staying in my collection.

My rating: 9.3/10

Standout Tracks

Try Again

In The Street

Don't Lie To Me

The Ballad of El Goodo