cryptique Posted May 24, 2009 Share Posted May 24, 2009 Just got this via the Posies mailing list... link to article Exclusive: Big Star Rhino Box Confirmed 05/22/2009 Four discs, tons of rarities, "best ever" live recordings, and more. Wow. By Fred Mills Now this is a great way to start the holiday weekend off: with Big Star news. Although the topic of the long-rumored Big Star box set has been cropping up on blogs and message boards for a couple of years, there's really been no official confirmation, leading to much speculation as to what might be included (e.g., what stuff has been lurking in the vaults of Ardent Studios). Even drummer Jody Stephens, in an interview earlier this year with RockSellOut.com, remained mum about the subject, as the following exchange highlights: RockSellOut.com: Rhino Records is releasing a Big Star box set in 2009. Any insight of what's still in the vaults that will be shared? Stephens: Don't really know what will be included. There was some interesting BS stuff on the Ardent Records Story. Well, no confirmation until NOW. Word already hit earlier this week, via Bruce Eaton's most excellent Big Star blog (Eaton is the author of the equally most excellent new 33 1/3 book on Big Star's Radio City), that Ardent's John Fry indicated that, indeed, a box was en route on September 15. Today a source close to the project confirmed to BLURT that the box is definitely a "go" and is slated for a Sept. 15 release from Rhino. Clocking in at four discs, the box (title not yet known) will reportedly cover the years 1968-75, which means that a number of pre-Big Star outfits the members - Stephens, Alex Chilton, Andy Hummel, and the late Chris Bell - were in will also be represented. The bulk of the actual Big Star material will comprise "mostly rarities and previously unreleased material," advises our source, material that, indeed, has been kept well away from prying eyes and ears in the Ardent vaults all these years. There's also to be a good chunk of live material, including a Memphis concert circa 1972 or '73 shortly after Bell left the band, leaving Big Star to perform as a three-piece. "This might be the best-ever live recording" of the band, we're told, and it's worth noting that Bell's departure was apparently still fresh enough that the trio was still performing Bell-penned material, with Chilton handling vocals. A fat book in the 100-page range, loaded with rare photos, natch, will round things out. Worth noting is that there won't be massive overlap with the recently announced CD from Concord, a slightly expanded reissue of their Big Star twofer that contained the first two albums, Number One Record and Radio City, due June 16. There's also talk of a related release from Rhino imprint Handmade for a limited edition expanded reissue of Bell's I Am The Cosmos solo collection. Originally compiled by Rykodisc for a posthumous CD release in 1992, it will reportedly be a two-CD set featuring outtakes and alternate versions. An official announcement from Rhino is still forthcoming, but the news is expected to be announced early next week. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Moss Posted May 24, 2009 Share Posted May 24, 2009 Thanks for posting, that's great news! Bummer we have to wait until September though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Hollinger. Posted May 24, 2009 Share Posted May 24, 2009 Hot like fire! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted August 18, 2009 Share Posted August 18, 2009 Chris Bell - I Am The Cosmos (Rhino Handmade link) Chris Bell was an immensely gifted songwriter, performer and producer. As a founding member of Big Star and as a solo artist he struggled to have his songs heard. Sadly, the Memphis-born artist did not live long enough to see the enormous impact his music - both with Big Star and as a solo artist - would have on future generations. Bell's influential legacy grows thanks to a pair of releases: Rhino Handmade's September 14 release of I AM THE COSMOS - DELUXE EDITION, and Rhino Records' September 15 release of Keep An Eye On The Sky, the definitive Big Star anthology. The two-disc deluxe edition of I AM THE COSMOS contains more than a dozen unreleased recordings. As a special bonus, the first 1,000 orders will receive a free 7" single of "I Am The Cosmos" b/w "You And Your Sister." I AM THE COSMOS - DELUXE EDITION contains a remastered version of the original 1992 Ryko compilation on one disc, plus a second disc of rare and unreleased music recorded between 1970 and 1976. On the second disc, all but two of the 15 tracks are previously unreleased. Among the wealth of unissued recordings are eight alternate versions and mixes of album tracks, including "You And Your Sister" with Mellotron in place of the original's string arrangement, and a later version of "Get Away" featuring Big Star's Alex Chilton on guitar, Ken Woodley on bass and Richard Rosebrough on drums. Revisiting the original 1992 release of I AM THE COSMOS, Rhino Handmade's deluxe edition includes the previously released acoustic version of "You And Your Sister." The original also featured a "Slow Version" of the title track, which is heard in its entirety for the first time on this double-disc set. The collection also gathers up a number of unreleased songs Bell recorded that did not appear on I AM THE COSMOS, including two songs by Icewater (a precursor to Big Star); collaborations with Memphis songwriter Keith Sykes ("Stay With Me") and singer Nancy Bryan ("In My Darkest Hour"); and "Clacton Rag," an instrumental recorded in 1976 that features Bell solo on guitar. The beginnings of I AM THE COSMOS can be traced back to 1972, when Bell left Big Star, the seminal power-pop he helped found. After helping Big Star write and record a few songs for RADIO CITY, the band's follow-up, Bell left for France in 1974. While there, he recorded several demos at Hérouville Studios for a planned solo album. Following the sessions, Bell and his brother David took the tracks to a London studio owned by the Beatles' producer George Martin, where they mixed the songs with Geoff Emerick, who engineered several of the Beatles' albums. The songs were shelved and Bell returned home to Memphis, where he recorded more songs with a revolving cast of Memphis musicians. In 1978, Car Records released a single featuring Bell's "I Am The Cosmos" b/w "You And Your Sister." Encouraged by the positive reaction to single, Bell was planning a return to music when he was killed in a car accident in 1978, two days after Christmas. His music remained unreleased until 1992, when several of his demos were released posthumously as I AM THE COSMOS. As noted in the first post in this thread: Keep An Eye On The Sky (Boxed Set) (Rhino Handmade link) Big Star inspired a fevered allegiance among fans of power pop, giving rise to a cult of believers who spent decades spreading the gospel. Their enthusiasm turned this obscure Memphis pop band-one that got little airplay, sold few records, and only played a handful of times- into a remarkable rock and roll resurrection story. Big Star's trek from obscure Memphis band to standard bearers for an entire genre of music has never been fully mapped-until now. Rhino presents the definitive look at the definitive power-pop band with a four-disc boxed set divided between key cuts from Big Star's three studio albums and unreleased music. KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY will be available September 15 from Rhino Records at all retail outlets, including www.rhino.com, for a suggested list price of $69.98 (physical), it will also be available as a digital release the same day. A Deluxe Edition release of Chris Bell's solo album I Am The Cosmos is due September 14 from Rhino Handmade. KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY spans 1968 to 1975 and shows the progression of Big Star through selections from such studio precursors as Rock City and Icewater; music from Big Star's acclaimed recordings (#1 Record, Radio City, and Third/Sister Lovers); and relevant solo work by group principals Alex Chilton and Chris Bell, who formed Big Star in 1971 with bassist Andy Hummel and drummer Jody Stephens. The collection also uncovers a trove of unreleased demos, unused mixes, alternate versions of songs, and a 1973 concert recorded in Memphis. In these 98 tracks you can hear what turned artists as diverse as Cheap Trick, R.E.M., and The Replacements into Big Star fans. Spotlighting the band's roots, the boxed set opens with several songs recorded before Big Star formed, including “Try Again,” one of the first songs Bell and Chilton wrote together. Those early cuts are followed by Big Star's 1972 debut #1 Record, reimagined here using a mix of album tracks and unreleased alternate mixes of favorites like “Thirteen,” “When My Baby's Beside Me,” and more. Among the disc's rarities are “Country Morn'” (issued as a flexi-disc single by a Big Star fanzine), the demo for “I Got Kinda Lost,” and an unreleased acoustic demo of Chilton singing Loudon Wainwright's “Motel Blues.” Ardent Records, the band's label, experienced problems with distribution that hindered any chances at success for #1 Record. Its failure was a major blow to Bell, who quit the band to go solo. In 1974, the Alex Chilton-led Big Star regrouped and released Radio City, an album more attuned to the band's live energy that featured the power-pop confections “September Gurls” and “Back Of A Car.” The second disc of KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY opens with a trio of unreleased demos: “There Was A Light,” “What's Going Ahn,” and “Life Is White.” The original song sequence for Radio City follows, combining album versions with unreleased alternate mixes (“Way Out West” and “You Get What You Deserve.”) The disc features unissued versions of “She A Mover” and “Mod Lang,” several unreleased demos for Big Star's third album, plus Bell's acclaimed 1978 single “I Am The Cosmos” and its B-side “You And Your Sister.” Sadly, Bell died in a car accident a few months after the single's release. When Big Star reconvened in 1975 to record Third/Sister Lovers, only Chilton and Stephens remained (Hummel left shortly before Radio City's release). Famed Memphis maverick Jim Dickinson was enlisted to supervise the recording, which languished on the shelf for years before its release in 1978. Despite its bleak timbre, wild dynamics, and fragility, the music possesses a startling grace. KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY's third disc opens with seven demos (most previously unreleased) for songs that appear on Third/Sister Lovers, including “Jesus Christ,” “Take Care,” and “Holocaust.” Among the album's 19 songs collected here is “For You,” “Kizza Me,” and “Kanga Roo.” Also featured is “Lovely Day,” an early, unreleased version of “Stroke It Noel” with different lyrics; Chilton vamping with photographer Bill Eggleston at the piano for Nat King Cole's “Nature Boy” and a raucous cover of The Kinks' “Till The End Of The Day.” The collection's final disc contains unreleased highlights from three sets Big Star performed at Lafayette's Music Room in Memphis in January 1973. It is the best live recording ever of the band. The show captures Chilton, Hummel, and Stephens playing many of the songs on #1 Record, which had just recently been released. The set list includes a retooled version of “ST 100/6” lengthened by both guitar and drum solos (with a middle eight heisted from the Rock City song “The Preacher.”) Also in the repertoire are “There Was A Light” and “I Got Kinda Lost.” In addition, the concert includes fully formed versions of several songs recorded later for Radio City: “Back Of A Car,” “Way Out West,” “O My Soul,” and a particularly rocking “She's A Mover.” Those originals are mixed with a selection of covers: Todd Rundgren's “Slut,” T. Rex's “Baby Strange,” The Kinks' “Come On Now,” and The Flying Burrito Brothers' “Hot Burrito #2.” The lavish packaging for KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY includes extensive liner notes, rare and never-before-seen photos, and insightful essays about the cult of Big Star and the band's history. In the notes, Stephens reflects on the band's belated triumph. “Sure, it would've been nice to have been huge at the time. But, here we are, 30 years later, and Big Star is still playing, our music is turning up in movie soundtracks, and young people are still excited to discover the records. I mean, if that isn't success, I don't know what is.” Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Moss Posted August 18, 2009 Share Posted August 18, 2009 This is as exiting to me as the Beatles Mono box! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LouisvilleGreg Posted August 18, 2009 Share Posted August 18, 2009 anyone have any info about price yet? The most I've given for a box set was the most recent The Band set. It was $100 and actually quite worth it. I'm sure this will be as well. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted August 18, 2009 Share Posted August 18, 2009 If you click on the links there are prices listed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
futureman Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 i really hope a tour is to follow, Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens teamed up with the Poises' Jon Auer and Ken Stringfellow have reformed the band so we'll see i guess Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Analogman Posted September 19, 2009 Share Posted September 19, 2009 A review by way of No Depression: REVIEW: Big Star: Keep An Eye On The Sky (box set) I actually never got into Big Star. I am a big fan of The Box Tops though. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Calexico Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 I really like Big Star but probably not enough to spring for something this big. Unless some fat dude in a red suit gave it to me sometime in December. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
brownie Posted September 20, 2009 Share Posted September 20, 2009 I am adoring this box set. It's worth the money for all the extras (mostly the demos and live stuff), and the package/book is great as well. I haven't read the (very fat!) book yet, but the pictures are wonderful. The sound on all the recordings is top notch. Someone above was wondering about a tour - I don't know about a tour, but the band is playing in Brooklyn in November - and I very, very sadly won't be able to go!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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