Featuring Brendan Benson, Norman Blake, Robyn Hitchcock...
Classic album Big Star's Third is set to be re-created by an all star cast including Brendan Benson, Norman Blake and more.
After two albums of sublime pop, Big Star were exhausted. Problems with distribution, their label and more destroyed their attempts to infiltrate the mainstream with Alex Chilton left to lead the disintegrating band alone.
Enduring personal problems, the band's famously fraught third album has gone down in rock history. A beautiful, totally idiosyncratic work 'Big Star's Third' is the dark, distraught aftermath to the youthful pop of 'September Gurls'.
Now an all star cast are set to re-create the album at a one off show. Taking place in the Barbican on May 28th, 'Big Star's Third' - also titled 'Sister Lovers' - will be re-cast by some incredible musicians.
The sole surviving member of Big Star, Jody Stephens will join an ensemble which includes Mitch Easter, Chris Stamey, Ken Stringfellow and more.
Special guests include (deep breath) Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Alexis Taylor (Hot Chip), J on Auer (The Posies), Brendan Benson (The Raconteurs), Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), John Bramwell (I Am Kloot), Ira Kaplan (Yo La Tengo), Sondre Lerche , Sharon Van Etten , Robyn Hitchcock, Django Haskins (The Old Ceremony), Brett Harris and Skylar Gudasz.
The show follows two similar ventures in the United States, which saw the famously fraught album re-cast as an orchestral piece. “The original written scores for the record were long missing,” Chris Stamey explained, “but John Fry at Ardent Records was able to supply us with elements of the original multitrack tapes".
"Composer Carl Marsh, who wrote the ground-breaking charts for the original record, used these tapes to precisely re-transcribe his arrangements. And I’ve orchestrated anew some other elements of the recordings for the players, in order to recreate live some of the aleatoric studio effects.”
Hitting the Barbican next month, the concert will include a second set focussing on Big Star's wider output and the solo material of Alex Chilton and Chris Bell. "It's easier as time passes to revisit that album because it came out of such a dark period," Big Star drummer Jody Stephens reflected.
"There were brilliant moments in the studio, especially Carl Marsh's string arrangements, which really take it to a whole other world. But it could be emotionally difficult to watch certain things happen. I was so close to it at the time that I could not see what it was."
'Sister Lovers' -
May
28 London Barbican
Click here to buy tickets for Sister Lovers.
After two albums of sublime pop, Big Star were exhausted. Problems with distribution, their label and more destroyed their attempts to infiltrate the mainstream with Alex Chilton left to lead the disintegrating band alone.
Enduring personal problems, the band's famously fraught third album has gone down in rock history. A beautiful, totally idiosyncratic work 'Big Star's Third' is the dark, distraught aftermath to the youthful pop of 'September Gurls'.
Now an all star cast are set to re-create the album at a one off show. Taking place in the Barbican on May 28th, 'Big Star's Third' - also titled 'Sister Lovers' - will be re-cast by some incredible musicians.
The sole surviving member of Big Star, Jody Stephens will join an ensemble which includes Mitch Easter, Chris Stamey, Ken Stringfellow and more.
Special guests include (deep breath) Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Alexis Taylor (Hot Chip), J on Auer (The Posies), Brendan Benson (The Raconteurs), Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), John Bramwell (I Am Kloot), Ira Kaplan (Yo La Tengo), Sondre Lerche , Sharon Van Etten , Robyn Hitchcock, Django Haskins (The Old Ceremony), Brett Harris and Skylar Gudasz.
The show follows two similar ventures in the United States, which saw the famously fraught album re-cast as an orchestral piece. “The original written scores for the record were long missing,” Chris Stamey explained, “but John Fry at Ardent Records was able to supply us with elements of the original multitrack tapes".
"Composer Carl Marsh, who wrote the ground-breaking charts for the original record, used these tapes to precisely re-transcribe his arrangements. And I’ve orchestrated anew some other elements of the recordings for the players, in order to recreate live some of the aleatoric studio effects.”
Hitting the Barbican next month, the concert will include a second set focussing on Big Star's wider output and the solo material of Alex Chilton and Chris Bell. "It's easier as time passes to revisit that album because it came out of such a dark period," Big Star drummer Jody Stephens reflected.
"There were brilliant moments in the studio, especially Carl Marsh's string arrangements, which really take it to a whole other world. But it could be emotionally difficult to watch certain things happen. I was so close to it at the time that I could not see what it was."
'Sister Lovers' -
May
28 London Barbican
Click here to buy tickets for Sister Lovers.
Big Star
