So where was I? Sorry to leave you all hanging right in the middle of the show. A lot of the show is now popping up on YouTube and various other sites along with some still photography galleries. The Ardent Studios FB page offers a wide-sweeping compilation of these sources so I won't repeat them here.

Take Care. The final highlight of the concert for was Ken and Jon singing Take Care. I'm of the general opinion that Big Star 2.0 was more suited to the material on the first two albums but this performance was heartfelt and poignant to say the least. Most shows like this one end up with everyone on stage for the grand finale – like a teen comedy where everyone ends up in the pool – and this one was no different. But if the concert had ended with Take Care, it would have been fine with me.

The next day I drove down to Clarksdale MS with my friends Parke Puterbaugh (music and travel writer extraordinaire) and Jim Duckworth (guitarist for the Panther Burns and Gun Club) and explored the Delta a bit. That story and a final word on the weekend coming shortly...

Back from Memphis. If you haven't read them yet, there are good summaries of the concert at rollingstone.com and the site for the Memphis Commercial Appeal (if you're on Facebook, sign up for the Ardent Studios page...they post links for significant coverage of Big Star in the media). Amongst the highlights for me were:

Playing Chris Bell's red Gibson 330 (used on #1 Record) for a minute. When I arrived at the venue I ran into Adam Hill of Ardent who was carrying two guitar cases. He said, "Follow me." When we got to the guitar tech area he opened one of the cases and there was Chris's Gibson, loaned for the concert by David Bell. Even more cool was that David had left the contents of the case intact, just as Chris had left them: picks, a capo, and a disposable razor. On the outside was the sticker that came with the Wings album Venus and Mars (which I once had on the case of a Gibson L-6S). Adam was pretty insistent that I play it – something I really prefer not to do as I'm not that good and even worse when put on the spot. But I couldn't pass up the chance and ended up nervously (didn't want to drop the guitar on the concrete floor) playing some James Gang riffs (a favorite of the band before Alex joined) before passing it back. John Auer later used the guitar in the concert as well. The other case held Chris's Gibson acoustic. Adam played I Am The Cosmos on it while getting it ready. Great sounding guitar.

The opening salvo. The concert started with the core trio (Jody, John, Ken) playing Back of A Car and then they were joined by John Davis of Superdrag for great versions of In The Street, Don't Lie To Me, and When My Baby's Beside Me. Davis just nailed it. Right on the money with the vocals, guitar, energy and spirit. He set the bar high for the special guest appearances and no one topped him. This particular line-up could and should continue as a performing unit in some way playing Big Star's music. After John Davis left the stage the trio did I Am The Cosmos. All in all, the first five songs were a strong reminder that Big Star was Chris's band to begin with and represented his artistic vision. The tone was effectively set that the evening was a tribute to Big Star and not just Alex.

For You. The band was joined by Jody Stephen's brother, Jim, who had played bass on the original recordin on Third. Despite the frenzied pace of the day, the band hit a really comfortable relaxed groove and Jody's vocals were spot on. All the band members had incredibly hectic days with rehearsals and the filming going on throughout. I wondered how they were going to catch their breath and relax a bit before they hit the stage. And then it started to rain on top of all that. They were sharp throughout the concert but this was certainly a highlight.

(to be continued)

Getting ready to head down for Saturday's show...full report and hopefully some photos next week. Hope to see you there...

All the way to Memphis...

I'll be in Memphis from 5/14 to 5/17 to attend the Big Star concert, touch base with old and new friends, meet the crew working on the documentary, and maybe squeeze in a trip to Clarksdale.

If you haven't visited the Kickstarter page for the Big Star documentary (see previous post), you should check it out right now. The response has been fantastic so far. As well it should be...Drew and Danielle and company are making sure that it's done right. It's going to be great.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1027989747/nothing-can-hurt-me-the-big-star-story?pos=2&ref=spotlight

BIG STAR ON FILM. I'm sure most of you Big Star fans caught this last night on the various related Big Star pages on Facebook. If not, click on the above link. This film is going to be a great tribute to Big Star and your funding support will help make it happen.

On a related note, I'm most likely going to go to Memphis for the May 15th concert. Just have to clear up some logistics with some commitments on this end. Will keep you all posted as I know many of you will be there. Would be great to see those I know and say hello to all of you I've met over the past year in cyberspace.

Lou Johnson: http://www.funkmysoul.gr/?p=1126

Sid Selvidge http://www.raremp3.co.uk/2010/04/sid-selvidge-portrait-1969.html

This year I've spent some time exploring the world of music blogs that offer mp3s of rare or out of print albums that can't be readily found in stores or online. This is what I guess happens when you own pretty much every album you want to own and a few thousand bootlegs (through trading with fellow fans via bittorrent) on top of that and there's not a decent record store within driving distance of your house despite living in a metropolitan area: you go out digging through the rare and used bins online. I started out looking for LPs that I vaguely remembered from the late 60s / early 70s that had caught my interest back then but were soon passed over for better albums. The quantity of quality releases back then was so high that some albums that I thought weren't that good now sound darn near brilliant when compared to what's being released today. But, alas, the Illinois Speed Press and Cat Mother and the All Night Newsboys deserved their obscurity. On the other hand, the Mylon and Alvin Lee On The Road To Freedom album is really top notch, complete with a great George Harrison song with George adding his trademark slide and Ron Wood and Mick Fleetwood in the rhythm section. If someone wants to reissue the CD, I'll put my money down.

http://www.youtube.com/watchv=T32_k4QH95k&feature=PlayList&p=93B117A4394281EE&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=6

Two albums I (re)discovered have a Memphis connection and are definitely worth checking out.

The first is Lou Johnson's With You In My Mind – produced by Allen Toussaint and released by Stax in 1971. Never reissued and that is a shame because it's a great record. I'll leave it up to the posting blogger to fill you in but here's what you need to know: Toussaint himself rates it right at the top of his production work.

The second album is the debut by Sid Selvidge, a name known to all devotees of the 1970s Big Star / Chilton / Memphis scene. I once owned this record and it's good to hear it again (without having to fork over 50 bucks for a used LP). Sid has released three albums in the past decade and I highly recommend A Little Bit of Rain in particular. He's currently out on tour with Amy Speace. Check him out if he comes to your town.

http://myvinylreview.blogspot.com/2010/04/special-feature-remembering-alex.html

Back from a trip to Chicago. One of the highlights was theWilliam Eggleston retrospective at the Art Institute. Just a fantastic experience to see so much of his work (including the covers photos for Radio City and Flies On Sherbert) in one place. The exhibit runs through the end of May and if you live anywhere near Chicago, you owe it to yourself to make the effort to get there.

Above is a link to a piece I did on request for the My Vinyl Review blog. I was at a little loss as to what to write – after the deluge of writing about Alex after his passing I sort of felt that there wasn't much left to say. Then I remembered this little mental puzzle I'd been working on when I started the book: what would have happened if Bob Dylan's career followed the same trajectory as Alex's rather than have early and ever-increasing commercial and critical success? What if Bob's teen rock band had some hits and his subsequent brilliant solo efforts languished in obscurity? What if by the time people discovered Dylan's brilliant work like Highway 61 and Blonde On Blonde he was more interested in playing off the cuff covers of the songs like those he played on his Theme Time Radio Hour? Well, you can't make all the pieces of the puzzle fit but it was fun to think about. Read the piece and let your mind wander...