BIG STAR might change your life...

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teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

http://www.pbase.com/teleburst/image/15 ... medium.jpg


I had the same signed cover from the '81 show but it was stolen. My buddy, the program director for WLYX FM-89 went backstage at the October show and got this for me. I was at the show, but kinda of afraid of what Bono might do if he recognized me from the year before.

Damn. Don't know why the file from Dropbox won't load. Decided to just post a link. Any reason why I can't get the image to post directly?
Last edited by teleburst on Thu Jul 31, 2014 7:13 pm, edited 3 times in total.

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RolanK
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by RolanK »

teleburst wrote:
RolanK wrote:
teleburst wrote:One day, I might tell the story of how I helped bail Chrissie Hynde out of jail in Memphis in 1980 and how I pissed off Bono the next year on the Boy tour.


Let me guess. You're the guy who stole his suitcase which had his notebook in it with all the scribblings and lyrics ideas for the upcoming recording session for the October album?


I wish. I'd be a wealthy man now. If I had known that he might have been carrying it around, I'd have snatched that sucker quicker than you could say Belfast.

Just kidding.

But it WAS the eve of Bono's 21st birthday. Which is the crux of the story.


Well, appears the briefcase disappeared in Portland, OR a few weeks before they played Memphis (on the day before his birthday.)

(Looking forward to read that story with much anticipation)
Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

Well, appears the briefcase disappeared in Portland, OR a few weeks before they played Memphis (on the day before his birthday.)

(Looking forward to read that story with much anticipation)


No wonder he couldn't take a joke.

He was turning 21 at midnight of the show.

FM-89 was doing a promotion with U2 and WB. The WB rep, Gene Dries, was my predecessor as Music Director at the station, so he was partial to us (how and why I got promoted is still a bit of a mystery - probably due to sheer hours spent there as a volunteer). Anyway, together we cooked up a tenuous tie in to U2 with a scavenger hunt and a prize of a pocket sized Olympus camera (these were not cheap cameras and pretty high tech for the size) and a pair of passes to the show. Whoever brought into the station the most unusual item starting with the letter U would be the winner. The tie in was the spy aspect of the U-2 spy plane - hunting down a prize, small, concealable camera, etc. (I told you it was tenuous).

We must have gotten about 20 submissions. The staff chose the best 10 to present to the band at soundcheck. I brought them down and the band chose a top 3. They were a working ukulele/umbrella, and two others - a umbilical cord and uterus in specimen jars. The top three were notified and given their tickets at the last minute.

In the middle of the show, they trotted them out to great delight of the crowd. The band chose the ukulele/umbrella with great fanfare and the winner received their prize on the spot.

So, I had been hanging around backstage with the guitar tech. One of the things I learned was that the way that The Edge got his signature sound was with a cheap pedal that he found in a Dublin pawnshop IIRC. Anyway, the show ended and they prepared to come off in preparation for the encore. A guy leaned over to me as I waited in the wings (I'd like to think that it must have been Paul McGuinness) and yelled at me, "It's going to be Bono's 21st birthday tonight and the band has something special for him. When he comes off, make him go back on stage. If one of us does it, he'll know something is up. Would you do that for us"? I said sure and when Bono started off the stage, I stopped him and said that they needed him back on stage. He looked at me kinda quizzically but turned around and went back.

The band announced that he was turning 21 at midnight and had the crowd sing Happy Birthday to him. Then one of the band produced a magnum of Veuve Clicquot, shook it up and sprayed him with it. Then another band member pulled a 10 pound bag of flour from behind the drum riser and hit him with it, coating him from head to toe with a layer of doughy mess. When he came off the stage, he shot me such a look. Needless to say, I didn't hang around for the meet and greet and I wasn't invited to Miller's Cave, a country dive in Frayser where the band got up and performed a few songs at midnight. Gene has a photo of a just turned 21 Bono wearing a cowboy hat on stage and obviously cleaned up.

When I saw the Pretenders open for U2 at Cologne stadium around '88, I was backstage for that as well, thanks to my connections with the Pretenders. I tried to get to say hi to Bono and remind him of that night, but they were in trailers that were cordoned off, even to all access pass holders like me.

I think that enough time had gone by that bygones would have been bygones.

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tinnitus photography
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by tinnitus photography »

great stories... keep 'em coming!

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RolanK
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by RolanK »

Yeah. I'm a sucker for rock'n'roll minutiae. Cool story, although I don't really get why he had to get so upset with you. He must have understood you were only acting on someones instructions. I guess he was already turing into a pompous fart.
Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa-Fa

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

RolanK wrote:Yeah. I'm a sucker for rock'n'roll minutiae. Cool story, although I don't really get why he had to get so upset with you. He must have understood you were only acting on someones instructions. I guess he was already turing into a pompous fart.


It was shoot the messenger time. He had to direct his anger somewhere.

I'm only projecting from his stinkeye that he was pissed at me. I didn't stick around long enough to ask him.

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

Back in the mid-90s, I was a member of the Pretenders' mailing list (that was before forums were popular).

I wrote up my Pretenders stuff and sent them in a series of emails that were collected and archived on the net.

Frankly, I could have used an editor (still could). It's kind of hard to tell where one ends and the next one begins, but the second one begins with the "dark and stormy night" line. As you can see, I meant to carry on but never got around to it. I wrote it as much entertainment as laying down the facts, so there are some baroque turns of phrases. I should go back and rewrite it as an actual lucid article but, well, the older I get, the lazier I get.

http://www.pretenders.org/dave.htm

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3milelake
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by 3milelake »

Dave /teleburst. Wow! Thanks for sharing those wonderful experiences.

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

My "I gave Jay Gonzalez a chicharron the size of a boomerang in the parking lot of Buster's in Lexington, KY" tale pales in comparison to the ones I've told already.

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Big Star's Jody Stephens talks the reinvented Big Star

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Photo by Conni Freestone/Courtesy of Chris Stamey

blackwll
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by blackwll »

Finally got around to watching the movie on Netflix. Good viewing albeit depressing.

Found the article on Chilton's Tuscaloosa adventures/connections while I was in college. I heard of him hanging around T-Town without really knowing exactly who he was.
I know or know of several of the folks interviewed. RIP Vinyl Solution. I know Matt Patton has written about the loss of such a great indie record shop. http://deadspin.com/5507622/getting-hig ... al-history

I saw where Gary Louris of the Jayhawks is playing with the Third album Big Star shows. Hard to find an influence there. LOL. Big influence on one of my favs and I did not realize it. I humbly apologize for referring to BS as the Bay City Rollers four years ago on here.

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

One night I was doing one of my 10pm-2am radio shifts at WLYX. It was about 1 in the morning and I was playing some Big Star. This would have been around '78 - '79. The studio phone rang shortly thereafter, which was pretty rare for that time of morning. I picked up and the guy said, "I was driving from North Carolina and I heard Big Star. ON THE RADIO! I couldn't believe it. So I had to pull over and call and thank you". I said something like, well it is Memphis after all, but I know what you mean. They don't get played nearly enough. He said, "Yeah, that's right. I'm a musician and I was driving to a gig in Oklahoma (or maybe it was Arkansas, but Oklahoma sticks in my mind). Thanks for making the trip bearable", and then he told me his name, which stuck with me for years because of it's unusual nature.

That was Peter Holsapple.

About a year and a half ago, I saw him pop up on Facebook and I friended him and sent a message asking if he remembered this tiny incident. He did. I'm just glad that I hadn't imagined the whole thing. He wrote, "oddly enough I do remember that. It was so rare to hear Big Star on the radio... still is. Thanks Dave. PH"

Of course, he had already worked with Alex by that point.

The dB's had already formed at that point, I guess, but they were based out of NYC. I don't know if they had just played a hometown gig as part of a tour, but I definitely remember the "driving from North Carolina" part. I'm surprised that they weren't playing Memphis, as Peter had actually moved there previously for a short period of time (I didn't know that until recently, and I really didn't realize who he was until the 90s because I had been in Germany from 83 to 91 and missed that whole 80s US scene for the most part), but I remember saying that he was driving through to someplace else.
Last edited by teleburst on Mon Aug 25, 2014 5:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Saw the production of Big Star's Third: Sister Lovers / #1 Record at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro on Friday. While I really enjoyed the previous two performances at the Cradle in 2010, I believe the presence of Ken Stringfellow and Jon Auer really pushed this one over the top. That's not to make light of the over all ensemble either as everyone was on top of it. Like the previous two, there were lulls and miscues but that's to be expected when herding that many people on stage. Major kudos to Chris Stamey and all involved as making Big Star music a living breathing thing has gone a long way towards helping me appreciate their music on a deeper level, one I never would have achieved just by listening to the records.

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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Tyler »

Grr, why do I only hear about these Cat's Cradle shows after they've happened?

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Tyler wrote:Grr, why do I only hear about these Cat's Cradle shows after they've happened?


Not sure. No offense but I often see people say, "I didn't hear about it" even when an event is highly publicized (as this one was). This Big Star show has been listed on the Cradle's website for months, received a big write up in the Indy and was featured on The State of Things on WUNC this week. It was one of several events in Chapel Hill and Carrboro last week that were tied into the Southern Folklife Collection's 25th Anniversary celebration. I miss some shows too but they usually tend to be of the under the radar variety. I help contribute to the Guitartown Calendar (a listing of Triangle area and regional shows) but even still, some manage to slip by me. The way I look at it, that's just a testament to how much great music we have happening here. We (Guitartown) have Lydia Loveless coming to Motoroco in Durham on Tuesday, September 23rd. I hope you're able to make that one.
Last edited by Kudzu Guillotine on Mon Aug 25, 2014 10:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Tyler
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Tyler »

That's the thing....I'm far enough away that I don't get that shit down here - different NPR station, different newspaper, etc. I'm 90 miles away ;)

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Tyler wrote:That's the thing....I'm far enough away that I don't get that shit down here - different NPR station, different newspaper, etc. I'm 90 miles away ;)


I used to live roughly three hours away and used this newfangled gadget called the innerweb to read the Indy, Guitartown (email list) and the various clubs' websites so I could keep up with what was going on. ;)


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Shakespeare
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Shakespeare »

this thread was bumped when these shows were announced and i know i posted all the dates in the live thread on here, so it wasnt a secret on this board. tyler, youre kinda near dc right? the 930 club show was pretty well promoted

anyway i caught the dc show on saturday and it was a wonderful night of music. iw as skeptical about the tribute show thing cuz i always am but it was so well rehearsed (even pat sansone, who flew in that day with no rehearsals, didnt miss a beat) and you could really feel all the singers' passion for the music. a lot of times i feel like these gigs bring in big names with no real connection to the music, but this felt like musicians who actually wanted to be playing these songs.

our encore was you and your sister/september gurls/i am the cosmos. glad to see those chris bell tracks but till the end of the day and the letter would have been cool to see.

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Having attended both shows at the Cradle in 2010, I wasn't the least bit skeptical about the most recent performance or the show in general. Most everyone involved has some sort of connection to Big Star, which makes it a labor of love. I see projects like this more as a celebration of their work and not something like a band that makes a living doing an imitation of another artist. The shows are usually also different at each date as the ensemble of musicians change for each performance. Pat Sansone was advertised as one of the members of the ensemble that would be performing at the Cradle show but wasn't there. I think someone made a mistake on the roster that was listed on the Cradle's website. Charles Cleaver (who took part in the 2010 performances) was on keys again for this one, with Ken Stringfellow, Chris Stamey and one other person (maybe from the Connells) sitting in on occasion.

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

You might find this interesting (or not).

This was the aftershow music presentation after the debut airing of the Big Star movie at The Belcourt Theatre in Nashville.

It's Jody, Bill Lloyd (of Foster and Lloyd and great solo work), John Davis of Knoxville's Superdrag, Rick Clark, who played on those early Jon Tiven-produced solo Alex tunes, and co-producer Olivia Mora singing on a tune or two.

I was too far back to get a decent video (I was sitting with my old friend Rick Clark, who I hadn't seen in a while, and Bill Lloyd). So I decided at the last minute to just stick a lens cap on and record the audio. I missed about the first 20 seconds of Jody's introductory remarks. Jody was kind of under the weather according to Rick and Bill. They only had a few hours to rehearse with Jody.

It's got a creaky charm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2KwNmvGNSs

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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by beantownbubba »

teleburst wrote:Bill Lloyd (of Foster and Lloyd and great solo work)


I know it's tangential at best, but absolutely agreed. Lloyd does not get enough (any) mention/acknowledgement around here.
What used to be is gone and what ought to be ought not to be so hard

teleburst
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by teleburst »

beantownbubba wrote:
teleburst wrote:Bill Lloyd (of Foster and Lloyd and great solo work)


I know it's tangential at best, but absolutely agreed. Lloyd does not get enough (any) mention/acknowledgement around here.


Agreed. He has a side project here in Nashville called The Long Players, where they cover a classic album in its entirety. For several years, Gary Tallent was the bass player, as he lived here for a while. After he moved away, several great bass players filled in. He recently returned to help cover Beggar's Banquet a few weeks ago. The concept is that they have a different guest singer for each song. Plus, they do an encore of other songs from the same artist or relevant songs from others.

http://www.thelongplayers.com/

Here's Bill talking about Big Star to The Nashville Scene shortly before the screening:

http://www.nashvillescene.com/nashville ... id=3464160

Finally, here's a couple of samples of what they do:

Exile on Main Street : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YQxUMYDbjg

Baby Blue featuring Joey Molland and yes, that's Marshall Crenshaw right next to him: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-Zl8OA5IVI

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

beantownbubba wrote:
teleburst wrote:Bill Lloyd (of Foster and Lloyd and great solo work)


I know it's tangential at best, but absolutely agreed. Lloyd does not get enough (any) mention/acknowledgement around here.


Whenever I think of the Great Roots-Rock Credibility Scare of the Late 1980's, Foster & Lloyd are one of the first bands to come to mind.

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

From Friday night at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, NC.



**Edited to Add

The person (John Guerin) that uploaded the above clip has since uploaded a couple more (see below). If you go to Dan Wuori's YouTube channel, he's uploaded nearly the entire concert.



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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by jr29 »

beantownbubba wrote:
teleburst wrote:Bill Lloyd (of Foster and Lloyd and great solo work)


I know it's tangential at best, but absolutely agreed. Lloyd does not get enough (any) mention/acknowledgement around here.


Bill is fantastic and he has been waving the Big Star flag his entire career.
One thing I love about Jody Stephens is that he is still in Memphis. A lot of musicians who come out of there eventually leave but, as far as I know, Jody has been a Memphian his entire life.

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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Rocky »

Tift Merrit singing Thirteen is just beautiful. Thanks so much for posting.
By the time you drop them I'll be gone
And you'll be right where they fall the rest of your life

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Rocky wrote:Tift Merrit singing Thirteen is just beautiful. Thanks so much for posting.


My pleasure. I don't have a thing against Tift singing "Thirteen" as I think it's lovely as well but some of us were thrown off by her performance of it as it is usually sung by Skylar Gudasz. In fact, Skylar even sang it during this interview that aired on WUNC the morning of the concert. If you click on the link below, you'll be able to listen to it (it's at the end of the interview).

Big Star's Third: An All-Star Celebration Of A Hugely Influential Band

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L-R: Jody Stephens, host Eric Hodge, Skylar Gudasz, Brett Harris and Chris Stamey in the WUNC Studios
Credit Al Wodarski / WUNC

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Rocky
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Rocky »

I saw her in that video and became interested in who she was (because frankly she's a babe). I looked her up on YouTube and saw her singing the song too. What a great voice.
By the time you drop them I'll be gone
And you'll be right where they fall the rest of your life

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Kudzu Guillotine
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Re: BIG STAR might change your life...

Post by Kudzu Guillotine »

Rocky wrote:I saw her in that video and became interested in who she was (because frankly she's a babe). I looked her up on YouTube and saw her singing the song too. What a great voice.


Skylar is also in a band from around here called Spooky Woods along with some folks that also play (or have played) in Mount Moriah as well as some other local bands. They haven't released a record yet but be sure to look them up if you like what you hear from Skylar. By the way, she just released a 7" solo record.

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