Thoughts on Big Star

One thing I have learned over the decades is that there is just no way to predict or account for personal taste in music. You either get it or you don't--or somewhere in between. That can even vary among albums by the same artist. For instance, I adore the Grateful Dead's "American Beauty," but I cannot make it all the way through a single one of their 10,000 concert albums to save my life, nor do I care about a great many of their other studio albums. But "American Beauty" has been ringing my bell for thirty years or more.

My wife loves Dave Matthews, but to me he's as boring as a bowl of warm milk. I love Ornette Coleman, but his music sends her screaming out of the room. And so it goes.

I love Big Star with all of my heart, but their music is, well, stranger than most of the Beatles catalog, and Alex Chilton has that tremulous voice that does not exactly translate easily to pop the way John Lennon's or Paul McCartney's do. In that sense, maybe they are an acquired taste for some. It knocked me right out from the start, but I get that they may not be for everyone.

Radio City will always be a deserted island album for me, and the other two are not far behind.

Good points Walter. And isn't a good thing? If we all liked the same things I suspect the diversity of things would be far less!

Often times when I hearing nothing that pulls me in from a band I move along. But when they have a good song or two that do grab hold of me I try to give their other stuff a good long listen.

" Generally agree with your premise, but there are plenty of albums that had to grow on me over time." I agree completely n80. There are several of those in my collection. For instance (& at an extreme) I have yet to meet anyone who liked Captain Beefheart the first time they listened to them...

it's a pretty big leap from big star to captain beefheart (who i never got into; never was a zappa fan either despite earnest effort). what i suspect may be offputting to some about big star is how they pushed the boundaries of traditional melodic pop--there's an abrasiveness to some of their tunes + at least on the first two records they sing in such a high register as to sound unnatural.
as a related aside, check out "thank you, friends: big star's third live," a very nicely done tribute by various dbs/rem/posies, etc.

The first songs I heard by Big Star (and my two favorites) are For You and Stroke It Noel. They sounded very unique to me. Strange even. I've found a few others that I like but just not getting the rest of their work....but still listening.